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Holden Caulfield In The Catcher In The Rye

792 Words4 Pages

As a 16 year old teenager myself, I know first-hand how my generation acts and how they decide to treat others and themselves. I’ve witnessed the decisions that others have made, and the consequences of those decisions, good or bad. The narrator of The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield, is a good example of an average, quintessential teenager. I consider myself different from the stereotypical teen aged male, as I try to have a more positive outlook. I have support from others, so I am motivated to work hard and act more mature.
Holden Caulfield is a typical teenage boy who acts very independently, is very sarcastic, and has a very sassy tone. As a whole, my generation has a lot of similarities with Holden, like personality, behavior, and …show more content…

Many simply want to look older than they are, but in the process make themselves look much younger. I personally have no desire to speed up time, and I want to enjoy the moment we are in right now. Some examples of this would be abusing alcohol as a minor, trying to act much tougher than they actually are, and getting into sexual activities with others early; most of which have been demonstrated by Holden and his roommates or friends. However, some don’t do this just to make themselves feel older, they prefer to engage in these activities to maintain a certain reputation, or are trying to appeal to a certain group. Some try too hard, and make themselves look desperate or even more immature than the others. This is what I feel the book was trying to tell it’s audience, to not engage in risky or harmful activities just for self satisfaction or popularity, as it will do more harm than good. The book made me think about my past experiences and my own life, and it made me feel more confident in who I am as a whole. It allowed me to view my accomplishments, weaknesses, and goals, and make me proud of what I have done so

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Jordan Serrano, English 10, Ms. Leonard 3/20/2023 The life of a normal teen The life of a teen has always been viewed as selfish, troublemaking, and having no important role in society, but that's not true; teenagers are the future of society and are the ones that are going to make a change for the better. In the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, the protagonist is Holden Caulfield, who is seen as an unstable teen with many problems, but at some times you might even relate to Holden. However, Holden had dealt with many challenges that changed his whole life's pathway. For instance, after losing his brother and having to grow up all alone during one of the most important peaks of his life, Holden is like every other teenager.

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CH. 1: The first chapter is a little vague on where the narrator, “Holden Caulfield is. But from the very beginning of the book you can surely tell he’s not all there. Apparently he’s had some kind of mental breakdown of which you don’t find out later in the book. He mentions his brother who is a writer and even calls him a “Prostitute” writer.

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J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye displays a true moral that though your actions may seem those of a developed character, the inspiration behind those actions might not be mature. Throughout the novel, Holden Caulfield, the protagonist, defies his youthful innocence by being expelled from school, smoking cigarettes, and being exposed to adultery like female escorts. Salinger includes a quote (originally by Wilhelm Stekel) said by Mr. Antolini, stating, “The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of a mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one.”

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Which leads to the question is Holden Caulfield still an authentic teen character? I think that Holden is an authentic teenage character because he goes through real teen experiences, has to deal with dark times, and he has to face the emotional truths. Holden

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The character of Holden Caulfield in J.D. Salinger 's novel, Catcher in the Rye, is an excellent example of a psychologically sensitive portrayal of a child with autism spectrum disorder. Although, Holden is never diagnosed in the novel, his interactions with peers and his particular interests show that he is a young man struggling with this psychological disorder. I find this most interesting because the novel allows the reader to enter the mind of Holden to connect and sympathize with the young man and gain a new perspective to his unique disorder. Similarly, the scientific article written by, Jiri Koutek, discusses the social isolation of a sixteen year old male with high functioning autism who was hospitalized for a suicide attempt. The

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Holden Caulfield is a teen who is stricken with grief. He narrates his life with both a jaded and cynical voice displaying an overall discontentment with the world. Holden struggles to balance his emotions and switches between an almost manic joy and rage. The most significant cause of Holden's issues is the death of his brother. I believe that Holden is suffering from PTSD and depression.

