ipl-logo

Holden Caulfield Alienation Quotes

754 Words4 Pages

In the story “The Catcher In The Rye”, by J.D. Salinger many influences about alienation can be made throughout the chapters. Holden Caulfield is a wealthy teen who is confused about himself and where he would fit in life. Although Holden goes to a private school where he would find common interests with other kids who are in the same financial state as him he is pretty isolated. Holden tends to hate confrontation, throughout the novel and always is about to do something but chooses in the end to not. Caulfield is his own antagonist he craves company but takes pride in his idea of people being too “phony” that he pushes everyone away, he takes his own happiness away and alienates himself from people who love and want to help him. When attending Pencey prep Caulfield spent his time hating everyone and did not socialize with others. He talks about how everyone when going to football games all hang out but he never mentions himself going to …show more content…

His interactions with people continue when he is in New York because he runs into some old friends and calls them up. He called Sally up his ex-girlfriend to go on a date, he plans something she would like after he claims he does not care about her. While on their date Holden brings up how he wants to run away with Sally without really thinking his idea through. He only really was hanging out with her for a couple hours, this was the first time they hung out in months and he expected sally to jump up and say yes (she did not). Holden and Sally get into an argument about his “plan” to run away together instead of talking it through and being more mature about the situation. He proves that he does not really care for friendships or others because he still needs a lot of growing up to

Show More
Related

  • How Does Holden Present Depression In Catcher In The Rye

    481 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the beginning of the book soon after being told he couldn’t return the following semester he decides to simply leave the school and wander around New York City. In New York, Holden continues to get himself into trouble. For example, he hired a prostitute and did not give her the correct amount of money resulting in her pimp beating him up. At the end of the novel, he made a plan to run away again. Although, this time he decided he would go to a far away place and live on his own in the middle of nowhere.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Dialectical Journal For The Catcher In The Rye

    1722 Words  | 7 Pages

    Prompt 1: Bubbles Holden hasn't had such a great experience when it came to school, he got kicked out multiple times and it seemed to never work out for him. “They gave guys the axe quite frequently at Pencey.” Which was stated in the CATCHER in the RYE on page six, paragraph three. He also never applied himself and got many warnings about his grades, but he didn’t care. School doesn't always work out for everyone and holden is a good example, he wasn't a school kind of guy.

    Read More

  • Mental Illness Seen In Holden Caulfield

    496 Words  | 2 Pages

    He even contemplates leaving the theatre and never seeing Sally again. Holden’s anxiety is evident from the start of the scene, as he begins

    Read More

  • Catcher In The Rye Theme Of Loneliness

    602 Words  | 3 Pages

    Gretchen Rubin once said, “Negative emotions like loneliness, envy, and guilt have an important role to play in a happy life; they're big, flashing signs that something needs to change.” However, in The Catcher in the Rye there is no one who understands Holden’s loneliness, and Holden does not quite know how to express it. In his novel The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger develops the theme of loneliness through Holden’s need for human contact, suicidal thoughts, and his separation from others around him. One way J.D. Salinger expresses Holden’s loneliness is through his need for human contact.

    Read More

  • Catcher In The Rye Chapter 9-14 Analysis

    697 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Chapter 9-14 Holden Caulfield leaves Penecy Prep and heads to New York City. Where he will stay for a couple days before winter vacation starts and he will head home. Delaying breaking the news to his family he got kicked out of school for as long as possible. These chapters are where Holden’s loneliness becomes abundantly clear. The reader is subjected to many long rants by Holden about the company he wants, though he attempts to settle several times.

    Read More

  • Holden Caulfield Rejection

    1158 Words  | 5 Pages

    This leaves Holden feeling unwanted and out of place. He feels a wave of depression and loneliness wash over him that is so strong that it drives him to leave Pencey all together and take to the streets of New York to try to mend his broken

    Read More

  • Catcher In The Rye Loneliness Analysis

    1305 Words  | 6 Pages

    Loneliness is a state many have experienced, but it is scarcely felt to the point of insanity and utter hopelessness. In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield’s loneliness is a self-defense mechanism from socializing with others, making it the greatest source of his pain. Though his loneliness is caused by uncontrollable external forces, it is only overcome by his own choice of introspection. Initially, Holden did not chose to be lonely.

