How Is Holden Caulfield A Troubled Teenager

The novel Catcher in the Rye, written by JD Salinger tells the story of a troubled teenager named Holden Caulfield in the 1950’s. Holden’s journey begins when he is asked to leave his prestigious boarding school after flunking the majority of his classes. Holden travels home to New York City where he explores both the city and himself as a teenager. Holden’s often cynical, opinionated and aggressive thoughts continue to bring about complications throughout the novel. Holden narrates the story of his life and describes in his perspective what has led him to his current predicament in a mental institute. Throughout his narrative Holden shares the pain of losing his younger brother Allie to leukemia. He attempts to hold onto his childhood as

a result of his brother Allie’s death; the innocence of childhood makes Holden feel connected to Allie.

Holden wants to live as he did before Allie’s death. He was only thirteen years old when his brother passed away. At this time in his his life, Holden was extremely troubled. “I was sixteen then, and I'm seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I'm about thirteen. It's really ironical, because I'm six foot two and a half and I have gray hair” (9). Since Allie’s death, Holden has mentally sustained the awkward mind of a thirteen year old. He is experiencing the age in between being growing into an adult and not quite being the child he once was. Holden will never move beyond this stage in life until he completely accepts the death of his brother. “The best thing, though, in that museum was that everything always stayed right where it was. Nobody'd move. Nobody’d be different. The only thing that would be different would be you.”(157) . Holden finds happiness at the museum because it is the only constant in his life. Life at the museum reminds him of life with Allie. The museum is the place Holden goes to escape his pessimistic thoughts for a while and live outside his own madness.“I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist,

just for the hell of it...My hand still hurts me once in awhile when it rains and all, and I can't make a real fist any more – not a tight one, I mean – but outside of that I don't care much. I mean I'm not going to be a goddam surgeon or a violinist or anything anyway”(39). Breaking the windows “just for the hell of it” is Holden’s way of seeking attention. Being hospitalized and missing his own brother’s funeral brings Holden the empathy and attention he was lacking while Allie was alive and well. Holden’s impulsive actions follow him throughout his young adult life. The loss of Allie has been a loss of motivation, he has no ambition or aspirations in life. The memory of Allie’s integrity and morality motivated Holden to become a better person only when Allie was living. Now he often looks back to times when Allie was alive to lift his spirits.
Holden is extremely protective of preserving the childlike innocence and wonder he recognizes in other children, it is a reminder of his deceased brother.

Holden wants to prevent other children from encountering the feelings of neglect and grief and living a life with depression. “Anyway, 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” (173). He vicariously finds his own happiness through these children. Holden believes he is obligated to protect these children from the phoniness of the world and make them happy ."The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but it's bad if you say anything to them" ( 211). At this time in his life, Holden’s only reason for living is to keep kids dreaming and reaching for life’s golden ring and never give up. Holden believes that no adult should interfere with the hopes of young children. “But while I was sitting down, I saw something that drove me crazy. Somebody'd written "Fuck you" on the wall. It drove me damn near crazy. I thought how Phoebe and all the other little kids would see it, and how they'd wonder what the hell it meant...I figured it was some perverty bum that'd sneaked in the school late at night to take a leak or something and then wrote it on the wall. I kept picturing myself catching him at it, and

how I'd smash his head on the stone steps till he was good and goddam dead and bloody”(201). Holden cannot fathom an elementary school child with this lack of innocence and sense of self and concern for others. Holden is in denial that the world is not innocent and the very children he tries so hard to protect will one day grow up to be the phony, greedy adults he belittles everyday.
Holden's notion to preserve his innocence inhibits him from maturing mentally. By embracing the idea of youth as virtuous and the innocent memories of his brother, Holden never lets go of all that is lost and more importantly, never lets go of his brother. Deep inside the crevices of his mind and heart, Holden wants to improve and become prosperous but his concept of maturity and reality has been disfigured beyond reachable means of reconciliation - even if it only means he must first start with changing his perspective and leaving the past where it belongs. He continuously attempts to hold onto the memories of his childhood and the demise of his younger brother Allie, which in turn is holding him back from moving forward and letting go. Holden’s attachment to childhood is a constant reminder of his brother Allie and the fragility of innocence and youth.