Catcher In The Rye Theme Of Loneliness

Gretchen Rubin once said, “Negative emotions like loneliness, envy, and guilt have an important role to play in a happy life; they're big, flashing signs that something needs to change.” However, in The Catcher in the Rye there is no one who understands Holden’s loneliness, and Holden does not quite know how to express it. In his novel The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger develops the theme of loneliness through Holden’s need for human contact, suicidal thoughts, and his separation from others around him. One way J.D. Salinger expresses Holden’s loneliness is through his need for human contact. An example of this is when Holden goes to different bars, like the Lavender Room, and makes conversation with the random strangers there. Another example is how he pays to have Sunny come to his room, but when she comes he gets frustrated and says, “‘don’t you feel like talking for awhile?’”(95). The last example is how after wandering the streets of New York at night he decides to sneak into his own house just to talk to his little sister, Phoebe. These examples make it clear that Holden’s need for

We first see this separation when he decides to pick up and leave Pencey three days before they are let out for break. We also see this separation in how he does not stay at one hotel or bar for more than a couple of hours. He always has a very strong need to go somewhere other than where he is at the moment but when he gets there, he loses all interest and just wants to leave. Lastly, we see this in how he makes plans with people but changes his mind about it and does not want to follow through with them. We see this in his interactions with Mr. Antolini, Sunny, and Sally. In fact, he says, “So all I did, in front of that museum, was get a cab and go down to the Biltmore. I didn’t feel much like going. I’d made that damn date with Sally,