What Is Holden's Trauma In Catcher In The Rye

World War II, the bloodiest war in the history of the world, as it was commencing a soldier fighting for the US army was writing a novel that to this day inspires people. As bombs fell, friends died, and as men stormed the beaches, this man carried this book through this hell. This man, J.D. Salinger, carried 3 chapters of “The Catcher in the Rye” as he stormed the beaches of Normandy. Through his experiences of the war and the trauma he experienced he felt an attachment to the innocence he once had before the war. This is vividly demonstrated in the novel as his own trauma is projected onto Holden. Holden's trauma stems from Allie's death, which causes him depression and loneliness and conveys the necessity for professional help after a traumatic

event for a healthy development.
A piece that will not allow for healthy development is Allie's Baseball Mitt as it is a constant reminder to Holden of Allie’s death, and causes Holden to be held in the past and not move on.

Ever since his death just thinking about it causes Holden to be depressed and lonely. His loneliness comes from him isolating himself due to this trauma as he's still stuck in the time when Allie died and he's not moving past. Along with mostly negative emotions at the same time it causes him happiness to look at the mitt as he remembers Allie when he was alive. Also it is his last memento of his little brother who he cherished. When Allie's death occurs Holden began falling, unaware of the fact and he has never regained his footing since then. Mr Antolini describes this when he sees

Holden.
The story that Antolini tells directly portrays how the trauma Holden went through because of Allie's death has kept him in a constant type of “fall”. This fall Antolini describes as “a special kind of fall, a horrible kind. The man falling isn’t permitted to feel or hear himself hit bottom. He just keeps falling and falling” (Salinger 207). This is accurately describing how after Allie’s death, he began to “fall” and he keeps falling. This is an analogy for how he sinks further and further into depression and does not realize it. Antolini then furthers his statement: “ …were looking for something their own environment couldn't supply them with. Or they thought their own environment couldn't supply them with”(207). This is showing how he is still looking for Allie even though he is dead, and no one can help fill the hole, but children can help ease the pain. On top of this Holden continually pushes people away for being someone he regards as “phony”.
Holdens hate of phonies comes from the trauma he sustained and now he pushes everyone away on the pretext of calling them “phony”. After Allie's death, he is stuck and wants to preserve how he was. He refuses to grow up and by doing so he calls all those that are grown up to be “phonies” as he uses it as a reason to why he won’t grow up and also because he refuses to learn how the world truly works, he is stuck in the mindset of a child. This obsession with being a child and wanting to stay in the time and mindset that he is in when Allie was alive has caused him to suffer. He has isolated himself and caused himself loneliness and depression without even realizing it and his only solace is when he is with children as they remind him of his long dead brother.
After the death of Allie, Holden’s trauma was so severe that he casts Allie’s image on every child he meets. Allie was a child when he passed away and Holden is so severely traumatized that whenever he sees another child he believes they are all like Allie. He believes they are all innocent and nice, as seen when he's at the entrance to the museum and talks to the little girl. She answers his questions and he declares “I love it when a kid's nice and polite when you tighten their skate for them or something. Most kids are”(133). He also believes they could do nothing wrong, even when he's at their school and there is profanity written on the walls, he doesn't think for a second that a child could have written it. The only time in the novel in which Holden is not depressed or lonely is when he is with children as he feels as if he is with Allie again and he is happy. All of this began the moment he heard of Allies death and snapped.
Immediately upon hearing of Allies death, Holden snaps, or more his mind stops growing and is now frozen.

Allie was someone he loved and cared for more than anyone, he glorified Allie to the point of worship as he recounts that “it wasn’t just that he was the most intelligent member in the family. He was also the nicest …. God, he was a nice kid”(43-44). When he dies Holden passes his breaking point and never has recovered. Holden keeps everything inside, yet when his brother dies, a different side of Holden that is deeply real is revealed. This is exemplified when he describes when he hears of Allies death in the garage “I slept in the garage the night he dies, and I broke all the goddamn windows in the garage...I even tried to break all the windows on the station wagon...but my hand was already broken...I hardly didn’t know I was doing it, and you didn’t know Allie”(44). This shows a key factor in how Holden deals with pain, he would rather deal with physical pain than emotional pain as it is

easier.
The trauma Holden experiences after his little brother Allie's death is the foundation of his loneliness and depression and exemplifies the essential need for professional help after a traumatic event for healthy development throughout life. All of Holden's holdups and misfortunes with people stem from his trauma, he can't move past it and he refuses to receive help. If he would open up and accept help he would be able to live better, happier, and he wouldn't be as lonely, yes no one can replace Allie but people can certainly ease the pain of losing him. Throughout time it has always been the way that people hold it in, and others don't wish to get involved because it would be hard. How would the world change if more and more people stick their necks out to help one another through the bad times and the sorrow and despair of losing a loved one? Holden would certainly be in a better place mentally and physically.