Analysis Of The Catcher In The Rye

To begin with, Holden depressive state is evident as he displays feeling of hopelessness. For example, Holden realizes that his goals for preserving the innocence of the children are unrealistic. This occurs when all the children from the carousel are in attempts to grab the ring, and Holden realizes that he cannot stop the children from their inevitable outcome. This is evident through Holden’s comment, “if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off.” (Salinger 211).Holden realizes that he is powerless towards the society around. He believes he can preserve the innocence of children, being the catcher in the rye, saving them from falling from the cliff. However, he believes that all children will eventually border to adulthood and depart from their innocence is inevitable. Holden is made to believe that all children will eventually merge towards the corrupted side of society despite his desires. Another reason for Holden’s depression is because his desire for maintaining innocence is unrealistic which bring out emotional mental trauma. Moreover, Holden falls into depression as loses trust from the people that he admires. For example, he loses his trust in Mr.Antolini, who Holden respects, was caught inappropriately touching him. This incident also causes his internal turmoil as he was confused with regards to his teacher’s intention. This is depicted when Holden states, “but what did worry me was the part about how I’d woke up and found him patting me…the more I thought about it, though the more depressed and screwed up about it I got.” (Salinger 194-195). This reveals Holden’s loss of turn resulting in emotional disturbance. This event shows Holden that the society around him is corrupt, which makes him suspect others around him. Holden’s doubt highlights his internal conflict with himself. This betrayal

Holden has very noble goals, he wants to protect children’s innocence. He says to his little sister “‘Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody’s around-nobody big, I mean-except me. And I’m standing on the edge of

Holden’s contempt for adults goes deeper than teen angst or a need to rebel. Rebellion is done out of a need for attention, however in Holden’s case he acts upon a fear and unresolved childhood trauma. Throughout the novel, we see our character Holden bouncing around denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and finally acceptance. Holden lost his brother to leukemia; Holden was 13, while Allie was 11. Holden was left devastated. At the beginning of this book we see Holden in isolation watching the football game on his own atop a hill after a long disappointing day in New York. Holden tells us about when he found out about Allie’s death, and in a fit of rage punched the windows out of the garage of their summer home, breaking his hand with the desire to punch the car windows out. Holden was unable to reconcile the loss of Allie. He missed the funeral because of his accident and continues to not visit the grave because of his denial of the situation. Holden used bargaining when he asked Allie to catch him in his fall through depression. Holden perceived the children of the rye as falling, while he was the only one actually falling with no one to catch him. Throughout the entire novel except in short bits, Holden claims to be depressed and hates being around those with less than himself. Finally, at the end of the book, Holden reaches an acceptance that he can’t control everything and life continues. He has to let go and allow others to reach for that carousel's golden ring even if they do fall along the

The coming of age phase in a young person’s life is a transitional phase which prompts the idea of individualism, decision making, acceptance, moral challenges, disappointment, and individual needs. These years are essential for the overall learning and growing-up part of someone’s life. Coming of age characteristics transpired in the novel The Catcher in the Rye and The Absolutely True Diary of a part-time Indian pertain to, but do not exclude, the acceptance of the complexities and “grayness” of the world, confrontation with the adult world, and the individual needs and desires vs. external pressures/expectations/norms. In both novels, young boys are faced with tough choices that will later help them in the overall transition from

Holden as a character displays the alienation of himself through his behaviour. Holden is not the same as many people and believes that everyone is a ‘phony’. Throughout the novel Holden realises more and more that he is different and sees the world differently to others around him. Holden has created an identity for himself and doesn’t want that to be diminished therefore he alienates himself from the rest of society to decrease the chances of that happening. Holden’s old school, Pency Prep, has the motto “since 1888 we have been shaping young boys into splendid, clear-thinking men.” (pg. 2) This increases Holden’s motivation to leave the school as it will be shaping his identity into something he doesn’t want to be; a man. Holden is all about protecting those younger than him from the dangerous world of adult hood and by alienating himself he feels he has a better chance of

In J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher In The Rye, Holden Caulfield, a seventeen-year-old boy, transitions from childhood to adulthood. The death of Holden’s little brother signifies the beginning his loss of innocence and growth of maturity. As he enters adulthood, Holden views society differently from his peers by characterizing most of his peers and adults he meets as “phonies.” Thus, Holden takes the impossible challenge of preserving the innocence in children because he wants to prevent children from experiencing the corruption in society. The Catcher In The Rye embodies Holden’s struggle to preserve the innocence of children and reveals the inevitability of and the necessity of encountering the harsh realities of life.

