“Juno” and “The Catcher in the Rye”

While both “Juno” and ”The Catcher in the Rye” are based on adolescents experiencing adult life, the two literary works seem to be more similar than they are different in that Holden and Juno’s parents play a significant but unremarkable role in the plot of the novel. The two stories seem to be more similar since the main characters struggle to grow up and give up their virtue while still seeking to retain it (Tarancón, 2012). There’s also the fact that in their respective works, both Holden and Juno suffer a critical loss. ”Juno” and ”The Catcher in the Rye” are equally immense stories and seem to be more reflective than they may look. For this reason, the two stories deserve a critical investigation and comparison so as to get the true meaning of their underlying themes (Bloom, 2014).
In the movie and the novel, the key character relationships with their parents play a significant role in the plot of the story. Holden and Juno have dissimilar relationships with their parents are what helps in giving meaning to the story. To explain more, Holden’s parents do not appear in the novel while Juno’s parents stay with her and are continuously supporting her efforts. When she informed her parents about her pregnancy, although they seemed shocked, they had no issue with Juno’s decision. Juno concluded that it would be in for each person’s best knowledge to give the baby for adoption. Juno’s parents went along with what she planned and supported her in every situation. For example, when Juno went to have an ultrasound check, her step-mother came along with her. In contrast to this, Holden’s parents seem as though they want to get relieved of him. On several occasions, Holden seems to avoid the parents. Holden considers calling home and talk to the sister but decided not to call because of the high chances of the parents answering the call (Bloom, 2014). Due to these relationships with their parents, this has shaped the stories to what they appear today. For instance, if it was not for the fact that Jun never had any consequences since the parents are always supporting her decisions, then she may have been willing to have sexual contact. Juno would have stopped and thought of the outcome before doing her actions. Juno would not have done and also thought of the consequences before having the intercourse. For Holden, if the parents could have been positive and active in his life, then it can be assumed that he would not have dropped from another school. If the parents would have helped him in his studies or hire a personal tutor to do so, he would be happy. If these were the cases, then the story would have taken another dimension and Holden would have not dropped out of Pency Prep and eventually changing the plot of the story (Tarancón, 2012).
Subsequently, in the two stories, the main characters think that they are established and ready to become adults. Towards the end, the two realize that they are not prepared and they settle on staying as adolescents and resolve to keep the only innocence left. In ’The Catcher in the Rye’, the main actor is trying to become a grown up and change into a young adult. Holden attempts different things that may be typically done by the elderly and not a kid at the age of 16 years. An example is when he is out at night; Holden tries to order for drinks, stays in the hotel alone and even hires a prostitute (Bloom, 2014). Juno goes through personal struggles with the loss of innocence when she has sexual intercourse and becomes pregnant. Juno thought that she was mature enough to handle an abortion but later decided to opt for an adoption of the baby. The two characters at first think that they are mature and ready to face the consequences of the world. In Holden’s case, he thinks he is ready to become an adult but later realizes that to become an adult, he must give up his innocence (Bloom, 2014). Juno in contrary was willing to have sex and get pregnant but later thinks of procuring an abortion (Tarancón, 2012).
Last, another way that the two stories are similar is that the two characters lose someone they consider close to them. In ’The Carter in the Rye’, Holden loses his brother by the name Allie and this loss was devastating and everything in the book seems related to the brother’s death. He questions people about the duck that in the real sense is an insinuation to his brother (Bloom, 2014). It is evident that Holden was close to the brother, but the relationship was not more than that of Juno to the person she lost. Losing a child after giving birth is unquestionably difficult. Juno and Paddy never had time to tell one another goodbye, after holding the baby for nine months then letting the baby leave are like the ducks during the winter season (Tarancón, 2012).
With the points in consideration, ’Juno’ and ’The Catcher in the Rye’ are two stories that are similar even if the two do not look alike at first. The two are greatly influenced by the parents when they try to grow. The analysis of Holden and Juno should encourage teenagers to apply the lessons through their struggles and make them stronger and live a better life (Tarancón, 2012).

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References
Bloom, H. (Ed.). (2014). JD Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. New York, NY: Infobase
Publishing.
Tarancón, J. A. (2012). Juno (Jason Reitman, 2007): A practical case study of teens, film and
cultural studies. Cultural Studies, 26(4), 442-468.