Holden Caulfield vs. Equality 7-2521: Individual and Society

Introduction: Two Protagonists, Two Societies

Both J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye and Ayn Rand's Anthem depict conformist societies that are hostile to deviations from what is deemed normal. In both novels, the protagonist is a talented and articulate nonconformist who cannot fit into his society's constructs of identity and wishes for an alternative in which he can express his true self. Holden Caulfield and Equality 7-2521 feel oppressed by demands that all persons regulate their behavior according to a set of pre-ordained rules. However, Holden Caulfield's status as an adolescent suggests that he is experiencing a transitional stage, and he will eventually find a place in adult society after he reconciles himself to his parents, his teachers, and his emerging sexuality. The narrative suggests that society seems so oppressive largely because Holden perceives it to be so, rather than because it truly is as awful and as phony as it appears to his young eyes. In contrast, Rand's world differs fundamentally from Salinger's: her vision depicts a society whose rules are anathema not simply to a confused adolescent's sense of self, but to fully developed, adult human nature.

Conformist Rules: Pencey Prep vs. a Dystopian State

Salinger's tale takes place in an arena that is at least somewhat recognizable as the real world. Caulfield is a student at an elite preparatory school. Although the school is strict, Holden's refusal to turn in assignments suggests that its demands are not truly draconian — they are only perceived that way by Holden. One of his parting conversations with a teacher is cynical and unpleasant, but not fundamentally mistaken from the teacher's point of view: "Life is a game, boy," says Mr. Spencer. "Life is a game that one plays according to the rules." Holden responds, "Yes, sir. I know it is. I know it," while thinking to himself: "Game, my ass. Some game. If you get on the side where all the hotshots are, then it's a game, all right — I'll admit that. But if you get on the other side, where there aren't any hotshots, then what's a game about it? Nothing. No game." (Salinger 8). The reader sympathizes with Holden's anger, but also understands that wishing to live in a world without rules is impossible — one cannot survive in a fantasy world without assignments, manners, or schedules. Even Holden later admits that Spencer is not a bad teacher or a bad person.

Ayn Rand's story, by contrast, is highly allegorical and fantastic in its setting. Rather than depicting the present, Rand envisions a future dystopia. The individual in conflict with society is named Equality 7-2521, and the rules that bind him govern his every action. Unlike Holden, Equality 7-2521 does not know who his parents are, or even that he is a distinct person at all. In Salinger's narrative, one gets the sense that adults like Mr. Spencer have already survived Caulfield's angst during their own youth and have since accepted the need to bend to society's rules. But in Rand's world, any desire for individuality — even within a set of rules, even the mere wish to know one's parents' identities — is utterly stifled. Equality 7-2521 dwells in a communal home with other students, but cannot leave or even seek expulsion: "The sleeping halls were white and clean and bare of all things save one hundred beds. We, Equality 7-2521, were not happy in those years in the Home of the Students." (Rand 21). Unlike Pencey Prep, where certain transgressions of the rules are tolerated provided one gives lip service to the rest, Equality's society does not tolerate even the most minute deviation from the norm — including the use of the pronoun "I."

Family Bonds and the Possibility of Integration

Holden's likelihood of eventually becoming integrated into adult society is underscored by his strong ties to his family. Although he spends much of the novel wandering, he is always wandering toward somewhere — ultimately back to his parents' apartment. Although Holden criticizes his brother, he clearly loves his sister, and dreams of being the title figure who saves children from pain: "I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff — I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That's all I'd do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all." (Salinger 173). Even Holden's sister Phoebe, a child herself, criticizes this fantasy as unrealistic, noting how simplistic it is compared with the moral complexities of the adult world. The novel suggests that the world is not nearly as "us vs. them" as Holden's adolescent viewpoint implies. Although Holden dislikes his current place in society, change is inevitable given the nature of the aging process.

Equality 7-2521's society, however, stifles precisely the kinds of familial feelings that allow persons like Holden to come to terms with their difficulties. Equality is raised in an impersonal nursery with no fathers or mothers. This depersonalized society, Rand suggests, makes any form of dissent, creativity, or natural chafing at social constructs utterly impossible — freedoms that Holden can still explore in the relative openness of Manhattan. "There is evil in your bones, Equality 7-2521, for your body has grown beyond the bodies of your brothers." (Rand 18). Unlike Holden and Phoebe, whose sibling bond is secure enough to tolerate argument and dissent, Rand's society is so rigid that no dissent is permissible: "We strive to be like all our brother men, for all men must be alike." (Rand 19). Because "our brothers who are the State" are one with the State, to disagree with a fellow member is treated as treason — unlike in Holden Caulfield's world, where disagreement does not mean the dissolution of family. Caulfield can be expelled from his prep school and still remain part of a family. This indicates the basic health of Holden's society, family, and world, despite his rage and anger.

Conclusion: Normal Conflict vs. Perverted Norm

Equality 7-2521 must break every rule and constraint of his society to realize his basic humanity. To lose one's individuality is not a stage of development in Rand's future — it is the norm, but a perverted norm that Equality 7-2521 must defy. What strikes Holden as perverse, however, often has more to do with his anger at himself than with the actual realities of the world around him. Holden doubts his intelligence, refuses to turn in assignments, gets kicked out of school, and blames the school. He fears growing up and being rejected by his parents, so he dreams of remaining a child. Although Holden is emotionally sympathetic as a protagonist, his conflicts with society are normal and carry the potential to be resolved — unlike a world where the very presence of conflict is equated with treason, as in Anthem.