Catcher In The Rye Maturity Analysis

“The nicest thing about coming of age is that I can do whatever I like”, the late Cilla Black once boasted. This thought amongst the youth tends to be as common as it is calamitous. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden deeply desires this freedom he believes comes from adulthood. He uses this façade of premature maturity to rationalize his persistent disconnection from others. Holden’s somewhat forced removal from societal norms for a boy his age combined with the typical tales and triumphs of adolescents make for deep psychological confusion and a desperate desire to understand it. Throughout the events of The Catcher in the Rye, Holden continuously demonstrates the uncertainty and disenchantment that so often comes with growing up, the hardness

After being expelled yet again from his preparatory academy, Holden begins his weekend journey of self discovery. However, everything Holden sees and does ends up only furthering his current state of confusion. When Holden attempts to go on a date with Sally Hayes, one of his few close companions, he deeply insults her. When he tries to buy a record to please his sister, he breaks it and questions his self worth. Everything Holden does in an endeavour to understand who he is quickly goes awry, which only feeds the flames of his self incertitude. Yet, Holden has several moments throughout the novel which contrast with his usual blunt, unfeeling demeanor. There is the occasional instance in which Holden expresses a simplistic, almost charmed view of the world, such as when he contemplates running away to the woods, before then reverting back to his current banal and facile manner of perceiving

Holden comes from a great deal of wealth; enough for him to live comfortably for the entirety of his life and buy his way through all of life’s typical troubles. This wealth, however, is clearly not enough for the adolescent, the concept of which can be divulged into further through the the idea that “The "craziness" of Holden's perspective is suggested by the fact that he is well on the way to such success himself if only he would accept it” (Steinle). This idea that money cannot buy happiness is greatly stressed throughout this novel, for Holden’s fortune does nothing to stop his desperate search for contentment and purpose. Throughout the entirety of the story, it is clear that Holden is and has been trying for some time to reach self actualization. In psychologist Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, this is the very top of the pyramid; something that very few actually achieve. Holden seems to believe that he can and is entitled to reaching this point. However, the stipulation there is that, according to Maslow, one must first fulfil each of the lower needs before being able to reach the top. The needs include physiological needs, safety, love and belonging, esteem, and finally, self actualization. Holden clearly has no problem with the physiological or safety parts of the pyramid, considering he came from such a well-off family, but he seems