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Although Holden separates himself from others and society, he does have a few relationships with characters that he develops an attachment to. While trying to appear as though he could care less, Holden ends up showing how much denial he is in. “Caulfield’s attempt to imply that it is the reader who wants to know his story, and not he who wishes to be heard, is an immediate sign of the ways in which Holden avoids the appearance of needing or wanting anyone or anything” (Puchalik). Holden wants to make it seem like he does not care if anyone listens or is there for him. Yet he is telling everyone the story so we can assume that he wants someone to know or maybe even care about him.

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Holden is a very judgemental and immature character and often has vulgar language. Holden often criticizes everyone he comes in contact with and does not try to comprehend the mindset they may have. His childish nature and vocabulary are what make most of his comments laughable. “It was funny. You could tell the waiter didn’t like her much, you could tell even the Navy guy didn’t like her much, even though he was dating her.

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He lies intensely throughout the course of the novel, starting from lying to Ackley at the very beginning of the book. From his sarcastic tone in his conversation with other people, readers can denote his own cynical view on the world. Holden views adulthood as phony, hypocritical and fake while childhood in his mind is a world of innocence, honesty, and joy. That is the main reason why he wants to be a “catcher in the rye” to protect and save all the children from falling into the phony adult world. Holden Caulfield’s despise of fakeness causes his resistance of growing into a more mature person, with the lack of ability to interact with other people, make him a

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Thomas Jefferson once wrote, “He who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and third time, till at length it becomes habitual”. In the book Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield’s lies become habitual throughout the book. Holden is a sixteen-year-old boy, who has been kicked out of several schools including, most recently, Pencey Prep. Holden’s younger brother, Allie, died when Holden was only thirteen and his older brother is too busy working for Hollywood to care about Holden. Although his mother cares immensely for him, Holden saddens her by failing academically.

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Holden’s personality shows that his age doesn’t determine how mature he is. He states “I was sixteen then, and I am seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I’m about thirteen” (Salinger 9). Holden knows that he can become more mature and have a better attitude but he just chooses to stay an immature teen. He acts like a thirteen year old because he choose to. He has the opportunity to act like his age.

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This story is real of a small town in Honduras, Gissela is a twelve-year-old girl when she experienced what it really is to be afraid, she is the daughter of a bricklayer who works in a construction near the house they live in, she is the only daughter of the eyes of her parents. Gissela is called the little girl, her father is Ivan and her mother Sandra Patricia, Gissela is doing her homework on a small wooden table that needs to be wedged because she limps on one leg, she is happy doing her homework . He seems to hear a noise on the roof, turns to see and feels a cold gust, the cold runs through his little body. In the afternoon when dad returns, mom makes dinner and proceeds to serve.

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He has trouble growing up and accepting life as it is. Holden thinks adults are "phony" which makes him hate the fact of growing up and staying innocent as much as he can while he is old enough to become an adult. He is frustrated with the world and people which makes him act with anger. His innocent childish dream is to be the Catcher in the Rye, to catch the kids before they become phonies like Holden says about adults. The moment he realizes that he cannot keep kids from falling or in other words, from growing up and becoming adults, he, reaches adulthood, and takes a big step towards it at the end of the novel.

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Catcher in the Rye In the book Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger, the narrator and protagonist Holden Caulfield a sixteen year old junior undergoes a series of changes. Holden learns multiple life changing lessons; one of them is you must grow up. In the beginning of the novel, Holden starts out as “that kid”; the one with the parents who expect him to get into an ivy league school, and end up with a kid with no intentions of doing so. At the beginning of the book it is very apparent that Holden lacks motivation; he also has hit rock bottom.

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Throughout the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is a deep character that shows(possesses) many personality traits. His character is what connects many readers to him and helps in understanding him. Some character traits Holden possesses are that he is generous, kindhearted, usually honest, very intelligent, makes quick judgements, speaks his mind, is anxious about change, and likes kids. Considering his many character traits, it is easy for the reader to understand and relate to Holden. There are many character traits that I share with him.

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