Catcher In The Rye Moral Analysis
Morality is an individual's principle of the difference between right and wrong, good or bad. Morality is based on particular points of view and often is not clearly defined. This leads to the line between immorality and morality to become grey. Such a line is one that a multitude of people live on, having trouble deciding which side their actions are likely to fall. Holden Caulfield, from J.D. Salinger’s “The Catcher in the Rye”, is one of these people. He lives on the line between morality and immorality, frequently crossing this line, even though he might not realize it. Throughout his experiences Holden engages in multiple illegal activities, such as drinking alcohol as a sixteen year old. He is constantly lying and deceiving people. …show more content…
His constant stream of lies and deceptions keep everyone around him in the dark as to what is really going on and to the truth. Even in the most innocent of places, where it is so much easier to tell the truth he will still lie. “I’m the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life. It’s awful. If I’m on my way to the store to buy a magazine, even, and somebody asks me where I’m going, I’m liable to say I’m going to the opera. It’s terrible. So when I told old Spencer I had to go to the gym and get my equipment and stuff, that was a sheer lie. I don’t even keep my goddam equipment in the gym”. He has become such an avid liar, over his lifetime, that he can not help but lie at every opportunity. Holden even lies to one of his classmate’s mother while on the train to New York. “But I’ll bet, after all the crap I shot, Mrs. Morrow’ll keep thinking of him now as this very shy, modest guy that wouldn’t let us nominate him for president”. He lies about his name, her son’s behavior, and even tells her that he is on his way to get a small brain tumor removed. At this point, Holden is simply lying to amuse himself at another’s expense. Holden’s deceitfulness spares no one that he comes in contact with, if one were to have a conversation with him it is safe to assume that he is not telling the
Social Norms In Catcher In The Rye And Nervous Conditions
1864 Words | 8 PagesThe purpose of my essay is to explore how different social backgrounds and the social norms that follow affect the personality of two fictive characters and encourage them to break out of their station to find an identity. The protagonists Holden Caulfield in J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye and Tambudzai in Tsitsi Dangarembga’s novel Nervous Conditions are both victims of social norms. Therefore, the foundation of this essay was to analyze the character’s social background, which has influenced their personalities, behavior and aspirations, and consequently their opposing actions against society. Holden Caulfield is an American adolescent during the period after the Second World War.
How Does Holden Grow Up In Catcher In The Rye
1005 Words | 5 PagesHolden is clearly trying to drop his innocence because he thinks it will make him look more appealing. However, we do see Holden walk the tightrope as later in the novel he realizes it was a mistake to let go of his innocence, he
Catcher In The Rye Rite Of Passage Analysis
1142 Words | 5 PagesThe beginning of Holden’s journey starts with the innocence and naivety of childhood. Childhood is the stage that ignorance is bliss with no care in the world. Holden goes to a prestigious boarding school for boys and he believes that everyone in that school is a phony in some way. Holden is an observant character as he stays in the background, but he can also cause the most trouble. Like a child, he asks many questions and he is very curious to the point that he can be annoying.
Examples Of External Conflict In Catcher In The Rye
668 Words | 3 PagesIn The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is a rebellious and angsty teen who suffers from internal and external conflict. Holden continously tries to create a conflict where there is none. However, after he creates these issues he is unwilling to face them. Holden’s internal conflict is his inability to accept responsibility for his actions, while his external conflict is the tension between him and anyone who succeeds. In this manner Holden continually pushes people away and refuses to accept the existence of these conflicts until the end of the novel.
Catcher In The Rye Analysis
1035 Words | 5 PagesFrom the outset, I have to say that “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger has been one of the most important and influential pieces of literature I have ever read. At its core, the book is a superb coming of age novel which discusses several extremely powerful themes such as the difficulties of growing up, teenage angst and alienation and the superficiality, hypocrisy and pretension of the adult world. These themes resonated deeply with me and were portrayed excellently through the use of powerful symbolism and the creation of highly relatable and likable characters. One such character is Holden Caulfield whom the story both revolves around and is narrated by.
