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According to the National Institute of Mental Health, about one in four American adults suffer from a mental disorder. This means that 57.7 out of 217.8 million people over the age of 18 are ill; never mind that mental illnesses are the leading cause of disability in Canada and the United States. Holden Caulfield, the controversial main character of J.D Salinger’s novel Catcher in the Rye, spends much of the book wandering through the streets of New York City. Kicked out of boarding school for the umpteenth time, he does many odd things: he calls a prostitute, tries to befriend a taxi driver, drinks with middle aged women, and sneaks into his own house in the middle of the night. While many of these things seem outré, some may even go as far as to say that he is mentally disturbed. From a psychiatric standpoint, main character Holden Caulfield exhibits the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder (manic depression), and psychosis throughout the infamous novel Catcher in the Rye. Holden Caulfield suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder throughout the course of the novel. In fact, the root of all his problems come from Allie’s passing; he died from leukemia. Holden used to be extremely close with him and his imminent death changed his entire life and psyche. Holden seems to relive the event of his beloved little brother Allie’s death over and over. “What is clear, however, is that many of the symptoms Holden displays in the course of the novel mirror the classic symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. The death of his younger brother, Allie was a traumatic event in Holden Caulfield’s life and is perhaps at the root of the depression he battles in the novel. The death of a sibling can trigger post-traumati... ... middle of paper ... ...t feel so damn dizzy any more” (Salinger 204). What Holden experiences in the floor of the bathroom are psychosomatic symptoms. The severity of his mental problems are catching up to him, but now his body is affected as well. Holden’s physical pain may be real, but they are partly being imagined through his psychosis. President Barack Obama has said, “Too many Americans who struggle with mental health illnesses are still suffering in silence, rather than seeking help”. While many mental disorders can easily be treated, they are extremely taxing on the victim and are challenging to diagnose. In final analysis, Holden Caulfield suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder (manic depression) and psychosis. From a psychiatric point of view, there is hope for Holden in the future, but only if he is genuinely avid in getting back to a state of normalcy.
The first way J.D. Salinger shows that Holden’s depression is not only affecting him, but also the people around him, is...
One of the most impactful events in Holden’s past is the death of his brother. Jos death definitely took a big piece of Holden’s innocence. One of the main causes of his depression is the death of Allie’s and it had a tremendous impact on his life. Allie inset rarely mentioned, his passing had a great impact on Holden. Leukemia took is younger brothers innocents and this deeply saddened him and he promise himself to that he would do whatever he could not to let that happen to other innocent kids. “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 a very stupid thing to do, I’ll admit, but I hardly didn’t even know I was doing it, and you didn’t know Allie”
“I swear to God I’m crazy. I admit it.” Throughout the novel, The Catcher in The Rye, Holden Caulfield is shown to have multiple manic and depressive episodes within the course of a few days, hinting at him having Manic Depression in ultradian cycling.
As Holden Caulfield interacts with others and meets new challenges, he reveals his innermost feelings throughout The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger. Some may interpret his behaviors as teenage angst, but others find that Holden reveals traits of a mental disorder. Specifically, Holden suffers from Borderline Personality Disorder. Borderline Personality Disorder “is a serious mental illness marked by unstable moods, behavior, and relationships” (NIMH). He often experiences uncontrollable rage that results in altercations and behaves on impulse when handling money. He also shows signs of addiction when consuming alcohol. Additionally, Holden has trouble maintaining positive relationships with
Emotional symptoms can be harder to detect sometimes, especially ones like hopelessness, and sadness. He indicates sadness by saying, “Then I went over and laid down on Ely's bed. Boy, did I feel rotten. I felt so damn lonesome” (48). Holden, even though he says he does not need anybody, he really wants and needs that social interaction, with people like Ackley. He views phony people and social outcasts to have no life, when in reality,
Symptoms of depression that directly relate to Holden’s behaviour include: loss of appetite, depressed or irritable mood, failing relationships with family and friends, faltering school performance, fatigue, feelings of worthlessness or self-hatred and obsessive fears or worry about death. Holden lost his younger brother Allie to cancer when he was only thirteen years old. An event such as this can be traumatic to a young person and cause feelings of sadness and/or depression. Thoughts about suicide are another common symptom of depression. Holden expresses thoughts about committing suicide in Chapter 14 after Maurice assaults him: “What I really felt like, though, was committing suicide.
Holden feels as if he is stuck in his 13 year old self. Although he is aging he isn’t necessarily maturing the way his classmates and other people are around him. This is due to the fact that he never received closure when Allie died. When he starts picturing his own funeral because he might get pneumonia and die, he remembers D.B. telling him about his brother's funeral. He stated, “I wasn’t there. I was still in the hospital. I had to go to the hospital and all after I hurt my hand” (Salinger 171). Since he never attended the funeral he never got to say his final goodbyes to the one person he truly loved. Holden feels as if he can’t connect with anyone else in the world like he did with Allie. If he did then he would most likely push them away, so he wouldn’t have to experience the trauma of loss again, because it greatly impacted his life the first time. The trauma Holden experienced when he was younger resulted in him not being able to form stronger relationships with people which made him more depressed and
Holden caulfield meets several criterias of having post traumatic stress disorder. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that 's triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event. Holden meets by far to many criterias for this not to be his disease.
