ipl-logo

Catcher In The Rye Character Analysis Essay

956 Words4 Pages

Chris Tamayo
Mr. Rodriguez
English III; Period 5
18 August 2015

Part 1: Character Identification

Sunny - Sunny is a street walker at the Edmont Hotel. She was hired by Holden through Maurice.
Bernice - Bernice is one of the three tourists from Seattle. She is known as a very good dancer.
Ackley - Ackley is Holden’s dorm neighbor at Pencey Prep. Holden knows that Ackley makes up lies about his sexual experience.
James Castle - James Castle is a student from Elton Hills. Castle committed suicide after another student told him a statement.
Phoebe - Phoebe is Holden’s ten year old sister. She listens and understands Holden more than anyone else.
The Nuns - The Nuns are two nuns that met Holden during breakfast. The Nuns are grateful for Holden’s donations.
Dick Slagle - Dick Slagle is Holden’s roommate at Elkton Hills. …show more content…

Salinger, Holden seems to be the ultimate rebel. He is a rebel because he has been kicked out of several school. He has also disobeyed many rules of the society. Later in the novel, Holden learns a few lessons in his story. In “The Catcher in the Rye”, the lesson is to always obey and respect rules that you are given. Disobeying rules lead to consequences. In the novel, Holden learns his lesson about rules and what happened to him when he disobeyed them.

Holden was told to do something and did not do it correctly. “You don’t do one damn thing the way you’re supposed to. I mean it. Not one damn thing ( Salinger 47)”. It seems that Holden was no doing what he was told to do correctly. He did not follow the direction the way he was directed. “ I still had to get those damn theater tickets, so I bought a paper and looked up to see what shows were playing ( Salinger 130)”. This is another example of disobeying directions that you we told. Holden did not buy tickets to the show. He made tickets that look the same and lied that he bought the tickets. Lying is also not the

Show More
Related
652 Words | 3 Pages

In every novel around the globe you can find carefully constructed paragraphs, written by the author to send a specific message to the readers. In The catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, one particular section overflows with symbolism, metaphors, and hidden messages. By analyzing the passage’s diction, setting, and selection of detail it is possible discern the less overt statements hidden in the text and reveal the turbulent nature of the main character, Holden Caulfield. The diction of this passage appears to be the key in unraveling Holden’s mood swings.

Read More
481 Words | 2 Pages

Holden view his sister as genuine and honest, not a “phony” like almost everyone else. When he arrives back in New York, one of his first thoughts is that he would like to call and speak with her. In the end of the novel, when Holden is getting ready to start his new life he decides he cannot leave without saying goodbye. Phoebe is the only character in the book who he actually cares about and sees no flaws in. He holds onto Phoebe so much because unlike everyone else surrounded by him, she still has her

Read More
513 Words | 3 Pages

The Colonists at Roanoke The mystery of Roanoke Island has baffled historians for over 400 years. One hundred twenty English Colonists disappeared with only one clue as to where they went; a single word: “Croatoan” carved into a post where they had previously been settled. In Cat Allard’s analyzation of the Roanoke mystery, he goes over several different, yet similar, theories of what might’ve happened to the Colonists. Allard focuses on two main arguments: The Colonists were massacred by natives, or they relocated and assimilated with a different tribe.

Read More
692 Words | 3 Pages

All Holden could think of was the two nuns he had met earlier, and James Castle. Castle was a “skinny little weak-looking” boy he knew back at Elkton Hills who once called someone else conceited, and instead of apologizing, he jumped out the window and killed himself. In the novel,

Read More
1493 Words | 6 Pages

In the paradoxical personality of Holden we discover something much deeper. As Holden makes himself out to be tougher than what he actually is, Salinger introduces stubbornness. Holden’s true nature of gentleness and sensitivity offered throughout the book often brings bedlam into his life, though Salinger brings into

Read More
777 Words | 4 Pages

As Holden tiptoes through the house he glances through rooms searching for Phoebe and discovers she is in her favorite place to sleep, D.B.’s room. Before waking her, Holden sits and reads through her schoolbooks, analyzing the way she signs her name as “Phoebe Weatherfield Caulfield” even though her middle name is Josephine. When Holden finally decides to wake her, Phoebe is overjoyed to see him and starts filling him

Read More
399 Words | 2 Pages

After Holden fails to get a drink at the nightclub he decides to go to a bar named Ernie’s where he knows underaged drinking isn’t frowned upon. While Holden is drinking he runs into one of D.B.’s ex-girlfriends and she invites him to come sit with her and her

Read More
271 Words | 2 Pages

In the novel The Catcher of the Rye, the main character encounters a various of other characters that have a meaning to Holden in a certain way. Holden Caulfield: Narrator of the novel. He is a 16 years old teenager, who has been expelled for the fifth time from a different school each time for his poor scholar performance, although he is a very intelligent student but doesn’t put the effort. Holden is a very pessimistic person, that just sees the bad in everything around him but at the same time he tries to protect himself from disappointment.

Read More
634 Words | 3 Pages

Everyone knows Holden wants to protect the innocents of women and children, but can he do it, while discovering who he is and why he has to start his live all over again. Holden gets kicked out of his Pencey for not applying himself. Holden’s teacher could tell this that is why he made Holden listen to the essay and notes that said “quote”. Holden could not have known the facts but he could have at least known how to right a very grammarly correct and interesting essay.

Read More
1142 Words | 5 Pages

Phoebe is a child and she is innocent. Holden wants to keep Phoebe innocent because his older brother prostituted himself to Hollywood, the place full of phonies. Holden does not want children to lose their innocence so soon, but he realizes that he cannot save them

Read More
915 Words | 4 Pages

In particular, an instance of Holden’s willingness to die for a noble cause rather than living is his encounter at the Edmont Hotel with Maurice and Sunny, the prostitute who he doesn’t even have sex with. When Holden is confronted by the duo to steal five dollars from him, he speaks out and refuses to pay. His efforts were to no avail though, as he not only gets punched but also his money taken away from him. After pretending to be shot, he finally reveals what he felt like doing, which “…was committing suicide. I felt like jumping out the window.”

Read More
1378 Words | 6 Pages

Holden lies as a result of his depression, in order to hide the fact that he’s lonely and bored with his life, to divert any questions which he believes are too personal, and to create his own reality. In this way, Salinger illustrates how, during difficult times, people resort to lying as a coping mechanism. In the beginning of the story, Holden lied to divert questions in order to protect his personal information.

Read More
1035 Words | 5 Pages

From the outset, I have to say that “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger has been one of the most important and influential pieces of literature I have ever read. At its core, the book is a superb coming of age novel which discusses several extremely powerful themes such as the difficulties of growing up, teenage angst and alienation and the superficiality, hypocrisy and pretension of the adult world. These themes resonated deeply with me and were portrayed excellently through the use of powerful symbolism and the creation of highly relatable and likable characters. One such character is Holden Caulfield whom the story both revolves around and is narrated by.

Read More
728 Words | 3 Pages

I was already sort of sorry I 'd let the thing start rolling, but it was too late now” (Salinger 19). This quote goes to show that Holden is trying to be a different person. He normally would accept a night with an escort but as stated in the quote he was so depressed he couldn 't even think about his decisions. A later quote shows that he doesn 't even use his real name he uses the name “Jim Steele”.

Read More
830 Words | 4 Pages

Holden’s Struggle To Find Himself: Throughout the novel, The Catcher In The Rye, by J.D. Salinger, Holden struggles to find himself and who he truly is in order to be happy. His struggles relate to many things that he does or say in particular. Holden lacks with a social status with women and his family, whether it’s a relationship or being antisocial. Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield experiences the complexities and struggles involved with both physical and emotional relationships.

Read More

More about Catcher In The Rye Character Analysis Essay

Related Topics

Open Document