    Read More

  • Catcher In The Rye Allie's Mitt Analysis

    779 Words  | 4 Pages

    Furthermore, 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.

    Read More

  • How Does Holden Caulfield Change Throughout The Novel

    693 Words  | 3 Pages

    Catcher in the Rye In the book Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger, the narrator and protagonist Holden Caulfield a sixteen year old junior undergoes a series of changes. Holden learns multiple life changing lessons; one of them is you must grow up. In the beginning of the novel, Holden starts out as “that kid”; the one with the parents who expect him to get into an ivy league school, and end up with a kid with no intentions of doing so. At the beginning of the book it is very apparent that Holden lacks motivation; he also has hit rock bottom.

    Read More

  • Acceptance In Catcher In The Rye

    777 Words  | 4 Pages

    Teenagers often attempt to find happiness through the acceptance of others, as they believe it will make their life whole. In the novel The Catcher In The Rye, written by J.D. Salinger, the protagonist and narrator of the novel is a sixteen year old junior who is expelled from his school Pencey Prep for failing 4 out of 5 classes. Holden Caulfield seeks acceptance from the people surrounding him, which affects him both positively and negatively. In the novel The Catcher In The Rye, the main character, Holden Caulfield, seeks acceptance from those around him when he goes home to look for Phoebe, when he goes to his old teacher expecting pity, and when he visits the nuns because he heard what good people they are. The first example of Holden yearning acceptance from the people surrounding him is when he goes home to look for Phoebe, his sister, after his expulsion.

    Read More

  • The Theme Of Isolation In Catcher In The Rye

    1615 Words  | 7 Pages

    In the novel The Catcher In The Rye written by J. D. Salinger shows that Holden goes through his journey and is depressed because of his isolation from

    Read More

  • Holden Caulfield's Immaturity in The Catcher in the Rye

    752 Words  | 4 Pages

    The protagonist Holden Caulfield is liberated from his warped personality and finally begins to realize his aversion of the grown-up life that change is inevitable and always accompanied by a sense of loss. Not accepting the changes in the surroundings and his actions makes him immature and not a trusted narrator. Avoiding issues by not facing them in the first place makes him being followed by disappointment constantly. For instance, in the beginning of the book Caulfield mentions his own opinion on leaving places and we know that when he was thirteen years old his little brother died.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Maturity In Catcher In The Rye

    837 Words  | 4 Pages

    In The Catcher in the Rye, the author J.D. Salinger, introduces the protagonist; Holden Caulfield. Holden feels the sense that he cannot choose between the two worlds. For example, he makes it seem as both of them are complete opposites from each other. In the book, Holden wants to keep his innocence, but he also wants to grow up and toss that innocence away. He still keeps his childhood personality by constantly obsessing over things that shouldn’t matter.

    Read More

  • Holden Caulfield Loneliness

    1039 Words  | 5 Pages

    Alienation In The Catcher In The Rye In J.D Salinger’s The Catcher In The Rye, loneliness is the main topic of the book. The main character Holden Caulfield is an outsider from the beginning, which makes it easier for him to feel lonely. In the book he talks about the things leading up to him getting expelled from Pencey Prep, a private school, and the events that occur after. Holden Caulfield desperately wants human companionship but since he isn’t mature enough and he dislikes human interaction, he ends up being alone.

    Read More

  • Holden Caulfield Reliable Narrator

    935 Words  | 4 Pages

    Catcher in the Rye At the end of the novel, Holden Caulfield notes, “.. D.B. asked me what I thought about all this stuff I just finished telling you about. I didn 't know what the hell to say. If you want to know the truth, I don 't know what I think about it” (234). Three major episodes that Holden mentions throughout the novel shows a little of who he is as a narrator; the ducks at central park, the lunatic, and the fight with Stradlater.

    Read More

More about Holden Caulfield Alienation Quotes

Open Document