Imagine, a character so unique, so different, that everyone seems to find familiarity with him. The fact that this character is so different is what drives the reader towards him, and ultimately calls to the outcast within us all. Holden Caulfield was originally imagined to be a completely new idea, from the mind of J.D. Salinger. He wanted to call back to the thoughts of his youth, in hopes that readers could take a trip into his mind. What he didn’t expect, however, is that the trip readers were taking were into their own minds, questioning themselves. Catcher in the Rye has topped favorite book charts, banned book lists, and is even involved in a number of famous murders. A storytelling revolution, instant hit, and literary icon, Catcher in the Rye begs for further analysis, both into the mind of Holden, and the reader.
The psychology of Holden Caulfield was meant to be a unique view of the author, but turned out to resonate with the minds of people everywhere, young and old. Why is this character so influential, familiar, and relatable? Holden is often depicted thinking things like, “People always think something's all true,” or “People never notice anything.”
Holden is a very cynical character, almost always criticizing everything around him, from the way people act, the the things they say. It is almost as if he can never be satisfied if the outcome is not a result of his own decisions. One of the most famous lines in the novel is the word, “Phony.” Holden uses this word constantly to describe people around him with false images. The true irony of this, most of the book takes place inside Holden’s head, and he almost never speaks his mind. Holden Caulfield creates a false image by not saying what he is truly thinking, in o...
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...s. For instance, if you're at a girl's house, her parents always come home at the wrong time--or you're afraid they will. Or if you're in the back seat of somebody's car, there's always somebody's date in the front seat--some girl, I mean--that always wants to know what's going on all over the whole goddam car.” Holden is constantly asking about sex, for sex, and just about everything else. He pays close attention to Sally’s body on their date, orders a prostitute, but the only time Holden is shown abandoning sex for compassion is with Jane.
Holden’s character is an interesting one alright, never intending to relate to so many people, but impacted the thoughts of many. The varied emotions and common motivations really resonated with people reading the story, and it’s why his persona deserves to be analyzed. Holden Caulfield may be a phony, but today, who isn’t?
On the darker and more atypical side of Holden Caulfield's character is the alarming mental health issues. Holden Cauldfield sadly has a plethora of these types of internal conflicts. Holden Caulfield is a pathological liar, “ If I'm on my way to the store to buy a magazine, even if somebody asks me where I'm going, I'm liable to say I'm going to the opera. “(16). Holden is also constantly changing his name throughout the novel. Holden is sel...
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.
Holden's idealism is first brought forth when he describes his life at Pency Prep. It is full of phonies, morons and bastards. His roommate, Stradlater, " was at least a pretty friendly guy, It was partly a phony kind of friendly..." (26) and his other roommate, Ackley is "a very nosy bastard" (33). Holden can't stand to be around either one of them for a very long time. Later, he gets into a fight with Stradlater over his date with Jane. Holden is upset because he thinks that Stradlater "gave her the time" and that he doesn't care about her; 'the reason he didn't care was because he was a goddam stupid moron. All morons hate it when you call them a moron' (44). Holden not only sees his roommates as phonies and bastards, but he also sees his headmaster at Pency Prep as a "phony slob" (3). This type of person is exactly what Holden doesn't want to be. He strives to be a mature adult; caring, compassionate, and sensitive.
He disregards most people because he thinks they are ‘phonies’ - materialistic, shallow and insincere people. To Holden, almost anyone who falls under that category is a phony and isn’t someone he wants to spend time with. However, because of Holden’s trauma, the reader can’t quite trust him. He sees the world through so many layers of protection, he is an unreliable narrator.
In summary, Holden Caulfield is a troubled adolescent whose personality, improper feelings and habit of running from his problems prevent him from receiving sympathy. Since his personality includes being lazy and insincere, it is difficult to feel sympathy for him when he fails to try or tells lies. His improper feelings depress him over nothing or leave him lonely and isolated. His habit of running away from his problems make it difficult for him to receive sympathy because he chooses not to face his problems. Holden is a character that causes his own sadness. His actions prevent sympathy from being felt for him because most circumstances are all avoidable. Sympathy will be felt for the distraught protagonist when he fixes his personality or makes better decisions. Until then, Holden Caulfield is a character that it will be difficult to feel sympathy for.
The most noticeable motif throughout the novel is Holden’s constant involvement with women and girls. On nearly every page, Holden converses with women, thinks about women, or asks about women. This
Fake Holden in The Catcher in the Rye In The Catcher in the Rye, a boy named Holden Caulfield is faced with the obstacles of both society and life as he struggles to find direction as well as his relationship with the world. From page one, the reader can both understand and relate to what Holden has to say about the society in which we live and the way in which people in that society govern themselves. The more we read, the more we identify with Holden Caulfield. It seems like the typical, adolescent dilemma:
Whereas he aims for stability and truth, the adult world cannot survive without suspense and lies. It is a testament to his innocence and decent spirit that Holden would place the safety of children as a goal in his lifetime. This serves to only re-iterate the fact that Holden is a sympathetic character, a person of high moral values who is too weak to pick himself up from a difficult situation. S. N. Behrman, in his review for The New Yorker, also took a sharp look at Holden's personality. Behrman found Caulfield to be very self-critical, as he often refers to himself as a terrible liar, a madman, and a moron.
