The Catcher In The Rye By J. D. Salinger

Ramirez Monica
Mrs. Kehrmeyer
AP Language
5 April 2018 Puzzles of the Mind
Many question why we are different and what are the factors that make us different, however it is never taken into depth until the development of the psychoanalytic theory. Holden Caulfield is the protagonist and a possible antagonist in The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger do to the fact that he is always contradicting himself. “That’s the whole trouble. You can’t ever find a place that’s nice and peaceful, because there isn’t any.” He appears to be a very pessimistic individual do to the series of events that he encounters throughout life. Holden’s character stands out from any other characters because of the personality and attitude he carried throughout

Oedipus complex gives a desire that one claims to want, whether that be sexual or just by affection which is a reason why Oedipus complex drives a boy more towards his mother for affection and gains more fear of the father. However, Holden does not mention his father figure or mother figure much in the novel because he has grown distant from them. As an alternative Holden is found having some kind of relationship with other adults in the story. This subject fits Holden very well because throughout the novel he mentions wanting certain girls, or having feelings towards them however he never really attempts to try anything because of his other personality aspects overruling him. For example one adult being the prostitute, although she is not Holden’s mother she was 26 therefore he may see her as a mother figure that he grows some sort of sexual affection for. “Hoped she’d be good-looking...I didn’t care much just wanted to get it over with”, in this quote Holden is expressing that he does not have any real feelings for the prostitute only sexual ones that bring together the Oedipus Complex. Since Holden has a very negative mindset and does not think he is good enough, it held him back from trying anything. In the book Literary and Cultural Theory by Donald Hall he mentions that Oedipus complex is “male centered” and “depend on the unquestioned

Sigmund Freud expresses the mind to be an iceburg because of the different Levels of Consciousness; the Conscious, the Preconscious, and the Unconscious. Each holds a different purpose for example the Conscious refers to self awareness and knowing your actions. The Preconscious can be referred to the “tip of the tongue” of wanting to say something and being aware of it, however a slight hesitation to actually saying it. The final one would be Unconscious which hole the repository or shameful thoughts /desires that may seem to go against laws, which all come together with Holden’s personality. Holden is a very isolated person and has many things that contributed to that such as his brother’s death that was very hard to cope with. Through a series of events that happened to him, developed a very unconscious mindset which makes him relive traumatic pain as mentioned in the document Sigmund Freud Biography. Holden developed his personality because he has dealt with other things in the past such as not doing good in school, having family conflict, not being that popular, and even going from school to school because he was never doing good. These factors can all contribute to why he would prefer to be alone, because he does not find himself worthy of anything. An inference that can be made of Holden is that there is also a slight possibility that he may have been sexually assaulted even as a child,