The Last Picture Show | Literary Precedents
While J. D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye (1951; see separate entry) is a literary precursor to The Last Picture Show—both have the theme of disaffected youth searching for something with meaning, realizing that their current lives are either wasted or insignificant—Holden Caulfield is a much more intelligent character than the Thalia trio of Sonny, Duane, and Jacy. He sees the falsity of his world right away; that he must suffer it throughout the novel in an aware state may be why he ends up emotionally broken, while Sonny is still confused and drifting.
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