How does J.D Salinger use the character of Holden Caulfield to explore
the issues related to growing up?
‘The Catcher in the Rye’ was written in the late 1940’s and first
published in a magazine in 1947. The novel is like a bildungsroman but
only consists of two and a half days in the life of a 17 year old boy
called Holden Caulfield, although he argues that the book is not about
his “lousy childhood”. Holden seems to be very conscious of this and
doesn’t want it to be “all that David Copperfield kind of crap”.
Nevertheless the book is an insight into a young man’s mind.
Salinger creates Holden Caulfield’s idiolect with all the
colloquialisms and swearing, which resulted in the book being banned
in many states of America. Holden is very open and does not refrain
from sharing some of his views on society and the war. At the time of
publishing, America was experiencing very rich, prosperous, affluent
years. Hollywood was the worlds best film industry and something
America was very proud of and enjoyed, “Everybody was on their way to
the movies” but Holden “couldn’t stand looking at them”, this was a
big dig at American society and became very controversial. Holden
doesn’t hold back his political views either, “I’m sort of glad
they’ve got the atomic bomb invented. If there’s another war, I’m
going to sit right the hell on top of it”. Due to the contextual time
of post WW2 this was deeply shocking and disturbed many people, the
atomic bomb had killed millions of innocent people and thousands had
relatives lost in the war. At this time America was very
anti-communism but Holden hints anti-capitalist views, “Goddamn money.
It always ends up making you feel blue as hell”, and he often wears a
“red hunting hat” which could have easily symbolized a communist. This
was also a contributing factor to the shock this gave American
society. However these are just the views of a teenager and all is
part of J.D Salinger exploring the confused, rebellious thoughts of
someone growing up.
Salinger explores the issues of growing up in many different ways.
Most of them contradict themselves at some point as well, portraying
the confusion and unsettled mind of an adolescence. One of these main
issues is Holden’s longing to gain independence. This is seen from
early on in the book and is carried on throughout. The first main
example of Holden wanting to move freely with independence is when he
decides he’d “get the hell out of Pency...not wait till Wednesday”
when he is supposed to break up from his boarding school.
As Eugene McNamara stated in his essay “Holden Caulfield as Novelist”, Holden, of J.D. Salinger’s novel Catcher in the Rye, had met with long strand of betrayals since he left Pencey Prep. These disappointments led him through the adult world with increasing feelings of depression and self-doubt, leading, finally to his mental breakdown.
Immaturity of Holden in J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye In J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, the main character, Holden, cannot accept that he must move out of childhood and into adulthood. One of Holden’s most important major problems is his lack of maturity.
After many years of ideas coming and going, one that seems to stay the same is the thoughts of tennagers. In the book The Catcher In The Rye written by J.D Salinger many can still relate to Holden’s story even after a 76 year difference. While exploring the city around him Holden takes the time to try to find himself on a deeper level and try to grasp how growing up really makes him feel. Given the fact that everyone is unique in among themselves the need for self satisfaction is always current meaning many run from the true responsibilities that come with age.
In J.D. Sallinger's Catcher in the Rye, is based on the sullen life of Holden Caulfield, a 16-year-old teen-ager is trying to find his sense of direction. Holden, a growing adult, cannot accept the responsibilities of an adult. Eventually realizing that there is no way to avoid the adult life, he can only but accept this alternative lifestyle. What Holden describes the adult world as a sinful, corrupted life, he avoids it for three important reasons: His hatred towards phonies and liars, unable to accept adult responsibilities, and thirdly to enshrine his childhood youth.
Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye on the surface is a story of an ill-behaved boy wandering the streets of New York getting into all sorts of mischief. Though, when looked at past the surface, we see a story of a troubled young man that is yearning for attention, acceptance, and love. Many theories have transpired about Holden Caulfield and his problems. Among them are Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), depression, and that he is just traveling through the five stages of grief.
Everyone has their own perception on what defines a hero; some may argue that they exhibit characteristics such as honesty or courage, while others may think that heroes have special power. Our society may have changed the values in which we associate heroes with, but one thing seems to have never changed: the main character of the book turns out as the hero. In my analyst, Holden Caulfield, the protagonist in The Catcher in the Rye, is put on trial as we see through our own eyes how Caulfield can not be considered a hero in modern society.
