More handpicked essays just for you.
Holden’s perception of himself differs from others’ perception of him
Holden problems in the catcher in the rye evidence
Theme of isolation and alienation in Catcher in the Rye
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
After reading chapters 1-11 of The Catcher in the Rye, it is clear that Holden is not a reliable narrator because he lies and his actions don’t correlate with what he says . At the beginning of the story, Holden admitted to being, “the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life” (Salinger 19). Which makes him lose credibility because he admitted to being a liar and later on in the story he lies to people multiple times about his name and other personal information. In the book, Holden also mentions multiple times that, “[he] felt [very] lonesome” (Salinger 54). Since Holden felt lonely he could be exaggerating on his stories to get attention from people or to manipulate how they feel about him. Holden is always saying how things are phony
Foster’s characteristics of the QUEST are the quester, the destination, the purpose, the challenges along the way, and the reason behind going to the destination. In The Catcher in the Rye Holden is the quester who begins his journey by being kicked out of Pencey Prep. He decides to go on a trip instead of going home and revealing to his parents that he has been expelled. Staying around New York is a challenge in itself, and by the end of his trip Holden realizes more about himself. Some of the challenges he faces are his immaturity levels getting in the way of certain tasks and his loneliness. At the end of his trip Holden begins to have a new sense of maturity, and is ready to grow up.
In the novel Holden is what you would call an unreliable narrator. The definition of unreliable is - a person or thing that cannot be counted on or trusted. You cannot trust Holden if you know that he lies all the time. Since the reader knows that he is a habitual liar you may never know the difference from when he is telling the truth or when he is telling another one of his stories. Holden goes in and out of mental lapses throughout the novel that affected his mind and psychological state greatly.
He also exhibits honesty; as a child, he chopped a cherry tree by accident but confessed and told the truth when asked by his father. Now, let’s view at Holden and see how he fits in when compared to one of the most known hero of the United States. Holden lacks honesty as he confesses to the reader how, he’s the “most terrific liar” (16). Another clear example is when Holden talks to Ernie’s mother at the train station. From when they first met, Holden already lied by telling her that his name was Rudolf Schmidt, an obvious phony lie.
I'm the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life. It's awful. If I'm on my way to the store to buy a magazine, even, and somebody asks me where I'm going, I'm liable to say I'm going to the opera. It's terrible. (pg.16) Holden's ability to lie is one of the first traits that he reveals about himself. He takes pride in saying that he is a good liar. His inability to have normal conversations and relationships is possibly one of the factors that has him shunned by his peers. Holden's insecurity is one of the reasons for his compulsive lying. This, in turn, is why he can't find his place in the world.
Holden is a pathological liar. He lies, some times for no reason. Holden says his name is Rudolf Schmidt, who is acutely the janitor, to Mrs. Morrow on the train. He continues to lie throughout the conversation and avoids getting together by saying he has a tumor in his brain. This is the type of lies Holden tells. One reason for this might be
Since the first signs of life appeared on planet Earth, the world has remarkably improved and substantially grown to what is now known as the age of industrialization. Today, people in every field of study constantly influence society without even realizing. However, without such influences, the world would be filled with questions that could no longer be answered. Specifically, the art behind writing and literature is predominantly crafted by inspiration. In fact, the greatest writers are most noteworthy for their personal revelations and how they incorporate reality with a work of fiction. In The Catcher in the Rye, Jerome David Salinger creates Holden as a misunderstood teenager trying to discover his true identity through emotional and physical homecoming. He implements a series of real-life events and develops fictitious Holden Caulfield in retrospect to his short-lived childhood. Using a biographical lens, Salinger recreates his past through the eyes of Holden who acts as extension of him to understand the character’s state of mind, in connection to his lifestyle, relationships and psychological issues.
From the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, the youthful protagonist Holden Caufield, employs the word “phony” to describe the behavior of a number of characters including Mr. Spencer and Ossenburger, however it is not them who are“phony”, it is the young main character. First, Mr. Spencer, Holden’s ex- history teacher, is not described as phony, but according to the adolescent, his choice of words are. Secondly, according to our main character, Ossenburger is not the generous philanthropist he portrays himself to be, but rather a greedy undertaker. Lastly, the protagonist could quite possibly be the authentic phony. All in all, the main character’s use to describe many other characters in the book is with the single word phony, when in fact the word phony would be the most probable word to describe the lead character.
