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Catcher In The Rye Persuasive Essay

303 Words2 Pages

In chapter five of The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, the reader learns about the death of Allie, Holden’s younger brother. Holden and Allie were very close, and his death left a mark on Holden both mentally, and emotionally. It is inferred that Holden feels Allie did not deserve to die. “You’d have liked him. He was two years younger than I was, but he was about fifty times as intelligent.” (Salinger, Page 38). “He was also the nicest, in lots of ways. He never got mad at anybody.” (Salinger, Page 38). Allie was innocent, and essentially everything Holden could be/wants to be. He frequently calls himself a liar (“I’m the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life.” (Salinger, Page 16)) and dumb. The opposite of his brother. If anything, Holden feels he should’ve died, not Allie, because he (Allie) was too young and innocent. …show more content…

His parents sent him to three different prep schools, all of which he had been kicked out of. Without a solid environment, Holden has been unable to make many friends in which he can find sympathy and comfort. This makes him become an introvert. “…I was standing way the hell up on top of Thompsen Hill…” (Salinger, Page 2). He finds it hard to relate to people because they don’t understand him or his circumstances. “People never notice anything.” (Salinger, Page 9). “…but he wouldn’t believe me. People never believe you.” (Salinger, Page 37). Holden feels helpless and alone. In summary, Allie’s death plays a large role in forming Holden’s personality. He tries to graze over the subject without much emotion because Allie’s death was sudden and tragic, and he has been unable to seek support for most of his

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Holden Caulfield experiences flashbacks to the traumatic events that have occurred in his life. Holden is constantly reminded of his younger brother Allie who passed away when he was 11 years old. “So what I did, I wrote about… did, and he had very red hair,” (Salinger 38). The reader can see that Holden is constantly thinking of Allie, and that Allie was one of the people in Holden’s life that made him happy. Holden’s ability to remember the vivid details of Allie and his life prove that these traumatic events, occurring upon those who brought him joy, will always be with him.

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Allie’s death was one of the most fundamental changes that happened in Holden’s life so far. At points in the story, Holden can’t stop thinking about death. This leads him to think about Allie’s death. “In Chapter 20, Holden, at his most depressed moment, is walking at night in Central Park.

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A. Allie’s death causes Holden to become obsessed with death and this obsession makes him believe that growing up and becoming a “phonie” is like dying; this belief that is planted inside Holden’s head when Allie died is what sends him on a quest to preserve children’s innocence and save them from the “death” of growing up. B. Salinger includes the traumatic story of Allies death that happened years in advance to provide an explanation for Holden’s obsession with death and how he sees loss of innocence as equivalent to dying. Allie died with his innocence still intact, so Holden does not want other children to grow up and have their innocence “die”. C. Holden even admits to being mentally unstable after his brother’s traumatic death when he says, “I was only 13, and they were going to have me psychoanalyzed and all, because I broke all

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