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Holden Caulfield Rejection

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Rejection in The Catcher in the Rye Teenage Angst. This is a concept that lies prevalently in the minds of many young adults. Students who are commencing high school and preparing for the next phase through their journey of life are most notorious for identifying with this state of mind. Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye is no exception. Throughout the novel, Holden partakes in a journey around New York in order to flee his burgeoning feelings of abandonment, crossing into the unknown, and being surrounded by seemingly “phony” people (Salinger 17). Along with this, one problem that endures steadily throughout his journey is the desire for acceptance but denial from those whom he seeks. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden reaches out …show more content…

One of the first instances of this is when Holden has an encounter with his roommate named Stradlater. Holden, while he considers Stradlater a moron, does not really have a problem with the attractive, yet secretly uncleanly roommate. However, that changes when Stradlater steals the innocence of Holden’s old friend Jane. Holden is so enraged at him for infringing on the adolescent innocence that he still sees in Jane, that he starts a physical fight with him. However, because Holden is a sort of pacifist, he loses the fight and is left feeling defeated and lost. He flees to his suitemate Ackley for comfort and assurance, but he receives the opposite. After Stradlater leaves the room, Holden slips into Ackley’s room to see if he will play a game with him. Ackley denies this request, but Holden still stays. He continues talking to Ackley, who claims he cannot be awake at the hour because he has church the next day, and asks if he can spend the night. Both of the boys know that Ackley’s roommate will be gone all weekend and the bed will be empty, but Ackley refuses to let Holden stay the night. This leaves Holden feeling unwanted and out of place. He feels a wave of depression and loneliness wash over him that is so strong that it drives him to leave Pencey all together and take to the streets of New York to try to mend his broken

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