Holden is “the most terrific liar you ever saw,” when it comes to people wanting to assist him in finding his way in life.... ... middle of paper ... ... Holden’s inability to have faith in anyone has led him to witness everyone as “the phoniest (people he) ever met” (13-14) in his life. Sadly, Holden’s depression leaves him with psychological problems that are not easily dealt with alone.
Holden Caulfield can be analyzed through his thoughts, actions and circumstances which surround his everyday life. Holden acts like a careless teenager. Holden has been to several prep-schools, all of which he got kicked out of for failing classes. After being kicked out of the latest, Pency Prep, he went off to New York on his own. Holden seems to have a motivation problem which apparently affects his reasoning. The basis of his reasoning comes from his thoughts. Holden thinks the world is full of a bunch of phonies. All his toughs about people he meets are negative. The only good thoughts he has are about his sister Phoebe and his dead brother Alley. Holden, perhaps, wishes that everyone, including himself, should be like his brother and sister. That is to be intelligent, real and loving. Holden’s problem is with his heart. It was broken when his brother died. Now Holden goes around the world as his fake self, wearing his mask. Holden is looking for love, peace and understanding. He is scared to love because he is afraid he might lose it like he did with his brother. That is the reason for Holden's love of the museum, he feels safe because it never changes it always stays the same. Holden is troubled with the pain of death, it effects every aspect of his life causing him to not care about the future, himself or anyone, except Phoebe and Alley.
that he is trying to hide his true identity. He does not want people to know who he really is or that he was kicked out of his fourth school. Holden is always using fake names and tries speaking in a tone to persuade someone to think a cretin way. He does this when he talks to women. While he is talking to the psychiatrist he explains peoples reactions to his lies like they really believe him, when it is very possible that he is a horrible liar and they are looking at him with a “what are you talking a bout?” expression. Holden often lies to the point where he is lying to him self.
Many of the times that Holden criticizes people, it is something he does himself. (Pg 13) “. one of the reasons I left Elkton was that I was surrounded by phonies.” Holden himself is many times what he refers to as a “phony”. He knows that he lies and pretends to like people that he would rather not be with.
Holden Caulfield is clearly at odds with society. He prefers isolation rather than the company of others. He frequently lies when there is no need to do so. And he deems most people to be phonies without reasoning that in himself. It is clear that Holden Caulfield alienates himself as a form of self-protection. There is no doubt that he is a troubled individual in desperate need of help. Perhaps Caulfield has found help in the “crummy place” where the novel began.
Some critics have argued that Holden’s character is erratic and unreliable, as he has many of the middle-class values that he claims to reject. Later on critics began to have praised the twisted humor of the main character. These critics have commented that the structure of the novel helps you understand Holden’s unstable state of mind. Alastair best remarked: "There is a hard, almost classical structure underneath Holden’s rambling narrativ. The style, too, appears effortless; yet one wonders how much labor went into those artfully rough-hewn sentences" (qtd. in Davis 318)
Jane is a large part of this world, and has become an ideal girl to spend his life with. Holden only knew Jane for a short time, but according to him, they were very close. He has not seen her since “the summer before last” when their lake houses were next to each other (35), yet he has built her up to a pure and undefiled figure, resembling the Virgin Mary. A part of the reason he idolized her so much is that he longs to go back to their childhood and that time of innocence, and to see her so once innocent again. She and Holden were close, emotionally and physically, but he never saw her uncorrupted by sex. When describing their relationship, he says, “I really got to know her quite intimately. I do not mean it was physical or anything - it wasn’t - but we saw each other all the time. You do not always have to get too sexy to get to know a girl.” (85) Since the farthest Holden ever got with Jane physically was “kissing her all over - anywhere - her eyes, her nose, her forehead, her eyebrows and all”, he saw her as an innocent and uncorrupted girl (88). Holden’s imaginative world begins to fall apart as the narrative goes on, and when he has the chance to see Jane again, but does not. When Stradlater asks Holden why he isn’t going down to see Jane, he says “‘I’m not in the mood right now’” (37). He even admits how angry it made him to think about Jane being intimate with Stradlater, later saying, “Every part I got to the part about her out with Stradlater in that damn Ed Banky’s car, it almost drove me crazy.” (89) His mental state is so fragile that if Jane is not as perfect as he expected, which she can not possibly be, he could not cope, and his world began to crumble even faster around