The Catcher in the Rye

The Catcher in the Rye is a novel by J. D. Salinger.

Time Period

The Catcher in the Rye clearly takes places in the late 1940s to the early 1950s, which is about the time the novel was written. The death of Allie, Holden's younger brother, is given to be July 18, 1946 and it is stated Holden was thirteen at that time. It follows, therefore, that the bulk of the story takes place in approximately December of 1949 and the story's "present" is the summer of 1950. Given that in 1949 Christmas fell on a Sunday, the two days that consume most of the novel are most likely December 18 and 19 (if it was one week later, the second day of Holden's romp would be Christmas and, if it was one week earlier, Pencey would be letting its students out two full weeks before Christmas.)

Related Topics:
1940s - 1950s - July 18 - 1946 - December - 1949 - Summer - 1950 - Sunday - December 18 - 19

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