He perceives himself as the older man by kissing one girls on the forehead. When he does that she thinks it is weird and strange because she is much older than him. Again Holden is trying to connect but at times when it is not appropriate at the wrong times. This leaves Holden very sad and lonely. He wonders why nobody wants to talk and connect with him even though he considers himself a normal, healthy
Thus, Holden also tries to build a friendship with the women to continue to feel the sense of comfort and peace. Salinger then uses the simile, “then we shook hands. And all that crap. It made me feel sad as hell, though” which shows how Holden did not want to leave. This suggests that Holden feels the sense of belonging when he is with Mr and Mrs Spencer and the thought of leaving them made him sad.
Even though his success with girls is limited and that he falls victim to temptation, Holden abides by his opinion. He displays respect for girls and is not one to rush into relationships. Albeit he is involved in his own childish antics, Holden still displays a mature and reserved side of himself that is considerate of
As Holden walks around New York, he does very odd things such as ask his taxi driver where the ducks in the pond go during the winter when the pond freezes over. While his behavior may seem peculiar and off putting, in Holden’s case, these are usual for him. His behavior is consistent to what he has experienced. Holden Caufield is not insane because he has never been diagnosed with a mental illness and his odd behavior is characterized by the situation that he is in. Holden Caufield is not insane because he has never talked about being diagnosed with a mental illness.
The general seedy undercurrent of the large city allows him to slip into said nightclubs with no issues and even experience a prostitute and subsequent mugging in a dinky hotel. The Characteristics of Holden himself also fall under what is considered geography. Holden is an intelligent and sensitive person, yet his narration is in a cynical and jaded voice. He uses his cynicism in an attempt to protect himself from the hypocrisy and ugliness of the world around him and the pain and disappointment of the world. The criticisms that Holden targets people with are also projected towards himself.
Holden is a teenager, who, from my observation, is not exempt from having regular teenager problems such are struggling with social norms and statuses and relationships with both male and female genders. As he told me, he tries to have people with whom he can spend time and call friends as well as he tries to find relationship with girls. In fact, he succeeds in being more or less social spending time with other boys, for example going to the city with Mal Brossand and Ackley, or having double dates with Stadler and his female schoolmates. However, although he could’ve been considered to be a regular teenager with no significant declines, he has a lot of mental problems, but the most crucial one is not accepting life in a way it is. This problem
He feels as if everyone is left. Holden has given up on trying to date people to fill the void that is so empty in his heart. Holden pushes away most people in his life “'Cause most of [Holden’s] feelings, they are dead and they are gone” because of the people who were never actually there. Most of the people Holden tries to call are recently met friends that he most likely met after the death of his brother. The songwriter has been hurt so many times that she no longer wants to feel anything, so therefore does not allow herself to care about anything or anyone anymore.
Holden´s Behavior Holden Caulfield is a teenager growing up in 1950’s America. He has been through an ordeal, both physically and mentally, and is going through a pivotal time in his life, arguably caused by the death of his brother, Allie, only a few short years before. Holden runs away from his school, Pencey Prep, and wanders around New York for the vast majority of the story. During this journey, he is faced with the fact that he must grow up, something he does not take lightly. While it may be noted that Holden Caulfield wasn’t quite able to express himself through practical means, his thought processes can be surmised as identical to those of the typical teenager.
Holden shows a lot of those three things throughout the whole book. As an example, Holden states, “I felt so lonesome, all of a sudden. I wish I was dead.“(Salinger 48) Holden constantly says throughout the book things that make me worry about his safety and the safety of others. At one point in the book he says, “I’d rather push a guy out of the window or chop his head off with an ax than sock him in the jaw.”(Salinger 89-90) His reasoning behind that statement his he doesn’t really like fist-fights. He says that he does not have the guts to actually punch anyone and that he is yellow, but only partly.
He finds it hard to relate to people because they don’t understand him or his circumstances. “People never notice anything.” (Salinger, Page 9). “…but he wouldn’t believe me. People never believe you.” (Salinger, Page 37). Holden feels helpless and alone.