Some people feel all alone in this world, with no direction to follow but their empty loneliness. The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D Salinger, follows a sixteen-year-old boy, Holden Caulfield, who despises society and calls everyone a “phony.” Holden can be seen as a delinquent who smokes tobacco, drinks alcohol, and gets expelled from a prestigious boarding school. This coming-of-age book follows the themes of isolation, innocence, and corrupted maturity which is influenced from the author's life and modernism, and is shown through the setting, symbolism, and diction.
He describes himself as, “the most terrific liar you ever saw,” (16). He talks about how often he lies, and how he does it even in the most unnecessary situations. Heroism requires honesty, and Holden lies constantly. He has prominent traits of an anti-hero. When Holden is on his way to see Phoebe, he has to lie to the elevator boy by saying, ‘“I’m supposed to wait for them. I’m their nephew’...It’s funny. All you have to do is say something nobody understands and they’ll do practically anything you want them to,” (158). He lies to practically everyone, including strangers like the elevator boy. Holden has obviously had previous experience with lying, and it comes easy to
Holden is a compulsive liar. There's no denying it because it is a constant theme in the story “Catcher in The Rye” . However an argument that can be made is “Is Holden a Reliable or Unreliable Narrator? “. Holden can be a reliable narrator even though he is compulsive liar. This is so because he still tells us the truth, even though he lies too many characters throughout the story. Holden can also be an unreliable narrator.You can say that pretty much all first person narrators will be a little bias usually in their own favor.
Holden was saying goodbye to his former teacher, Old Spencer, who was very sick and was droning on and on about Holden’s terrible grades. So in order to leave Holden lies and tells his teacher that he has somewhere to go. Holden then goes on to explain to the reader that he lies all of the time. “I'm the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life. It's awful. If I'm on my way to the store to buy a magazine, even, and somebody asks me where I'm going, I'm liable to say I'm going to the opera. It's terrible. “ (Salinger 16). Holden lies so he does not need to accept his uneventful life. Holden projects the idea that he has a good life to people. For example instead of saying he is doing something boring like going to the corner store he can say that he off to go to do something extravagant like an opera. Holden can escape his own life and tell people another life that is better in his mind. Holden not only wants other people to believe that he has a very extravagant life, but he also wants convince himself that he is not living in his own mundane life. Salinger uses the literary device of characterization in this quote because this text explains a big part of Holden’s personality and interaction with other people. This quote is said in the beginning of The Catcher in the Rye where we are still learning who Holden’s character is. This quote explains that a big aspect of his character is his constant habit of lying to people. An interaction with other people that happens all of the time is something that defines somebody. An example of this in present day is if someone was shy and when they rarely talked to people they spoke in short, quick sentences. People meeting this person for the first time would take this into consideration when getting to know them. Holden’s constant habit of lying shows that he wants to impress people and escape the truth
In The Catcher in the Rye, the protagonist, Holden, is a teenage boy who struggles with his emotions and connecting with other people. Throughout the book, he encounters many different people in New York City after he leaves his preparatory high school early due to his expulsion. All of the people that Holden meets are seen to him as “phonies” so he decides not to listen to them. He is held back because of the fact that he believes he is the only genuine one. Holden’s belief in his infallibility prevents him from listening to others perspectives and does not allow himself to mature. Throughout the book he is given great advice, but he is to full of himself to realize that he is not as wise as he thinks. He is just as young man who thinks he
Written by J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye is a classic fiction novel. Holden Caulfield, the main character, writes in a hospital about events that had occurred before the previous Christmas. In the text, Holden states “...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 some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everyone if they start to go over the cliff - I mean if they’re running and they don’t look where they’re going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That’s all I’d do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it’s crazy, but that’s the only thing I’d really like to be.” (163 Salinger) Holden’s quote explains the title of the writing. All he wants is to make a difference in the lives of others, allowing him to feel important.
Holden cannot go one chapter without lying. Holden admits that he is a compulsive liar too. He feels that telling someone a lie can save him from people actually figuring out who he is. Even when he doesn’t want to lie he lies. He can’t fully understand why he always lies to people.
Accepting the end of childhood could be a struggle for many of the young. (elaborate on hook and maybe use a more literary description.) In J.D Salinger’s memorable creation, The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is one of those people who want to strife against (time), and have difficulties moving onto the next stages of life awaiting them. Salinger uses the motif of “music” to illustrate that childhood is not to be preserved and one will need to face and cherish maturity, for it could be harmful to stay in a child's state of mind.