A person who is able to live life with many struggles such as dropping out of school and dealing with a family member’s death can really continue pursuing their lifestyle in the future. In The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger, it becomes evident that Holden has difficulty accepting himself and others as he constantly defines people as "phony". Before we can understand why Holden leaves on his journey at all, we must understand his struggle. Holden leaves Pencey because he was surrounded by phonies and wants to find success elsewhere. He tries to find someone to communicate with by turning to his family. Holden just wants someone to talk to and wants to break his depression by succeeding.
The Catcher in the Rye Holden Gets Influenced Everyone gets influenced by someone, even heroes do. The Catcher in the Rye, a novel written by J. D. Salinger, talks about Holden Caulfield, a 16 year old boy that is trying to live through his problems. Holden tries to learn from his experiences as well as from the ones of others. He goes through many hard times, but he always takes them as a chance to imagine how it could have ended if he had done something about them or what cold had happened if he was not so “yellow”.
In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, the protagonist, a 16-year-old boy named Holden Caulfield who lives in the 1940s, struggles to concur with the views of his society. After getting kicked out of boarding school once again, Holden runs away to New York. He decides to have an adventure of his own, instead of returning home. Holden's experiences in New York lead to further disruptions in his life, which eventually cause him to be put in rehab. Holden would struggle with the same issues if he were a teenager living today. If Holden Caulfield lived today, he would be able to relate to more people through modern technology like cell phones, the Internet, and social media; however he would be even more hypocritical and at odds with the world because he would disapprove of other people’s use of these technologies, which would make him feel even more alienated.
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger is a coming-of-age novel set in New York during the 1940’s. Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of the story, is a detached seventeen-year old boy harboring feelings of isolation and disillusionment. He emphasizes a general dislike for society, referring to people as “phonies.” His lack of will to socialize prompts him to find nearly everything depressing. He’s alone most of the time and it’s apparent that he is very reclusive. This often leads him to pondering about his own death and other personal issues that plague him without immediate resolution. Holden possesses a strong deficit of affection – platonic and sexual – that hinders and cripples his views toward people, his attitude, and his ability to progressively solve his problems without inflicting pain on himself. The absence of significant figures in his life revert him to a childlike dependency and initiate his morbid fascination with sexuality. In this novel, Salinger uses Sunny, Sally Hayes, and Carl Luce to incorporate the hardships of discovering sexual identity and how these events affect adolescents as they try to understand their own sexuality.
politician, war hero, and a leader he put his heart into it. Sure he may have made a
The period of adolescence is one of growth. There will be necessary physiological, sexual, and mental changes in a person during this period, therefore making it one of the most important sections of life. If an error is found during the growth of an adolescent, it must be corrected. Holden Caulfield, is an erred adolescent, so he must be fixed. This paper will present a diagnosis for Holden, provide evidence for this claim, provide a hypothetical source for his syndrome, and then recommend a course of treatment. The diagnosis for Holden Caulfield is co-occurring Bipolar I disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The was conjectured because of his recent manic episode, excessive spending and depression, increased energy, constant “loud speech”, inflated self-image, feelings of guilt, suicidal and racing thoughts, obsessiveness with childhood, innocence, and a fear of change [or what can be seen as abnormal requirement for stability]; recommended treatment is referral to a psychiatrist for medicinal help, short-term therapy, and slow reinstitution into the general population.
The Catcher in the Rye is about a young boy named Holden Caulfield who is going
Everybody feels depressed at some time or another in their lives. However, it becomes a problem when depression is so much a part of a person's life that he or she can no longer experience happiness. This happens to the young boy, Holden Caulfield in J.D Salinger's novel, The Catcher in the Rye. Mr. Antolini accurately views the cause of Holden's depression as his lack of personal motivation, his inability to self-reflect and his stubbornness to overlook the obvious which collectively results in him giving up on life before he ever really has a chance to get it started.
Jerome David Salinger’s only novel, The Catcher in the Rye, is based on the life events shaping main character, Holden Caulfield, into the troubled teen that is telling the story in 1950. The theme of the story is one of emotional disconnection felt by the alienated teenagers of this time period. The quote, “ I didn’t know anyone there that was splendid and clear thinking and all” (Salinger 4) sets the tone that Holden cannot find a connection with anyone around him and that he is on a lonely endeavor in pursuit of identity, acceptance and legitimacy. The trials and failures that Holden faces on his journey to find himself in total shed light on Holden’s archenemy, himself.