Adolescence to Adulthood: Holden Caulfield's Struggle

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The daunting face of adulthood is one that is inevitably encountered and must be confronted. In J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger depicts the disheartening journey from adolescence to adulthood that Holden Caulfield endures. Although holden seeks the freedoms that mark adulthood, he has yet to take up the role of a truly mature citizen as he is disgusted by the society conforming nature of those adults, leading him to his gradual mental decline. J. D. Salinger uses the immature character of Holden Caulfield as a means of revealing the difficult transition from adolescence to adulthood and the psychological effects that has on a person. Salinger portrays Holden Caulfield as immature, and as a result, he does not accept and is unaccepted by his general surroundings. The depiction of Holden’s irresponsible character demonstrates the disadvantage of immaturity when trying to function in society. Holden recalls an instance when he leaves the whole fencing team’s equipment on the subway and how they then “ostracized” him for it (Salinger …show more content…

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