The Catcher in the Rye Salinger gave the tone of the book humorous so that the book can be more relatable to teenagers in society. He talks about how Holden is lonely and he’s lost like every other teenager but he more like he doesn’t see from the real world. He is judgmental, he judges everything he sees and knows. Salinger writes this book to let us know what some teenagers go through and how people stay strong no matter what. He’s wanting us to know how teenagers are all different and they go through different things and they act a certain way because of what they’re going through.
Holden Caulfield is a boy that is sixteen years old that has low self-esteem and he is sensitive. Holden got expelled and failed a lot of times in a school called Pencey Prep. Holden tries to protect himself from the pain and disappointing
…show more content…
A second fact of Holden’s personality is that his comments is his attitude toward sex. Holden is a virgin, but he is mostly interested in sex, in fact, he spends much of the story trying to lose his virginity. He feels strongly about sex, he says it should happen between “people who care deeply about and respect one another.” Also he gets upset by the realization that sex can be casual. Stradlater’s date with Jane doesn’t just make him jealous. Holden goes in to the bathroom while stradlater is shaving he asked him about girls and how he’s going to take Jane Gallagher out that he’s attracted too. Stradlater, is being uninterested in what Holden is saying. Holden really worries about that Stradlater will make sexual advances toward Jane Gallagher. Ackley tries to bully Holden and stradlater is more like his bud mainly since it’s his roommate. He’s a 16-year-old kid that speaks his mind. When I mean that Holden is a person that doesn’t care, I mean by saying he doesn’t see what’s around the world. Holden says “my lousy childhood.” (pg.1) He is undependable person. He says “I’m the biggest liar you’ll
The catcher in the rye tells the story of Holden Caufield, a teenage boy who recently got kicked out from his fourth school. Holden decides to leave the school before he is scheduled to and wanders around New York. Holden shows many symptoms of depression throughout the novel such as, disengaging from activities, not doing his school work and having no interests or hobbies. Holden shows little to no change throughout the novel and does not develop as a character. Holden’s flight reaction is something that stays with him throughout the book.
For example, Holden thinks of a relationship as being something sacred that cannot be casually thrown around. We see this in his attitudes towards the people at the Edmont Hotel deeming them to be degenerates due to what he views as casual behavior. Also, Holden has a certain naivety towards women as tends to idealize them as evidenced by Jane. Stradlater is the antithesis, in using common slang the man is a player, as Holden describes on pg. 27, he takes a mild view towards sex and is very charismatic towards
He tries to give himself up for this cause of saving children but he shows that he is not mature enough be able to make a meaningful impact in this perceived problem. It is clearly shown that Holden believes that there is a problem in society. He believes that children need to keep their innocence. He feels that loss of innocence negatively impacts people and feels that he has to save them. We can first see his personal issues about the lack of innocence when he discovers that Stradlater and Jane Gallagher had sex casually with no intention
Holden Caulfield is one messed up dude. He has so much going on in his life and nothing at all at the same time. He dramatizes the little problems and blatantly disregards his large and prominent issues. The boy has a drinking and a smoking problem at sixteen. He has social anxiety, he's clueless about women, he's a terrible student, and he's on a wild ride on a depressive roller coaster.
He talks quite a bit about sex, but his virginity is the last existing innocence to him. Holden pays for a prostitute to have sex with, but he cannot go through with it. He is very hesitant about losing his innocence. Holden wants to be “the catcher in the rye” (191) and save all the innocence in the world. He believes that that is what he wants to do in the future as he tells his little sister, Phoebe.
He believes that all adults are “phonies,” and doesn’t want people like Jane to lose their innocence and become and “phony” adult. This is shown after Holden finds out about Stradlater’s date with Jane, Holden explains, “I kept thinking about Jane, and about Stradlater having a date with her and all. It made me nervous I nearly went crazy” (Salinger 34). This quote explains to us how Holden feels as though Jane is innocent and shouldn’t be with someone like Stradlater. He is nervous because he realizes that Jane and Stradlater are growing up and doing adult things, unlike himself.
