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Holden Caulfield Character Analysis

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As Edward Morrow says, “To be persuasive we must be believable, to be believable we must be credible, to be credible we must be truthful.” This quote perfectly presents how a person has to be believable in order for people to trust and relate to him/her. This person is someone that has weaknesses, is not a stereotype, expresses his opinions, and has hopes, fears and disappointments. Usually, authors try to write about believable characters in their stories, allowing the readers to connect with them. Holden Claufield is a quintessence of this type of character, since he has the exact same qualities as a believable person. Holden confidently shares his opinions and goals. In Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger, the protagonist, Holden Claufield, …show more content…

Holden is only a typical rebellious teenager that wants to be an adult; therefore, he expresses himself through a unique language in the story. Holden uses vulgar language to express his opinions on everything and everyone. “I didn 't even bother to get up. I just lay there in the floor for a while, and kept calling him a moron sonuvabitch. I was so mad, I was practically bawling.” (51) In this quote, Holden keeps calling someone a moron and a sonuvabitch, proving that Holden uses inadequate words. Normal adolescents use similar vulgar slangs to communicate and refer to other people. In addition, teenagers enjoy fooling people, and Holden is no exception. He constantly deceives people by lying about his age and name. "May I ask your name, dear? Rudolf Schmidt, I told her. I didn 't feel like giving her my whole life history. Rudolf Schmidt was the name of the janitor of our dorm.” (61) This quote provides a perfect example of when Holden lies to an adult about his name. Holden deceives a woman in a train by telling her that his name is Rudolf Schmidt, which is the name of his school’s janitor. In this case, Holden lies for the following two reasons: he feels ashamed of himself and to mess with the woman in the train. Many teenagers lie for the same reasons. Holden reveals his thoughts and deceives people through inadequate language, just as a regular

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