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The Catcher In The Rye Holden's Journey

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“What I really felt like, though, was committing suicide.” (Salinger 136). The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger follows 16-year-old Holden Caulfield, who faces anxiety after getting kicked out of school. Whether it's his manner of speech or the way he responds to situations, it's clear his struggles include depression and suicidal ideation, rooted in his brother's death and his inability to cope with grief healthily. His three-day journey through New York reveals his inner struggles. Salinger's masterful prose invites readers to witness Holden's innermost struggles, highlighting the complexities of mental illness and the transformative power of healing. Holden's depression is caused by the death of his beloved younger brother, Allie. Holdens lack of closure is …show more content…

As a way to cope, Holden plays an alternate version of the story in his mind where he instead says “Okay”. Go home and get your bike and meet me in front of Bobby’s house. Hurry up.” (Salinger 129). Despite this happening years ago, Holden is ridden with guilt. Holden thinks back to when Allie died and mentions he smashed all the windows in the garage, presumably as a way to cope. This shows Holden copes with loss in an unhealthy way, which further worsens his mental state. Salinger portrays Holden's inner turmoil, highlighting the damaging impact of unprocessed grief on his mental state. The story highlights the consequences of unresolved loss and the search for relief. Holden’s depression is noticeable through his thoughts. When Holden was talking about the war, he reveals “I’m sort of glad they’ve got the atomic bomb invented. If there’s ever another war, I’m going to sit right the hell on top of it. I’ll volunteer for it, I swear to God I will.” (Salinger 183). Since losing Allie, Holden has shown depressive behavior since the beginning of the novel. Holden’s willingness to be subjected to war shows his self-loathing and his belief he is unworthy of

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Ever since Allie died he has been a mess. He talks about how after Allie died, “[His parents] were going to have [him] psychoanalyzed and all, because [he] broke all the windows in the garage” (Salinger 39). He develops a negative outlook on life. This is the cause of Holden’s continuous downward spiral. He becomes more and more disturbed and eventually ends up in a mental institution.

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Holden Caulfield experiences flashbacks to the traumatic events that have occurred in his life. Holden is constantly reminded of his younger brother Allie who passed away when he was 11 years old. “So what I did, I wrote about… did, and he had very red hair,” (Salinger 38). The reader can see that Holden is constantly thinking of Allie, and that Allie was one of the people in Holden’s life that made him happy. Holden’s ability to remember the vivid details of Allie and his life prove that these traumatic events, occurring upon those who brought him joy, will always be with him.

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Through the effects shown in The Catcher In The Rye, Salinger depicts the struggles of grief and loss in various stages of life. Holden takes Allie's death very harshly. The night that Allie died, he slept in the garage and ended up punching out all the windows in the garage and kept going until his hand was broken and he “had to go to the hospital and all”(Salinger 201). Allie’s death affects Holden as a person, not

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In The Catcher in the Rye, the protagonist, Holden Caulfield, struggles to connect with others after his brother, Allie, dies. He desperately wants close relationships but struggles to create and maintain them, leading to his giving up altogether. This essay will dive into Holden's thoughts and analyze how his grief affects his ability to create new bonds. Furthermore, see how he deals with non-sexual or familial relationships compared to sexual or romantic ones. Examining the role of sexuality and the complexities of relationships in The Catcher in the Rye reveals not only the intricacies of Holden's relationships but also the impact of his traumas on his ability to make new relationships.

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At one point, everyone has lost a loved one in their life. Grief over a loved one’s death can significantly impact another’s life, as their reaction to the death may vary. In the novel, The Catcher In the Rye by J.D Salinger, Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of the story, deals with the unresolved grief of the death of his younger brother Allie. The death of his brother continues to torment him and impact his decisions. The most opposing challenge for the protagonist Holden Caulfield would be the unresolved grief he has for his brother..

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Holden emotion and problems My connection through the video called “stressed out” and the book called catcher in the rye Holden main point is being depressed and being stressed out in his life with problems and issues. Holden is having a lack of problems and issue was when holden thinks about his dead brother holden he feels that he will disappear or fall into an abyss when he steps off a curb to cross a street. Sometimes when this happens, he calls on his dead brother Allie for help. Holden says that about his dead brother “My brother Allie had his this left handed fielder mitt.