Holden Caulfield is a character who has been through rejection and wishes to protect others innocence. He is a teen boy who is the main character in Catcher in The Rye by J.D.Salinger. He has an older brother named DB, a younger sister named Phoebe, and a younger, deceased, brother named Allie. Holden retells his story on him, trying to be the catcher in the rye. Holden has been kicked out of different colleges. He has been rejected by different girls. Holden goes through his life story. He talks about being kicked out of Pencey, his friend Jane, his “acquaintance” Stradlater, and how, when, and where Allie died. Society is to blame for Holden Caulfield's decline in mental stability. Society does not help Holden. Instead, they ignore his

It is known that humans require interaction between each other. As a result we tend to get attached and depend on them. We tend to advocate others from groups and keep to the same people. J. D. Salinger explores this in his book in 1951, The Catcher in the Rye. This book is beloved by many because it is so easy to connect to, even our generation now can connect to Holden and some of the things he goes through. The story is about a boy named Holden, he gets kicked out of school multiple times, and instead of telling his parents he wanders around New York in search of someone that cares and that he can make a connection with. Growing up is hard, and we need human connection to make through the hard times.

What was wrong with Holden was his moral revulsion against anything that was ugly, evil, cruel, or what he called "phoney" and his acute responsiveness to beauty and innocence, especially the innocence of the very young, in whom he saw reflected his own lost childhood. The book is full of the voices and the delightful antics of children. Especially he adored his stalwart and understanding little sister, who in the end undoubtedly saved him from suicide. And there were the memories of his dead brother, whom he had loved, and a teacher in the first school from which he was dismissed. He had no other friends, dead or alive. He accepted his parents, whose union had been happy, as one of the stable factors in a devastating world. When he ran away from school he knew that he had three days before they would hear of his dismissal from the headmaster. His desire to escape from the ordeal of their disappointment in him and to hide in New York, to go underground, is understandable. Not every boy would have done it, but the reader is convinced that Holden would and that his behavior throughout the book is

In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger uses literary elements such as tone, figurative language, and theme to create the overall effect of a teenager’s cynical and conflicted approach to dealing with the concept of adulthood. Salinger writes about Holden Caulfield, a sixteen year old boy, and his venture through New York City after he is expelled from his preparatory school due to academic failure. During his time in the city, emotional and mental problems surface, and his desperate want for companionship exposes his inability to connect with others.

The main character, Holden Caulfield, tells about his life before and after he was kicked out from Pencey Prep. The novel was told in first person through the eyes of the narrator, Holden. He recalls the events as a series of flashbacks placing the setting of the story in his mind.

Arthur Heiserman and James E. Miller Jr. are successful in presenting their argument. The idea that Holden Caulfield is attempting to save his lost childhood by preserving that of others reveals that his trauma of losing his younger brother to leukemia at a young age forced him to mature much sooner than normal, causing a protective instinct between Holden and the children in his life. For instance, Holden feels that he needs to preserve the innocence of any young children who are unaware of their growing

For example, Holden refuses to call his childhood friend, Jane Gallagher, in fear of discovering she has lost her naive innocence - he prefers to think of her as a terrible at checkers rather than a sexual being involved with Stradlater. In keeping himself disengaged from the rest of the world, he is able to defend himself from daunting metamorphosis from child to adult. Furthermore, this sentiment is expanded as Holden undergoes the beginnings of his breakdown with Sally. To demonstrate, Holden hatches an idea that involves “stay[ing] in [...] cabin camps” where he would “chop [his] own wood” (Salinger 132). The remote description implies a withdrawal from the rapid pace of life that Holden desperately tries to cling onto in order to remain innocent. Despite the signals from his body - his tall height and grey hair - warning him of adulthood, he is loath to succumb to it. Additionally, his ultimate goal, to stop time and protect children from evil, is highlighted by how he wishes for the Museum of Art to stay the same and his aversion of change each time he enters the building. The three days in which Holden spends wandering the streets of New

Rather, he is saddened by her sitting in his room in her slip. He imagines her buying the dress she has just taken off and realizes that she is a real person and not just a toy to be used for his pleasure. Holden's desire to understand and feel for other people stops him. Holden also admits to being a coward, but the reader realizes he is just a scared boy trying to act like a man in an adult world. Even so, he doesn't flinch in the face of danger when threatened by bullies, such as his roommate Stradlater or the pimp, Maurice. Much more important than his physical courage is the moral tenacity with which he clings to his beliefs in the face of a hostile society. (Lettis, 5)

"Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of