In the novel The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger, the main character and protagonist (all though at times, he is his own antagonist) is Holden Caulfield. Throughout the novel Holden exhibits many characteristic of different mental illnesses including the likes of depression and anxiety, along with various others. Holden is obviously suffering from mental illness(es), in a variety of forms. Three major examples include him imagining all different scenarios and constantly telling lies, his loneliness and how he pushes people away from him {doesn't let people get close to him}, and his suicidal thoughts. At times Holden also doesn't remember things “so hot” and seems to be getting sick. Holden Caulfield is a sixteen year old boy who has …show more content…
The first time the readers see Holden’s version of the truth; always lying even though that contradicts all the statements about everyone else being a “goddamn phony”, is when he he meets a peers mother on the train “"Oh, how lovely! Perhaps you know my son, then, Ernest Morrow? He goes to Pencey." "Yes, I do. He's in my class." Her son was doubtless the biggest bastard that ever went to Pencey, in the whole crumby history of the school. He was always going down the corridor, after he'd had a shower, snapping his soggy old wet towel at people's asses. That's exactly the kind of a guy he was. "Oh, how nice!" the lady said. But not corny. She was just nice and all. "I must tell Ernest we met," she said. "May I ask your name, …show more content…
I didn't feel like giving her my whole life history. Rudolf Schmidt was the name of the janitor of our dorm.” (pg. 54, The Catcher In The Rye, J.D. Salinger.) talking to Mrs. Morrow is the first example of how Holden automatically lies about everything from his name to why he is on the train. While lying can range from harmless to pathological lying, Holden’s exhibits lying on a regular basis. While lying to Mrs. Morrow could be viewed as not wanting to hurt her feelings by talking badly about her son, most of his other lies are there simply to help him advance in the world or to cover his tracks. It would also seem as though the only person he dislikes lying to would be his younger sister Phoebe. But when Maurice hits him, we see how quickly he makes up something more theatrical in his head “But I'm crazy. I swear to God I am. About halfway to the bathroom, I sort of started pretending I had a bullet in my guts. Old 'Maurice had plugged me. Now I was on the way to the bathroom to get a good shot of bourbon or something to steady my nerves and help me really go into action. I pictured myself coming out of the goddam bathroom, dressed and all, with my automatic in my pocket, and staggering around a little bit. Then I'd walk downstairs, instead of using the elevator. I'd hold onto the banister and all, with this blood trickling out of the side of my mouth a little at a time. What I'd do, I'd walk down a few floors—holding onto my guts, blood
Instead of telling her the truth, he says he has to go home because he has a tumor in his brain. Holden calls whoever lies to look better in public a phony, but he performs similar actions. Salinger does not portray Holden’s expectations as reasonable because he portrays Holden’s character as not living up to the same expectations. Holden holds a lot of expectations for who is phony and who is not but he is often found contradicting the same expectations. He calls people that lie to look good in front of others phonies, but he finds it okay to repeatedly lie to Ernest Morrow’s mother.
PREWRITING Taylor Owen Research Paper Mr Williams 5/15/23 Mental Illness Seen in Holden Caulfield: The Catcher in the Rye Analysis Holden Caulfield’s thoughts and behavior in “The Catcher in the Rye” exemplify symptoms commonly associated with depression, anxiety and PTSD. Firstly, he struggles with an intense feeling of sadness and loss, indicating feelings of depression. Holden also frequently worries about his future and the uncertainties of life, which can be seen as symptoms of anxiety. Additionally, his experiences with death, specifically the passing of his younger brother, Allie, and witnessing a suicide, contribute to the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder .
Has anyone in your family ever dealt with mental illness, if so you know how vulnerable they are and how a person can't do anything about it to get help because they’re not right in the head. The person has no idea that they have a problem, this can be seen in holden Caulfield from Catcher In The Rye he suffers from mental illness like depression, but he was untreated for it because of the time period he is in and that society has built up stigmas around mental illness so in turn, he was alienated for it and rejected by society, holden is constantly running from problems and he can't go to his problems and home because of the stigmas in society There are several side effects to mental illness that holden shows like thoughts of suicide and homelessness.
