How Does Holden Use Narrative Voice In Catcher In The Rye

A Shifting Voice: Holden Caulfield and Narrative Technique Perhaps the greatest irony in The Catcher in the Rye is the painstaking consideration it must have taken Salinger to craft a narrative voice that embodies the antithesis of any form of ‘painstaking consideration.’ Truly, Holden Caulfield’s voice—at times infuriating, yet unmistakably authentic—is Salinger’s magnum opus. As a reader, one allows the effortless storytelling of Caulfield to unconsciously influence perception of characters, major events, and key decisions. Salinger uses passive language and specific word choices in Holden’s narration to help readers better understand the depth of Holden’s troubles. As both a precedent and the chief impetus for the story, Holden’s emotional

Throughout the novel, Holden consistently speaks in this fashion, “I thought of something that helped make me know” (Salinger 7). Despite the fact that Holden is recounting his entire tale to a psychoanalyst, he appears detached from the reality of his events, speaking in a manner more fitting for a casual recounting rather than the honest reflection his therapy requires. This use of past-tense language acts as a necessary coping mechanism that lets Holden distance himself from the devastating events that he experienced. In his mind, Holden constructs a barrier around the events of the past year, as to not allow any of them to penetrate into his reality. In spite of this, Holden continues to have breakthrough moments in which he—if only temporarily—reaches a state of clarity about his reality, which is distinctively marked by a contrasting shift in tense: “[Allie] wrote them on [glove] so that he’d have something to read when he was in the field and nobody was up at bat. He’s dead now” (Salinger 49). In this passage, Holden relays the entire first sentence in the past tense, abruptly switches to present tense, and then

Some phrases are merely embodiments of his everyday mannerisms, such as the suffixation ‘and all’. However, certain key words and phrases provide insight into Holden’s thought process. For instance, consider Holden’s constant assertion that he is truthful in his own speech: “I was personally acquainted with at least two girls he gave the time to. That’s the truth” (Salinger 63). In this quote, Holden rejects the idea that he may be embellishing his story for dramatic effect. Likewise, Holden feels compelled to remind the reader that he is impartial and genuine in his observations, as if to attest to both the reader and himself that he is not—and cannot be—phony. In the face of mounting circumstantial evidence that he is a phony (e.g. lying, refusing to call Jane Gallagher, etc.), his repeated insistence otherwise demonstrates Holden’s inability to come to terms with himself. This idea is further exemplified in the pivotal carousel scene, “I felt so damn happy all of a sudden . . . I was damn near bawling, I felt so damn happy, if you want to know the truth. I don’t know why” (Salinger 275). This scene, commonly understood as one of resolve, portrays Holden’s incapacity to identify why he reacted a certain way, yet he continues to insist that he is telling the truth. Even in entirely positive moments, Holden still lacks the introspection necessary to truly reflect on himself, creating a dichotomy for