Throughout the story, Holden retells his relationship with D.B. In the beginning he describes him as, “being a prostitute”(Salinger 2). This is unexpected due to the fact that his brother is now a very successful screenwriter. Rather than showing support for his brother's new found success, Holden labels him as a phony. Similarly, when he is jealous of Stradlater's success with his love, Jane Gallagher, he immediately insults him and says, “all the athletic bastards stuck together.
Holden Caulfield’s story begins on a December Saturday at Pencey Prep School in Pennsylvania, where he 's just been given the ax for failing all his classes except English. As it turns out, getting the ax is a frequent theme in Holden 's past. Before he leaves the school Holden runs to his favorite teacher’s house to say goodbye to him. Back in the dorm, Holden goofs around with Robert Ackley, a pimply and annoying kid. We 're introduced to Holden 's red hunting hat, and we meet his roommate, Stradlater, who is getting ready for a date with Jane Gallagher, an old friend and sort-of romantic interest of Holden 's. Holden is not happy about this impending date, but agrees anyway to write an English composition for Stradlater.
Holden Caulfield is an extremely troubled individual with unparalleled depression. This all rooted from the slow and painful death of his younger brother, Allie Caulfield, to cancer at a young age. This has led him down a decreasing path in his life resulting in the expulsion of Holden from two boarding schools and the forming of an alcoholic addiction. After leaving his last boarding school, Pencey Prep, he went to New York where he went through a emotional rollercoaster. Overall his mental health is terrible and treatment is highly recommended with medication and therapy session's.
Rhetorical Précis 1: In his essay, “ Love and Death in The Catcher in the Rye” (1991), Peter Shaw claimed that Holden behavior and way of thinking is due to common abnormal behavior in a certain time for teenagers (par. 10). Shaw supported his assertion of the young Holden by comparing the literary culture of the 1950s and how Holden’s fictional character fits within the contemporary Americans novels as a, “ sensitive, psychological cripples but superior character” (par. 3). Shaw’s purpose was to show that Holden’s sensitive and psychological behavior is not abnormal, but such like stated by Mrs. Trilling that,” madness is a normal, even a better then normal way of life” (par 4). Peter Shaw’s tone assumed a highly educated audience who is
Holden knows when Stradlater is home before Stradlater even walks through the door: “Anyway, the corridor was all linoleum and all, and you could hear his goddam footsteps coming right towards the room.” (40) Holden gives a detailed description of the hallway and Stradlater’s footsteps so the reader can experience a similar uncomfortable sensation. Holden is afraid to grow up, and does not want to face the reality of adulthood: “Holden’s inability to save Allie from death fuels his desire to rescue innocence from anything that threatens it, including the corruptions of adult sexuality and money.” (Austin Allen) He wants to experience sex;
I’ll pay you and all, but do you mind if we don’t do it?”’ (124-125). In this instance, it is apparent that Holden is fearful and nervous over the topic of relations. This makes it obvious that at least one motivation to not sleep with the prostitute could be that he is afraid. However, the actual motivations behind Holden’s actions in this scenario are that he is trying to protect both the literal and figurative virginity of himself and he is trying to save the prostitute.
The novel “The Catcher in the Rye” was about the journey of a adolescent boy finding his way to adulthood. In the book Holden Caulfield was unsuccessful in finding his way to adulthood. Holden’s attitude in the novel throughout his journey was very immature. He also can't accept the fact that innocence can’t be forever protected. Lastly, Holden calls everyone a phony when in reality he is the real phony.
Holden struggles with growing up and facing reality. There are many examples of Holden’s immaturity that are displayed in many forms such as facing responsibilities, his speech, his actions, and etc. Holden’s outlook on adult life is that it is superficial and brimming with phonies, but childhood was all about looking pleasing and innocent. He wants everything to stay the same and for time to stop. As Holden progresses in age, he will discover more about becoming mature in the
He probably was scared I fractured my skull or something when I hit the floor. It 's too bad I didn 't. (pg.45) The quote shows how Holden and Stradlater got into a fight. It connects to the claim because Holden is childish for a fight. Holden fought him because of Jane but Stradlater didn 't know that Holden liked her.