POINT OF VIEW

As is generally true of a work of fiction told in the first person, we learn about all the events and characters through the eyes of the narrator. This subjective point of view has added significance in The Catcher in the Rye. "The setting of the book," we suggested earlier in this guide, "is Holden's mind" The point of view is an integral part of Salinger's exploration of that mind. The first-person narration invites a reader to share Holden's feeling that he's an outsider observing a world he can't accept-or completely reject. The reader should be aware, however, that the narration is slanted and may not report matters accurately.

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