Holden Caulfield's Language

The passage of adolescence has long served as the central theme for many novels, but The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, has captured the energy of this period of life by dramatizing Holden Caulfield's somewhat obscene language and emotional reactions. The Catcher in the Rye deals with an intelligent yet confused teenage boy struggling to see the genuineness in society. During his experiences, Holden tends to use easy, natural, but controversial language to help get his point across in an effective manner. As a result, the themes and messages Salinger attempts to get across appear more natural and believable, as if one was talking to Holden himself.
Although seemingly inappropriate for society, the language used in throughout the novel is very appropriate for the character. At the time

Therefore, non-grammatical and profane language is again appropriate in the monologues and dialogues throughout the novel. During this time period, teenagers first start to rebel against authority figures and express themselves more freely. Holden's language reflects upon these newfound values in that he curses and rarely uses proper English. At the time of the novel until today, light cursing is considered 'contemporary' and even somewhat acceptable in society. Holden seems to find it as an outlet to release his frustration, seeing as his experiences change, his language does as well. When he is enraged and caught up in the current situation, "sunuvabitch" and "bastard" find their way into his vocabulary quite frequently. However, when he simply addresses the readers as the narrator, Holden rarely slips into this extreme form of swearing. Salinger conducted these speech patterns so the reader can tell the extent and quality of Holden's anger, offering further insight into his character without lengthy word descriptions, in order to help identify which types of situations make him the