Holden's Illuminating Moment In Catcher In The Rye

When Holden enters the Lavender club, his lust and immaturity towards the opposite sex becomes prominent. After a failed attempt at trying to buy an alcoholic drink underage, he begins giving 3 women “the old eye”, a colloquial expression meaning looking admiringly at them. Holden gives the women a few more lewd glances before abruptly deciding that he wants to “marry them”, contextualizing an image of immaturity towards both the opposite sex and the feeling of love. Holden goes over to the girls in hopes of dancing with them, managing to get Bernice-the most beautiful of the 3 to join him. While he dances with her he reflects on why he asked the two less attractive girls to dance, concluding that he was very “hard up”, colloquially alluding

Allie’s death causes Holden to become obsessed with death and this obsession makes him believe that growing up and becoming a “phonie” is like dying; this belief that is planted inside Holden’s head when Allie died is what sends him on a quest to preserve children’s innocence and save them from the “death” of growing up.

Thomas Jefferson once wrote, “He who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and third time, till at length it becomes habitual”. In the book Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield’s lies become habitual throughout the book. Holden is a sixteen-year-old boy, who has been kicked out of several schools including, most recently, Pencey Prep. Holden’s younger brother, Allie, died when Holden was only thirteen and his older brother is too busy working for Hollywood to care about Holden. Although his mother cares immensely for him, Holden saddens her by failing academically. The only motivator that Holden has to continue living is his younger sister, Phoebe, who is extraordinarily intelligent for her age. After he gets kicked out of Pencey, Holden is lost in life. He speaks to many people, seeking advice and comfort, but they are not able to help him find a human connection. Holden’s depression increases throughout the novel, almost to the point of suicide. He criticizes many people and ideas, labeling them as ‘phony’. Holden lies as a result of his depression, in order to hide the fact that he’s lonely and bored with his life, to divert any questions which he believes are too personal, and to create his own reality. In this way, Salinger illustrates how, during difficult times, people resort to lying as a coping mechanism.

While this novel does have profanity and sexual references, it still deserves to be taught in high school because Holden shows how having a negative attitude towards life does not get a person far. In the beginning of the novel Holden tells the reader that "[Pencey] kick[s] [him] out [of their school]" (6) because he "was [failing] four subjects and not applying [himself]" (6). However, he does not just notify the reader, he notifies them in a way of forgetting to mention that he is no longer going to be attending Pencey. Holden passes this off as some minor detail when in reality it is not just a minor detail. Later on, Holden reveals to the reader that this is not the first school where he has gotten expelled. To some this would be devastating,

Throughout the novel, Holden progresses to become more aware of his actions. Holden’s process is slowed an adolescent state of mind where his self-absorption doesn’t allows for him to fully see how his actions affect the outcomes he receives. Holden’s pathology consistently brings negative outcomes. Holden occasionally learns to take responsibility of his actions and realizes he must live in the present instead of the past. Holden is able to form meaningful connections with a limited few and use these as a hopeful path for his future.

Although most of the time, Holden demonstrates his rebellious side, he actually still has fragile side. “What I was really hanging around for, I was trying to feel some kind of good-by”(7). “Good-by” is a word can brings a sense of sadness. Holden’s thoughts about “good-by” demonstrate he is a fragile boy who is like a piece of glass, easy to be broken. This shows that Holden is a person who has desire to love and care from others. He wants to leave some impression to people. He wants them to remember him instead of ignoring. Holden is not as tough as he shows when he describes his parents and his brother D.B in the previous paragraphs. Another good example shows his fragility appears when his brother died and “[he] broke all the goddam windows

Holden Caulfield constantly contradicts himself in the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, this is best seen on his views towards phonies and he himself unknowingly being a phony.

Throughout the book The Catcher In The Rye Holden life is tragic and full of disappointments but he tend to somewhat grow up. Holden grow up in a harsh way and tend to realize how people view things differently than him. Since Holden tend to always drift off his own thoughts lot , it like he’s taking three steps forward and then five steps back. In my opinion he doesn’t really grow up, maybe a little but tend to still make childish moves. He will go back and forth with growing up and being childish. In Holden mind everything is so depressing and sad because all he sees is the bad in everything which make it hard for him to grow up and understand. I see the growth in Holden but he makes it hard for himself and hard for us readers to see

3. Holden Caulfield, the novel’s protagonist, is a pivotal character in The Catcher in the Rye. Holden is characterized as an innocent, apathetic, naive teen who is seeking knowledge of life and the meaning of becoming an adult. Holden’s struggle with seeing the genuine nature of people is something that acts as a barrier for him throughout the novel. Holden is troubled and burdened throughout the story, which causes him to have a warped view on an array of subjects. Holden passes strict judgement on everyone, as he struggles to transition from adolescence to adulthood. Holden appears to be stunned when he sees how different the life of an adult is comparison to that of children. His views on topics such as, life, his future, and sex. Holden

What is the real Holden? In the short novel “Catcher in the Rye” By J.D Salinger is about Holden is in the mental hospital telling the story about himself at Pencey Prep, New york and with Phoebe. As the story goes on, it shows Holden’s characteristic in three different ways. He is a typical teenager, he behaves different from a normal teenager and he is lonely.

Throughout the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is a deep character that shows(possesses) many personality traits. His character is what connects many readers to him and helps in understanding him. Some character traits Holden possesses are that he is generous, kindhearted, usually honest, very intelligent, makes quick judgements, speaks his mind, is anxious about change, and likes kids. Considering his many character traits, it is easy for the reader to understand and relate to Holden. There are many character traits that I share with him. Three examples of such traits are that I like to speak my mind, I get anxious when things change and I am kind-hearted.

The Catcher in the Rye portrays Holden Caulfield’s struggle to accommodate the adult world. Caulfield, ashamed of his inadequacy, resorts to deception to alter others’ perceptions of him. Through lying, he creates an ideal persona, masking his ineptitude at school and intimacy. Although Caulfield’s deception inflicts others in addition to himself, it enables him to exploit others and rebel against his own shortcomings.

After reading the novel “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger, there is one connection between Holden and I. Holden mentions his sister Phoebe in a few times and whenever he talks to her, he is happy and grateful that his sister always understand him. It shows that he has a close sibling bonding with her. I have a brother that is four years older than me, he is the one who spent most of his time to listen my nonsense complain of everything that I can’t deal with and patiently solve my problems. I’m really glad that I have him to be my old brother and in the novel, Holden shows his loves to his little sister.

Based on the way Holden describes himself, and the way he portrays himself, seems as if he was a mature grown up man. According to Holden, half of his head is occupied by white hairs, while on the other half was his natural hair color. He states that he has

An important part of a person’s life is when they finally learn how to be more mature and have basically come of age. When a character achieves this quest in a story it is called the Bildungsroman. In this genre of literature, the story displays and demonstrates how the character grows up and becomes an adult. They learn how to be mature in important situations and most importantly they are able to leave behind their ties to their childhood. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is very immature throughout most of the story. He refuses to give up his childhood and he is anxious to see what the future hold for him. Towards the end of the book, the reader is able to catch glimpses of Holden’s new found maturity. He is starting to understand that growing up is a big responsibility and is finally ready to take on that challenge. Although he has not completely matured, one distinct moment at the end of the book lets the reader know he will reach complete maturity in the near future. In J.D. Salinger’s, The Catcher in the Rye, the author