Initially, Holden Caulfield is depicted as the teen who fights the path towards adulthood by utilizing lying and amplified emotions. Events such as the death of his brother, and being kicked out
In The Catcher in the Rye, it is observed that the novel is about grief. There are 5 stages of grief: denial, anger, depression, bargaining, and finally acceptance. The Catcher in the Rye shows how Holden goes through the grieving process. By the end of the novel it shows how Holden has reached closure or a way to let go.
I was already sort of sorry I 'd let the thing start rolling, but it was too late now” (Salinger 19). This quote goes to show that Holden is trying to be a different person. He normally would accept a night with an escort but as stated in the quote he was so depressed he couldn 't even think about his decisions. A later quote shows that he doesn 't even use his real name he uses the name “Jim Steele”.
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. In the beginning of the story, Holden lied to divert questions in order to protect his personal information.
It 's feeling everything at once than feeling paralysingly numb,” writes Maria Henriksson. Mental illness refers to many conditions that individuals could go through. For example depression, addictive behaviors, and eating disorder have effects that could indicate whether or not an individual has a mental illness. In the novel The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger, Holden faces many hardships after his brother 's death. Holden 's mental illness is inferred through his lack of control, isolating himself from others, and relieving the past which caused him to not move
In fact, Holden's predisposition for lying stems from a desire to escape reality and all reminders of his dead younger brother Allie, who is the source of Holden's grief. Holden exhibits great
Holden Caulfield’s early loss of innocence causes him to fiercely guard the innocence of others, resulting in pain for him when he realizes that his attempts are futile. Holden’s negative experiences with the adults in his life lead to his valuing the idea of innocence. Despite his bad role models, Holden clings to the concept that integrity is the most important quality in a person. While reflecting on one of his old boarding schools, he expresses his dislike for its “phony” headmaster, Mr. Haas. He complains, “[O]ld Haas went around shaking hands with everybody's parents when they drove up to school.
Yet, Holden did not seem depressed he just was hurt, which turned him into a terrific liar. Particularly, in the book he states “I'm the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life. It's awful.” This quote is a confession of him being a liar. Holden lies about his name to a woman named Mrs. Morrow.
He takes the reader on a journey over a few days from him leaving the school to roaming the streets of New York. The question is Holden a Phony often pops into the minds of the reader. Holden is a phony because he is a hypocrite who does things that he criticize others for. He is a phony because he pretends to be someone that he is not,
Sickness comes in many forms, but perhaps the most misunderstood form happens mentally. All of the events that happen to the main character in The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield, are caused in some way or another by his mental illness. Holden Caulfield is a boy who drops out of school and travels to New York City. Holden makes irresponsible decisions like when he travels to New York City by himself without permission which affects him mentally. Holden’s mental illnesses affects his decision making,specifically his decision to stay in school and his inability to connect with people.
It 's awful” (19). Again, Holden says that he’s a “terrific” liar although he’s an “awful” liar. Holden doesn’t make the observation here because he’s denying the truth. Holden isn’t reliable because his observations is inaccurate and the readers has to interpret what he
When Holden is thrown into the real world after being thrown out of Pencey Prep, he finds himself surrounded by a world of “phony.” Holden uses the word “phony” to describe anything that he doesn’t approve of and continues to accuse everyone except for his sister, Phoebe, and his dead brother, Allie, of being one. This is hypocritical because Holden exemplifies his own phoniness during numerous occasions. Holden’s description of himself as “the most terrific liar you have ever saw in your life” reveals his enthusiasm for lying. When Holden runs into his classmate’s mother, he starts to deceptively and enthusiastically ramble to her about her son’s shortcomings, revealing his dishonest identity: