Examples Of Imperfection In Catcher In The Rye

Holden’s Journey of Imperfection
Writer, C.S Lewis once said, “Someday you will be old enough to read fairy tales again.” Growing up is not about behaving in a certain way or being as smart as someone twice your age. Growing up is discovering that you have been sheltered from the negative people and places of the world. In Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger, the main character Holden goes through a period of time where he is questioning what actually is going on in the world around him. He begins to spiral out when he discovers the world is not the perfect wonderland he once believed it to be. He comes to the conclusion that if he cannot protect himself any longer from growing up he can try to protect the people that he feels the most mature

At the beginning of the novel, Holden is reminiscing about his time at Pencey. He talks about the time he spent on a bus with the headmaster's daughter. He says, “I liked her. She had a big nose and her nails were all bitten down and bleedy looking and she had on those damn falsies that point all over the place” (Salinger 5). This quote shows the flaws Holden points out about the Headmaster's daughter are things that most likely make her insecure like a “big nose” and “bitten down nails”. This shows Holden is trying to cover up his own vulnerability about not wanting to grow up and instead masks it with immature comments of others to make himself feel younger and childlike. Another example of Holden's critical observations is when he and Jane are intruded on by her mother's husband asking where the cigarettes are. Holden has a very critical opinion of the man immediately. In Holden’s perspective, this man is who Holden believes he should be, and it intimidates him because Holden knows he does not want to be like this stereotypical man. Holden says, “I didn't know him too well or anything, but he looked like the kind of a guy that wouldn't talk to you much unless he wanted something off you. He had a lousy personality” (102). In this quote, Holden illuminates an insecure tone here as well. Holden says

Further into the novel, Holden is with Sally, his love interest at the time when he gets caught up in a moment of impulse. He gets so caught up in the moment he fails to consider the realities he just proposed. He says, “Then just to show how crazy I am, when we were coming out of this big clinch, I told her I loved her and all. It was a lie, of course, but the thing is I meant it when I said it. I’m crazy I swear to God I am” (163). This quote shows Holden's impulsiveness and makes him say things that one would consider childish thoughts. In this quote Holden recognizes his impulsiveness by saying “he’s crazy he swears to God he is” but he has yet to fully mature in this quote because he does not do anything about it. He does not take action for the mistake he recognizes he made. Holden not taking responsibility for knowing he lied to Sally shows he has yet to fully mature from his childlike spontaneous actions. Another point in the novel when Holden exemplifies impulsiveness is when he decides to escape the world that is no longer deemed perfect, his family, his friends, and everyone he is close with. By the end of the novel, Holden's impulsiveness becomes so apparent that it even causes the people he is closest to be hurt and betray the trust his younger sister had for him. He says, “I decided I’d go away. I decided I’d never go home