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His first traumatizing encounter was when his young brother, Allie, died of leukemia. Holden talks about the first reaction he had, saying “ I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist, just for the hell of it. I even tried to break all the windows on the station wagon we had that summer, but my hand was already broken and everything by that time, and I couldn't do it,” (Salinger 21). Holden’s second traumatizing encounter was when he witnessed six malicious boys bully another boy to a point where he jumped out of the window and committed suicide. Holden describes the gruesome scene, saying, “...and there was old James Castle laying right on the stone steps and all.

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”(Salinger 76) and he fails to look for the good in people. Also he never gives himself time for reflection, while on dates with girls he relies on his impulse instead of really thinking about he feels. I recommend that Holden receive therapy from a physiatrist. I think that therapy would help him deal with

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685 Words | 3 Pages

Forced to recognize the dismal reality of the wickedness of humanity, Salinger relinquished part of his utopian views of society while still retaining an overall indifferent approach to death, which Holden attempts to maintain by refusing to acknowledge Allie’s demise. Similar to how Holden fails to grasp the idea of mortality, Salinger struggled to identify and express his sentiments involving violence and the loss of human life in fear of appearing unfit for his military position and the stereotypical masculine role that was given to him by society. As a result of his obstinate rejection of his feelings and his persistent attitude toward keeping his innocence, Salinger faced a mental crisis like that of Holden due to his inability to comprehend his feelings and overcome an eye-opening encounter with death. Paralleling Salinger’s elusive response to his own emotions after witnessing death in war , Holden feels ashamed in requesting the loving support of his family and peers after experiencing a loss, and he instead chooses to mull over the tragedy without obtaining emotional closure.

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717 Words | 3 Pages

Holden’s mother has been greatly affected by Allie’s death, but he does not want to upset her even more and this takes a toll on their relationship. His parent’s lack of appearance in his life causes him to become self-reliant. Salinger shows a protagonist that requires a proper balance in his life much like Mark Haddon. Both authors have created similar characters, both needing consistent stability in their

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656 Words | 3 Pages

Throughout the book, Holden is struggling to get by. The death of his brother Allie has left him in a tough spot. Holden doesn’t exactly know how to deal with this. The different stages of grief are represented through Holden. Holden shows denial and anger when he flashbacks to one of his memories after his brother’s death.

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581 Words | 3 Pages

Holden was very close to Allie so it 's understandable that his death had a resonant effect on him; however, trying to hold onto Allie has caused him to go into a downward spiral. He constantly smokes and drinks to try and fill the hole that his brother left. His drinking mixed with his failure to cope with Allies death had led him to have very intense emotions such as sadness and anger. “I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist, just for the hell of it.

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625 Words | 3 Pages

Zhanna Nagorna May 4th, 2016 English 11: Mrs.Monahan The Catcher in the Rye Approach Paper The Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger is a story that visualizes a young seventeen year old Holden Caulfield’s life and his events that teach him to become a older self.. Holden’s life isn’t right from the beginning, he is failing his classes except for english, doesn’t have any friends, and he has a big attitude problem with all this comes great depression and mental health when Holden gets kicked out of Pencey Prep. Holden has the depression and mental stage because he is suffering greatly over the death of his younger brother Allie who died from Leukemia.

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974 Words | 4 Pages

"I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist, just for the hell of it it was very stupid I have to admit, but I hardly didn't even know I was doing it, and you didn't know Allie (Salinger, 39). " Holden breaking the windows and not admitting why is a perfect example of his denial and struggles with the death of his brother. Furthermore, Holden’s impending fear of adulthood becomes more prominent with James Castle’s “suicide” at Elkton Hills. In comparison, Holden’s brother died of innocence, while Castle’s life was lost to the world.

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795 Words | 4 Pages

1. D. Scarlatti (1685 – 1757) Sonata in G Minor K.426 Sonata in G Major K.427 The Italian composer Domenico Scarlatti, son of equally renowned composer Allesandro, wrote 555 sonatas for keyboard (mostly for harpsichord or fortepiano) during his lifetime. The letter K. before the number of the work stands for Ralph Kirkpatrick who produced a chronological edition of the sonatas in 1953.

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