Growing up and Loathing It

Growing Up and Loathing It

Alienation can be interpreted as loneliness caused by the lack of understanding of others, and may be caused by oneself or inflicted upon by another. During teenage years, boys are especially susceptible to the anguish felt as a result of alienation. Jerry Renault, the protagonist of the Chocolate War, is encumbered by both the alienation imposed upon himself, and that which is burdened upon him by a secret society known as the Vigils. The Catcher in the Rye introduces Holden Caufield who has segregated himself from all but a few of those surrounding him, and is deeply troubled by this. The alienation wrought by Caufield’s awkward ascension into adulthood is manifested in his fallacious attempts to casually interact with others. Because of their ages, Jerry and Holden feel threatened by the individuals whom they would normally associate themselves. This intimidation spurs the alienation and loneliness felt by Jerry Renault and Holden Caufield.

Jerry Renault, an average teenager, has an issue with confidence that influences him to doubt himself, and thus alienate himself from his peers. Because Renault has low self-esteem and feels little influence from his classmates, he refuses to sell chocolates “like every other kid in… school”(Cormier 66). He lacks the school spirit that others posses because he is excluded from them in his head. This reinforces Renault’s lack of influence felt as a result of others, and shows the fact that he is indeed alienated. In addition, after he refuses to sell the chocolates and is shunned by his classmates, “he [feels] invisible”(163). Jerry causes this himself, for his actions alone influence the entire student body to dissociate him from their ranks. Jerry who is suddenly forced to come to terms with the situation, instead, separates himself from his former peers even further. Also, even when the students realize that Renault is “some kind of rebel hero,” he refuses to respond to them and continues his self-imposed alienation (175). Jerry Renault, who at this point has lost all hope of being a normal student, continues his assault on all of that which he would hold dear. If it would not have been for his minuscule sense of self-esteem, he would not alienate himself from the rest of the student body. Jerry’s alienation from all the people that he would normally embrace has caused him mental and physical hardship concerning the interactions with others. The malicious gang known as the Vigils is responsible for much of the hardship faced by Renault. For instance, most students tend to display a certain demeanor known as “a Vigils thing;” they become very upset at Jerry when he doesn’t act in this specified manner (103). When opposed, the Vigils rely on the average student’s tendency toward conformity to inflict their wrath; however, when conformists don’t affect Renault, the malevolent Vigils resort to tactics that aim to alienate Jerry and influence him to do their bidding. Moreover, after Renault “defies the Vigils,” they try even harder to make him feel lonely (109). Jerry’s friends eventually turn on him and attempt to strike him down. They cruelly bastardize him in order to make him feel as low as dirt. When Jerry continues to “ refuse to fall into line,” they brutally assault him and reinforce that they believe he is dirt (145). This makes him feel the loneliest of all. Horrible alienating treatment such as this spurs Jerry Renault to feel as if he is the only boy alive.

After much of the ridicule passes and Jerry feels slightly more comfortable and secure, he begins to, unwittingly, attack himself by asking rhetorical questions that invoke a sense of self-loathing. Jerry can not ignore the role, or lack there of, school administration has had in his deprecating misadventure into adulthood. Jerry cannot help but ask whether teachers are “corrupt,” pretentious, “villains” who care for nothing other then themselves and their paychecks (85). The reason Jerry asks this question is because he notices how little time his would be mentors are devoting to his cause. However, Jerry is the kind of person that would feel guilty if encountered by a caring individual such as his father. When his father has no choice but to answer the phone and is victimized by chronic crank calls, Jerry is saddened and laments the fact that his dear father is “ involved in his trouble” (164). It is not Jerry’s responsibility to worry for his father; therefore, his regrets regarding his father are groundless. They are a direct result of the self-image that he has concocted because of his depreciated status on campus. Regardless of his lack of feeling for his teacher and his exaggerated conceptions regarding his dad, Jerry has hit a new low with respect to himself. For instance, while walking home from school after a particularly scrutinizing