What did you want to be when you grow up? Holden Caulfield, from Catcher in the Rye did know what he was going to do. The Catcher in the Rye is about the 16 year old boy I mentioned earlier, recalling the events that took place after he was expelled from Pencey Prep. He then decides to roam New York, after he gets into a fight with his roommate, Stradlater. Then, the rising action builds from there.
Holden contradicts himself by telling Sally that he “loved her” even though “it was a lie” he told because they were kissing (189). He even admits
Society is simple. One does not get to choose when he/she grows up. Society tells him/her when to grow up. Society reveals to its children, when the proper time is to grow up. Usually, it is too soon before a child is ready.
He sees that using alienation as a form of protection is not only disadvantageous to oneself, but self-destructive, and that people who alienate themselves are much worse off in life due to seeing its adverse effects on others. In the beginning of the novel, Holden thinks his alienation is protecting him, but as the novel progresses towards the end, when he sees its impact on Phoebe, he realizes that it is really what has been ruining his life all along. During his encounter with Mr. Spencer, when told that he will be concerned for the future sometime soon, he just “[does not] like hearing him say that.” because “It [makes] [Holden] sound dead or something.”
As the novel proceeds Holden utse of alienation as means of protection . Holden, describing the world to be “phony” including those who reside in it. With very few not being. Holden portrays himself as an outcast and does so by using alienation as means to achieve it.
Holden attempts to assert himself above everybody else in society and essentially portrays that he is better than everyone. Isolation is a major characteristic in Gothic writing because it forces the audience to solely focus on the protagonists and his everyday struggles with fitting into society. Holden isolates himself from everyone by the judgment he places on people in society. This isolation correlates to him immaturity and the reason he doesn't connect with anyone. When Holden comes out of the theater and sees the phonies in the mist, he states, “At the end of the first act we went out with all the other jerks for a cigarette.
He says this because he 's jealous and envious of the other guy because Sally wants to hangout with him for a little. Holden makes her upset and kind of mad because the way he said it was sarcastic and rude. Holden doesn’t like him and is mad that he intruded on their date and Holden says, “...he walked about two blocks with us” (Salinger 142). He didn 't like that. When he meets with Sally she is genuinely happy to be with him in the beginning but right when she sees a boy she knows who is more put together then he is and she wants to engage with him instead.
After arriving, Holden “went into [a] phone booth” and spent “about twenty minutes” without calling anybody (77-78). After pondering the many people he could call, Holden finally thinks of calling “Carl Luce, but [he] didn’t like him much” (78). While Holden has many people whom he could call, he spends twenty minutes convincing himself of why he cannot call any of these people. This illustrates alienation as Holden chooses to avoid talking to others, isolating himself when he could have easily chosen to interact with others. Moreover, this alienation provides Holden with self-protection as he does not run into any chances of his parents finding out that he has been expelled from school and has run away to New York.
Holden has a “Me vs the World” mentality against anyone that succeeds causing him to push people out of his
The idea of having a character that struggles to find themselves is quite a common idea in many books. This is seen in the Catcher in the Rye where JD Salinger puts Holden the main character through different struggles throughout the book to finally realise what his purpose is and what he aims to be. There are many different situations that Holden is put through but they all aim to the same purpose, being a catcher in the rye. Two of the main struggles are his journey into adulthood and to retain his innocence. The second is how he is almost alienating himself from others and very rarely opens up to anybody, and his relationships with people are not great because he thinks of many of the people he meets are phony.
A. Allie’s death causes Holden to become obsessed with death and this obsession makes him believe that growing up and becoming a “phonie” is like dying; this belief that is planted inside Holden’s head when Allie died is what sends him on a quest to preserve children’s innocence and save them from the “death” of growing up. B. Salinger includes the traumatic story of Allies death that happened years in advance to provide an explanation for Holden’s obsession with death and how he sees loss of innocence as equivalent to dying. Allie died with his innocence still intact, so Holden does not want other children to grow up and have their innocence “die”. C. Holden even admits to being mentally unstable after his brother’s traumatic death when he says, “I was only 13, and they were going to have me psychoanalyzed and all, because I broke all
Catcher in the Rye In the book Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger, the narrator and protagonist Holden Caulfield a sixteen year old junior undergoes a series of changes. Holden learns multiple life changing lessons; one of them is you must grow up. In the beginning of the novel, Holden starts out as “that kid”; the one with the parents who expect him to get into an ivy league school, and end up with a kid with no intentions of doing so. At the beginning of the book it is very apparent that Holden lacks motivation; he also has hit rock bottom.
How Holden matured People go through rough stuff in their lives, such as losing a close sibling. It seems impossible to pull yourself out of the pain and guilt of your loss. It appeared Holden was in the same predicament, but through his experiences in the novel The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger he learns to grow up. Aside from being very immature, holden refuses to grow up and dislikes people who have grown up.
Throughout the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is a deep character that shows(possesses) many personality traits. His character is what connects many readers to him and helps in understanding him. Some character traits Holden possesses are that he is generous, kindhearted, usually honest, very intelligent, makes quick judgements, speaks his mind, is anxious about change, and likes kids. Considering his many character traits, it is easy for the reader to understand and relate to Holden. There are many character traits that I share with him.
All throughout the book, Holden is trying to find someone to listen to him. He even paid a sex worker just so he could talk with her. “Old Phoebe didn’t say anything, but she was listening. I could tell by the back of her neck that she was listening. She always listens when you tell her something” (218).
