I read ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ when I was 13 years old and fell in love with it more than I thought I ever could with a world that seems so far away. So as soon as we were introduced to the extended essay, I knew that I wanted it to be inspired by this book.
During our first meeting, my supervisor suggested that my initial angle, about discussing whether or not the book is a ‘coming of age’ novel was too broad. She recommended that I talk to Mr. Huntington, who is very knowledgable and passionate about this book. He suggested that I focus on the depiction of society in the book, the ‘seedy’ side of New York that serves as a most remarkable setting an exploration of the challenges of youth. So I decided to shift my focus to the circumstances that makes a book a ‘coming of age’ novel, and how this is explored in the book.
