Holden Caulfield's Immaturity in The Catcher in the Rye

In the allegory of the cave, Plato’s main goal is to illustrate his view of knowledge. A group of prisoners have been chained in a cave their whole lives and all they have ever been exposed to were shadows on the wall and voices of people walking by. The prisoners in the cave represent humans who only pay attention to the physical aspects of the world (sight and sound). Once one of them escapes and sees the blinding light, all he wants is to retreat back to the cave and return to his prior way of living. This shows that Plato believes enlightenment and education are painful, but the pain is necessary for enlightenment and it is worth it. Once he finally gets past the pain and is able to view the truth of the world, he feels pity for the

Throughout the novel, The Catcher In The Rye, by J.D. Salinger, Holden struggles to find himself and who he truly is in order to be happy. His struggles relate to many things that he does or say in particular.

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.

The deeply troubled adolescent Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye displays signs of fear and rejection towards the adult world, into which he is strongly resisting the transition. Caulfield is disgusted at the world and in particular the adults that surround him which ultimately drives Caulfield to the point of expelling the idea of maturity and rather preserving the childlike innocence in the youth. Caulfield labels adults as arrogant and superficial who are believed to be the carriers of vice and phoniness and are blind to their wrong doings. On the contrary, Caulfield believes that children are the carriers of virtue and innocence, who are sucked into the complex and superficial adult world.

In this novel, Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is the narrator that goes through a variety of problems. He has dilemmas, but meets/reconnects with people on his quest of life. This novel is more than just a simple story about a protagonist and his life events. This novel follows the structure of bildungsroman. There are four parts to it- character’s growth in social structure, a form of loss, process of maturity, and if the character ends in a new place of society.

While many argue that Holden Caulfield from The Catcher in the Rye does not deviate from the traditional anti-hero attributes and, therefore, does not display any prominent change, an argument can be made to the contrary. Holden Caulfield goes through some noticeable character development and is in a better place emotionally at the end of the book because he speaks with Phoebe. His meeting with Phoebe and Phoebe’s message to him shows him a youth’s perspective on his world, rather than the superficial sincerity of his elderly professor and his favorite teacher that makes advances on him. Additionally, him being able to successfully communicate with a member of his own family puts him in a better place. His time with her lets him see his own self-image of a “catcher in the rye.” By, Holden has been able to change and will be able to change even more in the future.

In the novel “Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger, the main character, Holden acts very immature. He shows this through running away from home as well as Pency Prep, his school, in which he failed most of his classes. Holden changes his mind very quickly, and is incredibly fast to judge. He also shows immaturity by acting like a blind woman on the street. When people come to contact with problems, they face them head-on. Holden however, runs from them, but lies to himself that it was the right thing to do. Holden on top of all his immaturity, is calling anyone who isn’t him or his siblings a phony.

Not many people realise that people come from different backgrounds and experiences, and therefore, people act stubborn. Many people fail to think through things and also fail to think through the possibilities. In the book, The Catcher in the Rye, it is heavily enclosed on regarding a 16-year-old boy, Holden Caulfield. The book goes through the memories he has, as many things are revealed about him and how he critiques, specifically, society. Holden is not an easy character to understand, which forces the reader to use clues and moments throughout the book to open up Holden. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden can be interpreted as a misanthrope because of his seclusion and hatred toward society.

“What I liked about her, she didn't give you a lot of horse manure about what a great guy her father was. She probably knew what a phony slob he was.” (Salinger 3) Throughout the novel, The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is a sixteen-year-old boy living in a world full of ‘a bunch of phonies’. As he feels a lingering sense of loss over his life; he does not want to grow and be a complicated adult, acting like everyone else. Caulfield believes he lives in a ‘phony world’, and he does not understand why people act the way they do. Through his eyes, Holden Caulfield lives in an idealistic world of perfection, of childhood dreams and never growing up. As Caulfield tells his story, the reader comes to realize the adolescent way of Caulfield thinking the world and everyone living in it are phony. Holden Caulfield’s phony world is full of confusion and depression, loneliness, and emptiness, but as his story progresses, Caulfield has some genuine moments with himself and others around him. Within the novel, the reader learns about Holden Caulfield's phony world and genuine times

Growing up is difficult and sometimes frightening to imagine as a child. It is not surprising, then, that throughout the Catcher in the Rye, by J.D Salinger, Holden is unwilling to mature into a man and accept his responsibilities. Yet, he feels the need to save children in order to preserve their innocence. As Holden is introduced to different characters and places, he labels them into categories, distinguishing what he thinks is genuine and from what has changed.

Depression. Alienation. Loneliness. Depression sets off a chain reaction of alienation and loneliness that causes people to make bad decisions. In the book, Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger explores the topic of mental health. The main character, Holden Caulfield, tells a story about the decisions he made at a certain point of his life. Throughout the book, Holden shows many signs of depression, alienation and loneliness. He acts out differently and always feels hatred for the world. The state of his mental health stopped him from making smart decisions but he also alienated himself which then caused his loneliness. Holden Caulfield went through a chain reaction of depression throughout the book which provoked a bad mental health

This novel is a story of adolescence. We can find the joys, the anxieties and the difficulties and the revolt of this period of our life. What is interesting in this book, it’s not really the outcome but more the functioning of the mind and feelings of this adolescent who, beyond his (relative) immaturity, understands life with that spontaneity and truth that many adults no longer use.

“The Catcher in the Rye” is a polarizing 1951 novel by J. D. Salinger. The novel's protagonist Holden Caulfield has become an icon for teenage rebellion. A key text can be defined as a book that had endured the test of time and is still relevant to modern society due to its core concepts. A controversial novel originally published for adults, it has since been relevant in modern society due to its ability to deal with complex issues associated with coming of age. In particular “The Catcher in the Rye” deals with the issues of alienation as a form of self-protection, the painfulness of growing up and the artificiality of the adult world.

The Act II soliloquy best reflects Hamlet's actual level of grief. At the beginning of Act I, Hamlet still does not know the cause of his father's demise. There, he grieves after his father's death. Of course, he is resentful towards Gertude, but only because she married his uncle so

The Catcher in the Rye involves an older teenager named Holden, who expresses his immaturity. “‘Our youth today has no moorings, no criterion beyond instinct, no railing to grasp along the steep ascent to maturity.’” (Peterson 1). Younger people are known as childish and illiterate, who only want an enjoyable