Examples Of Mental Illness In Catcher In The Rye

Mental illnesses are some of the most difficult to diagnose, yet some of the most common illnesses in humans. JD Salinger, the author of Catcher in the Rye, once said that Holden Caulfield, the controversial and main character of the story, only needed a little attention and affection to help him find happiness. Despite these views, it is clear that Holden illnesses at such a young age with such a traumatic experience led him to have a different mindset than the rest of society. The Catcher in the Rye offers numerous examples of this kind of behavior that can only be explained by one thing. In JD Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, Holden’s reaction to Allie’s death and resulting mental illness, skewed his understanding of the realities of adulthood and led him to his drastic view of society.
Allie’s death was traumatizing for Holden, so much so this was the cause of his first step of his ever-lasting depression: denial. Early on in the book Holden begins to introduce his family to the reader, remarking his older brother, his sister, and his late brother Allie. When gets to the topic of Allie, Holden recalls what he did the day Allie died. “I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist, just for the hell with it.” (50). In the text, it was evident that Holden was furious at the early death of his brother, thus he