Holden Caulfield Narrative Analysis

Writing can be a tool for personal growth in many different ways. Writing is a great tool for expressing an outlet of thought. In The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield narrates the book and navigates through an existential crisis. Holden takes the reader through his life events at age 16. The story begins with Holden at Pencey Prep School. In order to understand how writing was a tool for personal growth in The Catcher in the Rye, it is necessary to examine Holden Caulfields narrative tendencies, his narration of his experiences, and how telling his story in this style helped him to overcome/face crisis. Holden has a very specific narrative style. Holden tends to write in a depressive, self-conscious manner, while also

Instead of reflecting on the situation and asking himself how he could have avoided it, he chose to think of false fantasies in a way that a child would. If he was able to take accountability, he would know that he could have avoided that situation altogether by saying no to the prostitute when Maurice brought it up. This whole experience for Holden was exaggerated, and this lead to a self inflicted wound for Holden. Even though Holden chose to use narration for self destrcutive purposes in this example, it still provides for a chance for self reflection later, and that is the beauty of

Holden is able to use writing as a safe place, and it provides him with a sense of validation that he rarely gets, in my opinion. By writing, Holden slowly starts to unravel his identity issues throughout the novel. It all leads up to when he meets Phoebe and they get into an argument. Holden settles on taking her to the carousel, which leads up to one of the few points in the novel that Holden is happy. “I felt so damn happy all of the sudden, the way Phoebe kept going around and around. I was damn near bawling…” (Salinger 213). Before this, Holden had got into an argument with Phoebe. Taking her to the carousel provides the audience comfort. Throughout the book Holden has struggled to find his place and seeks validation in the form of his narration. It all comes to head here, when he finally feels a sense of happiness. It is as if this was his breaking point, in a good way, and he was finally able to release his stored up emotions, which is why he was on the verge of tears. His process of self-healing, slowly, through writing has helped him grow through his ups and downs during the duration of the