Catcher In The Rye: Bildungsroman Analysis

An important part of a person’s life is when they finally learn how to be more mature and have basically come of age. When a character achieves this quest in a story it is called the Bildungsroman. In this genre of literature, the story displays and demonstrates how the character grows up and becomes an adult. They learn how to be mature in important situations and most importantly they are able to leave behind their ties to their childhood. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is very immature throughout most of the story. He refuses to give up his childhood and he is anxious to see what the future hold for him. Towards the end of the book, the reader is able to catch glimpses of Holden’s new found maturity. He is starting to understand that growing up is a big responsibility and is finally ready to take on that challenge. Although he has not completely matured, one distinct moment at the end of the book lets the reader know he will reach complete maturity in the near future. In J.D. Salinger’s, The Catcher in the Rye, the author

The reader is clearly able to identify how Holden has grown up and what his future is going to be like for him. Of course Holden still occasionally speaks and acts like a child in the final few pages of the book. Even though he still has some child-like behaviors, readers are able to overlook that fact and see how Holden is growing up and maturing. His experience at the carousel proves to everyone that he is able to abandon his past and childhood and move forward. Also, Holden will hopefully be able to overcome his depression and get past traumatic experiences like Allie’s death. He will be able to handle the situation like an adult and be mature when negative events occur. Lastly, with Holden’s new found sense of maturity and abandonment of childhood, he will hopefully be able to find more happy moments in life like his experience with Phoebe at the