In the book The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden was molded into someone with a more hopeful future. He went from a life of sloth and indifference to fighting for children and generously helping save their innocence. Holden first displays the sin of sloth through all aspects of his life, especially in his schooling. He is failing four out of five of his classes.
Why Holden Caulfield is Such a memorable Character Holden Caulfield may have a rough outlook on life but there are many things in his life that are dear to him. Holden’s red hunting hat, his sister Phoebe and the Museum of Natural History are some major examples. There are a couple of other things that meant a lot to him like the ducks in the park, his deceased brother Allie, and Jane Gallagher. These things not only help the reader get an understanding of what kind of person Holden Caulfield is but they also show how Holden can be such a memorable character. Another reason why Holden is so memorable is because of the way he interprets other people.
Holden Caulfield is a regular individual, yet he has had some traumatic incidents during his life. I believe that these things are the reason that Holden has been acting weird with his actions and his beliefs. The mixture between major depression and a memorable event in his life has caused him to act out throughout his life and caused him to be put into a mental home, although he does not need to be there. Holden’s problem isn’t something wrong with him mentally but something that went wrong with his life. I believe that with proper treatment and someone to talk to that Holden will be just fine.
What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff” Salinger 191 pg. Everyone knows Holden wants to protect the innocents of women and children, but can he do it, while discovering who he is and why he has to start his live all over again. Holden gets kicked out of his Pencey for not applying himself. Holden’s teacher could tell this that is why he made Holden listen to the essay and notes that said “quote”. Holden could not have known the facts but he could have at least known how to right a very grammarly correct and interesting essay.
Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D Salinger, Holden does reach Watt’s central insight. Watt’s central insight is the “realization that life can never be grasped, never possessed or stand still” (Watts 75). Holden accepts Watt’s central insight when he rejects Phoebe’s offer to ride on the carousel, talking to the psychoanalyst about his thoughts, and admitting that he misses certain people in his life. The first reason that shows Holden has learned to let go is the moment he rejects Phoebe’s offer during the carousel scene. Phoebe, who is Holden’s little sister, still has innocence.
In The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D Salinger, Holden Caulfield recounts his experience in New York City after his expulsion from his third school. Holden, the central character of the novel, describes all characters he meets descriptively, yet he never provides an explanation of his motives. Luckily, Holden’s personality is reflected through the various symbols throughout the novel. J.D Salinger uses symbolism to create an intimate connection to Holden’s unique emotions in an ever changing society. To begin, we first gain insight of Holden’s character through his odd taste in choice.
The most significant episode in the novel, “The Catcher in the Rye”, that fully defines Holden Caulfield is when Holden leaves early form Pencey to go to New York, but it’s his actions throughout the journey when traveling from Pency to the Edmont Hotel is what defines him. Throughout the novel, we understand that Holden is going through an emotional breakdown, however, Holden never comments on it directly. But who is Holden really, what can cause for him to have an emotional breakdown? Holden is a detached young boy who is harboring his feelings of disenchantment and confinement, a young boy who deflects attention from himself, and a young boy who is shameful of the idea of sex. “I put my red hunting hat on, and turned the peak around to the back, the way I liked it, and then I yelled at the top of my goddamn voice, “Sleep tight, ya morons!”” (29.2).
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
A while later, Holden went to Phoebe's school, and while he was on the staircase, he saw swear words written on the wall and tried to wipe them off. Holden attempted to explain why, but stopped and remarked, “I can't explain … And even if I could, I'm not sure I'd feel like it” (Salinger 135). Again, Holden stoped saying something because he did not feel like it. Holden was lazy; he never finished what he tried to say. Holden may have been lazy, but just because he showed signs of sloth did not mean he was a bad person.
In the opening passage of chapter 10, the main protagonist, Holden Caulfield places high value on the youth and innocence that illuminates from his sister, Phoebe. Salinger uses the literary device, repetition to emphasize the importance of Phoebe’s youth. For example, in multiple sections within the passage, Holden reiterates or repeats the phrase “When she was a little kid” to call attention to Phoebe’s adolescence and Holden’s preoccupation with her youth. Here, Holden’s emphasis on Phoebe’s age reveals his hesitance to transition from youth to adulthood. In other words, instead of embracing Phoebe as she is presently, Holden dwells on the past and is skeptical of the metamorphosis from adolescence to adult life.