Holden Caulfield Grief Essay

The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger in 1951, is the story of an angst-ridden sixteen year old Holden Caulfield as he learns to deal with growing up. The story follows Holden through his three day experience through New York as he learns about the truth about innocence, sex, and mortality, making The Catcher in the Rye one of America’s most notable coming-of-age stories. One of the largest influences on Holden’s life was his younger brother Allie who died from leukemia at age eleven when Holden was thirteen. The death of Holden’s brother had a profound effect on Holden emotional state, which eventually caused his complete mental breakdown by the end of the novel.

In J. D. Salinger's novel The Catcher in the Rye, the coming of age archetype is inevitable, as the protagonist matures greatly throughout his physical journey. Holden starts off blinding his eyes to the difficulty of accepting the loss of his brother, Allie. More Often, dark thoughts spiral out of control in Holden's mind, constantly disrupting his state of tranquility, and giving way to his physical journey. Grief causes a sense of sadness, and the deterioration of Holden; however, it does not kill him, it only makes him stronger. This journey that Holden prolongs, explains a lot about himself, and the reason for each location he attends.

Throughout the Catcher and the Rye, the story follows the main character, Holden, after his dismissal from Pencey Prep, journeying through New York City, and along the way giving a biased narrative. As the story goes on, Holden talks about his brother, Allie, who died of leukemia, his sex drive, his childhood friend Jane, and his love for his little sister, Phoebe. In Catcher and the Rye, Salinger portrays that inner needs and wants can affect people in negative ways, such as holding onto the past (Body 1), and making poor, impulsive decisions (Body 2). Holden, in the story, is known to be quick to judge people, especially when it happens to coincide with his past.

In The Catcher in the Rye J.D.Salinger depicts a vivid picture of a teenager standing at a crossroads of childhood and adulthood. The story is an overlapping of ideas when truth get mixed with lie,alienation absorbes a solitary teenager,insomnia veils reality with reminiscences and in the middle of it all stands Holden Caulfield,the main character of the book. He shares his perspective of things during few days while he roams the city of New York and looks for a person who would be able to get into his shoes at least for a second. This alienation leads Holden to sleep deprivation,panick attacks and constant state of depression.

Holding onto the past has always been a common trope in fiction, though it’s usually seen in a negative light. In J.D Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield holds on to a lot of things- ideals, memories, people. More specifically, he never really lets go of his deceased brother, Allie. While Allie never appears himself, he’s mentioned quite a lot by Holden and is one of the things that Holden likes the most.

The transition between childhood innocence and adulthood exists as a complex path, which often uncovers questions that cannot be answered. J.D. Salinger explores Holden’s transition into adult life and how he copes with modern society’s cruel and unforgiving face. In the novel The Catcher in the Rye, Holden’s traumatic experiences directly explains his immaturity and unhealthy obsession over the preservation of the fragile childhood state; although some instances highlighting Holden’s maturity may suggest otherwise, flashes of these instances do not outweigh his immature ideology and opinions. Holden’s dysfunctional family life stemming from the death of his brother Allie and his inferiority complex clearly explains Holden’s unhealthy obsession

Rick Riordan once said, “It's funny how humans can wrap their mind around things and fit them into their version of reality.” The difficulties of life mostly revolve around the battle of what people want to believe versus what is actually there. In J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye and Amy Tan’s Joy Luck Club, Holden Caulfield and Waverly Jong become puppets of their own illusions and fall to their realities which creates new internal struggles.

No one wants to grow up. The transitions from innocent childhood, to fearless adolescence, to sudden real and terrifying adulthood is enough to scare anyone. So, because of this, people have a natural desire to want to protect innocence, or perhaps to even stop time and live young and free forever. J.D Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye portrays this dilemma of becoming an adult and the protection of innocence through the story of Holden Caulfield. Holden’s story is essentially that of a teenage boy bumming around New York City for a few days in search of someone to listen to him about his fears of becoming an adult.

A Perspective on Loneliness in The Catcher in the Rye What should a person do if he or she is kicked out of boarding school? JD Salinger traces Holden, the main character in The Catcher in the Rye, on his lonely path after he is expelled from a boarding school. Salinger writes a tale about the coming of age of a teenager who pushes away all of his friends when he needs them the most. In The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger shows how Holden’s struggles with developing and maintaining friendships result from traumatic events in his past.

In the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield goes through many different phases throughout the book. He had many adulthood situations and many childhood situations. Holden was the not very happy to see what was written on the museum wall. Holden rented a hotel to help from letting his parents know what happen. Holden went to the lake to get his mind in the right place.

In The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger, Salinger established Holden Caulfield’s introverted character through his background and experiences. As a sixteen year old student, Holden had to encounter many life and death obstacles. He becomes traumatized from witnessing the deaths of people close to him. Holden’s experiences with death changed his perspective of the world. For example, Allie’s death allowed him to realize the weaknesses that death has upon everybody, old or young.

Jessica 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

Change is an inevitable aspect of life. However, each person will either accept or unaccept the phenomenon based on the way it affects them. In J.D. Salinger’s novel, Catcher in the Rye, the main character Holden is an adolescent who refuses to accept loss, that is a change caused by the death of his brother. The story captures Holden’s thoughts and actions as he makes his way through New York City over the course of a weekend. Salinger makes use of details and symbols in order to show the non acceptance of loss.