Examples Of Patriarchy In Catcher In The Rye

Although much of the novel seems to support the patriarchy, there are moments in the text that are ideologically conflicted. These are times when Holden seems to recognize the workings of the patriarchy in the world around him. At one point in the novel he recognizes that a woman's worth is determined by her appearance: “Real ugly girls have it tough. I feel so sorry for them sometimes. Sometimes I cannot even look at them...” (Salinger 95). Holden feels sympathy for girls that are traditionally considered ugly because he realizes that no one, or man more specifically, will find any worth in them. This portrays the patriarchy in a negative way because it shows how the patriarchy can make women’s lives harder. Patriarchal men already have the

Another moment when Holden recognizes the patriarchy is when he contemplates the future of random women he sees. He concludes that “most of them [will] probably marry dopey guys....Guys that get sore and childish...Guys that are very mean. Guys that never read books” (Salinger 137). Holden realizes that even though these women have their own individual life, yet the expectations of the patriarchy can force them to marry men because it is the proper thing to do, even if the man is a substandard, creating a negative situation for the women. Yet once again, Holden does nothing and worries very little about this. It was just a thought that passed through his mind and held no real importance to him, showing the huge influence, the patriarchy has on him. Furthermore, Holden also realizes the damaging impact the patriarchy can have of men who do not follow traditional gender roles. The men who are shown to be feminine in anyway or presumed to be homosexual are often given a negative image in the novel, however Holden realizes that this assumption may be wrong. When Holden stays at his old teacher’s house, he wakes up to find his teacher patting his head and watching him