J.D Salinger’s novel, Catcher In The Rye is about a teen, Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of the narrative. Holden is full of unique problems and most of the time lost in his own world, that can’t face reality. The psychoanalytic theory arranges a lens of definition when working at Holden Caulfield. Holden is seen as a lonely, rebellious teen who flunked out of an all boys private school, Pencey Prep. Failing school exemplifies how Holden controls his own decisions in the real world. As stubborn Holden is, opening up his persona and experiences to people is very hard for him, “I’ll just tell you about this madman stuff that happened to me…” (Salinger 1). From a Freudian psychoanalytical perspective Holden would seem to keep all his thoughts all bottled up, not speaking, and opening up to people. “The preconscious holds information we’ve stored from past experience or learning. This information can be retrieved from memory and brought into awareness at any time.” (Nevid 469). Holden is one step closer to becoming a better changed person by speaking to his psychiatrist, and there is only way to find out if he did.
There are treatment options that Holden qualifies for, like psychotherapy, medications, or both. One type of therapy that can help Holden is Cognitive Restructuring, which can help him make sense of when his brother died. Instead of himself feeling guilty about it, the therapist would give him a different outlook of when his brother died. Holden could also take antidepressant medication to treat his depression struggles and it would make it easier for him to go through psychotherapy treatment. Some antidepressants include sertraline and paroxetine. These medications can control the symptoms of feeling sad, depressed, anxiousness, anger, and feeling distressed (“PTSD”5-6). If he sticks to therapy, then it will definitely lead him to the road to recovery, but if Holden does not stick to it, he can get worse over the years that are to come. Knowing Holden has been told by his former friend Carl Luce to see a psychoanalyst, he does not seem too interested to go and see one, “‘You mean go to a psychoanalyst and all?’ I said. That’s what he’d told me I ought to do. His father was a psychoanalyst and all… ‘You’re a real friendly bastard, you know that?’” (Salinger 148). Holden will have a better life if he went to psychotherapy and then he could figure out what he would want to do when he grows up to be an adult. Disaster could strike if he is trapped in this traumatic state of depression. One can only hope that Holden Caulfield recovers in the near future from his PTSD, so he can grow up to be successful and happy, like any seventeen year old should
It is also easy to see this after Holden starts revealing those events throughout the novel. Holden Caulfield is clearly a victim of teenage depression because of the traumatic and untimely death of his younger brother, Allie: along with a lack of a normal childhood with no help from any kind, from specialists or doctors, his two other siblings, and even his parents who sent him away rather than try to help him.
In the book, “The Catcher in The Rye” by J.D. Salinger, the main character is very strange in numerous ways. His name is Holden Caulfield and boy has he got something wrong with him. He rambles on and on about nonsense for the first 20-something chapters of the book. He only likes 3-4 people in the book. He smokes and drinks heavily at the ripe age of seventeen. He has been expelled out of numerous prep schools, and feels abandoned and not wanted. He has some sort of mental illness and I think I know what it is. I believe that Holden Caulfield has a mental illness known as Borderline Personality Disorder, also known as BPD. The reasoning for my thinking is that Holden’s actions match up with the symptoms of this illness and the isolation he
The 1940's were a time of nationalism. Men had to have an appearance of a tough attitude. They were never allowed to let their real feelings show. One of the major reasons Holden becomes depressed is the death of his brother Allie. He described is brother as being nothing but perfect. He keeps this guilt locked up inside him because he blames his death on himself. A memory that haunts him is when he excluded his brother from a b-b gun game. Another memory that he held on to and was never able to forgive himself for was when Allie asked Holden to go bike riding and he didn't go. Holden did not have a good relationship with his Mother or Father. He needed them the most right after the death of Allie. However, we see Holden crying out help and attention when he threw a baseball through the window and broke it and still nobody talked to him. His older brother went off to Hollywood. The only one he adores is his younger sister Phoebe. He is able to talk to her and he thought she understood him.
Manic-Depressive Behavior Exhibited in The Catcher in the Rye. The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, portrays Holden Cawfield, a New York City teenager in the 1950's, as a manic-depressive. Holden's depression starts with the death of his brother, Allie. Holden is expelled from numerous schools due to his poor academics, which are brought on by his depression. Manic depression, compulsive lying, and immaturity throughout the novel characterize Holden.
The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, portrays Holden Caulfield as a manic-depressive. Holden uses three techniques throughout the novel to cope with his depression. He smokes, drinks, and talks to Allie. Although they may not be positive, Holden finds comfort in these three things.