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 also rejects Phoebe’s offer that he should ride the carousel, to instead just watch her and the carousel move. At first, Holden sees the carousel go around in a circle without really going anywhere. This helps depict the immobility of Holden’s life, constantly circulating around Allie’s death. Holden still feels the hopelessness of Allie’s death and the slight desire of wishing that he should’ve died in place of his brother. He wants to successfully protect someone in need.Why?
He is a symbol of the bliss of youth. In Holden's opinion Allie had many good qualities, he was smart, he was patient and "God, he was a nice kid" Holden sees all children like Allie. He loves the way kids are sweet and honest. For most of the book, he wishes for them to stay this way forever and never grow into adults. He represents his desire for permanence with the history museum.
Throughout the book, Holden is struggling to get by. The death of his brother Allie has left him in a tough spot. Holden doesn’t exactly know how to deal with this. The different stages of grief are represented through Holden. Holden shows denial and anger when he flashbacks to one of his memories after his brother’s death.
Holden is very young when he loses his brother, which could be the reason he does not know how to deal with the situation correctly. Throughout the novel, Holden continues to think about Allie. For example, he wrote about him in a paper and he pleads to Allie in New York (Bennett 129). Psychoanalytic interpretations help readers to try and understand Holden’s psyche in order to figure out why Holden acts the way he does (Bennett 129). Looking at Caulfield’s childhood, which had a very traumatic event, could be the cause of his erratic behavior (Bennett 129).
Holden is reminded of the fact that he never has anyone around him to care for him, and it makes him feel lonesome and depressed. Holden tries to pass time by inviting people to spend time with him as a way for him to forget that he is lonely, and has no one. “Would you care to stop on the way to join me for a cocktail? On me, I’m loaded” (asgaf0) Holden is always finding someone or somewhere to go to past time to distract him from the fact that he has no one around, or no one to show him affection. Holden is so confused with his life, and so depressed because of the lack of love and affection he receives.
The struggle of adolescence combined with the themes of loss and isolation through one Holden Caulfield. This coming of age story of Holden in J. D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye is a famous all american masterpiece. Within the book, Salinger’s is known for his frequent and detailed use of symbolism from Holden’s hat representing his shield and childlike vulnerability to the ducks in Central Park as a reflection of his subconscious mind trying to get help. One famous symbolism is the small detail of Holden’s right hand, specifically his inability to make a fist gives a window into his character and reflects his current state of mind and his path to adulthood. Psychologically analysing Holden, his fist is an important symbolic indicator of
Through his journey, Holden comes across several occasions where he experiences phoniness. This trait is prolifically shown among the people who meet Holden as well as himself, as he talks about the first hand experiences he encounters. Holden’s contempt for phonies is unwarranted due to his own attempts to act more mature than he is, the constant lies he tells others, and his inability to live up to his own moral standards. Holden Caulfield continuously tries to act more mature than he is which makes him unjustified in his
Growing up was the last thing Holden ever wanted to do. Though Holden tries utmost to fit in the adult world, but he can’t find the right path to follow to. He sees the world in with a different view of the people and society. The number of people he enjoys being with are as many as how many fingers in a human’s hand. Everywhere he seems to go, he has some bad things to say about it.
At the end of the story, when he is at the zoo with Phoebe, he finally realizes he is happy. His sister means the world to him and cares about him more than anyone. Due to the loss of Holden’s brother he doesn't try to build relationships because they could be ruined just as his and his brother’s was. Holden got himself involved with people who didn’t really care about him, which made him unable to build relationships. Evaluation The story The Catcher in the Rye is a well developed book about alienation and its affects on a person.