Holden Caulfield Lies In Catcher In The Rye
1378 Words | 6 PagesHolden lies as a result of his depression, in order to hide the fact that he’s lonely and bored with his life, to divert any questions which he believes are too personal, and to create his own reality. In this way, Salinger illustrates how, during difficult times, people resort to lying as a coping mechanism. In the beginning of the story, Holden lied to divert questions in order to protect his personal information.
Catcher In The Rye Allie's Mitt Analysis
779 Words | 4 PagesFurthermore, Holden starts to hate all the adults or loses faith in them, calls them phony. Holden has a second thought of becoming an adult he loses hope in his future and it seems to him nothing in the world matters to him anymore. We can see that throughout the book. He smokes, gets drunk, and does daring acts like getting a prostitute in his room. He also tries to escape all this guilt and grief by wasting time with unnecessary people he calls phony.
Essay On Phony In Catcher In The Rye
714 Words | 3 PagesIn conclusion, Holden is a phony because because he pretends to be someone that he is not, he contradicts himself, and he blames others for things that he is responsible for. Holden, making such a big deal about phonies ended up being one. This shows that no matter what you do, the society will always play a big role in influencing one’s behavior and the way that one
Lack Of Responsibility In Catcher In The Rye
744 Words | 3 PagesHolden Caulfield is an irresponsible character and this can be proven time and again through his thoughts and actions toward himself and others. To start, Holden was proven to be careless with his schoolwork. He flunked out of several schools,
Theme Of Maturity In Catcher In The Rye
837 Words | 4 PagesHolden 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
Catcher In The Rye Society Analysis
1146 Words | 5 PagesSociety as a whole is something you make of it. If one wants to denounce the society they live in because it is “phony” that is because they’ve made the world around them phony. The character of Holden Caulfield in Catcher in the Rye is a prime example of someone being stuck in the idea that society is unchanging. Society is just how a person perceives the world in front of them. The eye of the beholder is the one that creates the society of their choice.
Catcher In The Rye Analysis
1308 Words | 6 PagesShouldn’t someone who acts tough and often brags know that they will never become a phony? The answer would be yes if Holden wasn’t so insecure. Holden’s childish ways cause him to never mature and figure out who he is as a person. We see many signs of Holden insecurities throughout the book, like the fact that he contradicts himself. An example of this would be when Sally and Holden are in the taxi and he tells her he loves her, he then counties to say, “It was a lie, of course, but the thing is, I meant it when I said it” (Salinger 139).
Catcher In The Rye Essay Thesis
600 Words | 3 PagesJessica Casimiro October 30, 2015 English 3/PayLea Short Story Essay Patrick Rothfuss once claimed, “The day we fret about the future is the day we leave our childhood behind.” The novel Catcher in the Rye focuses on Holden Caulfield, an angst-ridden teen conflicted between remaining in a state of prolonged innocence or transitioning into the world of adulthood, thus facing the corruption and phoniness that it correlates with. Through Holden’s dynamic character, J.D Salinger depicts how innocence is slowly lost when exposed to adulthood. Reluctant to the idea of growing up, Holden strives to protect the innocence of himself and the ones’ around him. Holden reminisces about the Natural Museum of History, a place he enjoyed going
Holden Caulfield Reliable Narrator
935 Words | 4 PagesIt 's awful” (19). Again, Holden says that he’s a “terrific” liar although he’s an “awful” liar. Holden doesn’t make the observation here because he’s denying the truth. Holden isn’t reliable because his observations is inaccurate and the readers has to interpret what he
Character Analysis: The Catcher In The Rye
720 Words | 3 PagesHolden Caulfield, the main protagonist in The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, embodies the classic teenager in the process of discovering himself, and how the world works. But, regardless of Holden 's rich, prep school lifestyle, the series of events that have mapped out his life up to this point have utterly affected his emotional well being and perception of the world. Many traumatic events such as the death of holds brother Allie, the death of a class mate, and countless numbers of awkward incidents with adults have all added up to affects Holden 's well-being and detach him from reality. The death of Holden 's younger brother Allie has caused him to confuse his perception of reality and to alienate himself.
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