Catcher in the Rye
Scared & Lonely in Catcher In The Rye
“Don't ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody”. (pg.126) The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger is about a boy named Holden Caulfield and his teenage struggles. This novel shows Holden’s life as he transfers from school to school and the difficulties in between them. Throughout the novel, it is easy to see that Holden has a hard time communicating with others. He struggles to say what he wants to say when he speaks to adults, he has difficulties making phone calls when he feels like talking to someone, and he always acknowledges something that depresses him or makes him feel lonesome.
“No, sir, I haven’t communicated with them, because I’ll probably see them Wednesday night when I get home.”(pg.13) This is the first example of Holden’s lack of communication. He makes this statement to Mr. Spencer, when Mr. Spencer asks if he told his parents that he had been kicked out of school. Holden had trouble doing this because he knew his parents would be very disappointed in him. He just wanted to wait until his parents got the news from the school, not from him. Perhaps if Holden went to his parents on his own and told them how much he hated Pencey Prep, then maybe, just maybe, Holden wouldn’t have spent those 3 days in NYC feeling so lonely. Holden just needed to find a way to open up to his parents and let them know his feelings. In the same way, Holden struggled to communicate with adults, this lack of skill is seen in his inability to call his friends and family when he was feeling lonely.
There are times when Holden will get lonely and want to talk to someone. He’ll think about giving him or her a call but he always finds a reason to hold off connecting with anyone. “The first thing I did when I got off at Penn Station, I went into this phone booth. I felt like giving somebody a buzz. But as soon as I was inside, I couldn't think of anybody to call up. My brother D.B. was in Hollywood.
“Don't ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody”. (pg.126) The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger is about a boy named Holden Caulfield and his teenage struggles. This novel shows Holden’s life as he transfers from school to school and the difficulties in between them. Throughout the novel, it is easy to see that Holden has a hard time communicating with others. He struggles to say what he wants to say when he speaks to adults, he has difficulties making phone calls when he feels like talking to someone, and he always acknowledges something that depresses him or makes him feel lonesome.
“No, sir, I haven’t communicated with them, because I’ll probably see them Wednesday night when I get home.”(pg.13) This is the first example of Holden’s lack of communication. He makes this statement to Mr. Spencer, when Mr. Spencer asks if he told his parents that he had been kicked out of school. Holden had trouble doing this because he knew his parents would be very disappointed in him. He just wanted to wait until his parents got the news from the school, not from him. Perhaps if Holden went to his parents on his own and told them how much he hated Pencey Prep, then maybe, just maybe, Holden wouldn’t have spent those 3 days in NYC feeling so lonely. Holden just needed to find a way to open up to his parents and let them know his feelings. In the same way, Holden struggled to communicate with adults, this lack of skill is seen in his inability to call his friends and family when he was feeling lonely.
There are times when Holden will get lonely and want to talk to someone. He’ll think about giving him or her a call but he always finds a reason to hold off connecting with anyone. “The first thing I did when I got off at Penn Station, I went into this phone booth. I felt like giving somebody a buzz. But as soon as I was inside, I couldn't think of anybody to call up. My brother D.B. was in Hollywood.