Holden Caulfield Character Analysis

True Character “Do not judge a book by its cover.” Everybody has heard this phrase at one time or another. People use it as a reminder to refrain from initial judgments based simply on outward appearance. Quick judgments on a person’s character based on only the most easily noticeable aspects of their language or actions often miss the point. The condition of one’s heart can tell a lot more than just outward persona. In J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, although Holden Caulfield’s outward persona makes him seem as though he doesn’t care about innocence, in actuality, the innermost intentions of his heart prove that he deeply values and holds sacred the idea of innocence.
On the surface, Holden’s defiance and engagement in adult-
like activity can suggest that he doesn’t value innocence. At Holden’s school, even though students are not “allowed to smoke in the dorm[s]” (41), Holden “went right on smoking like a madman” (42). By breaking the rules, Holden outwardly challenges the school board’s authority and mandated rules, conveying that he sees himself as older than a child and therefore not subject to the adults’ rules. In acting like an adult, Holden pushes himself further away from childhood and its associated innocence. Also, Holden fails almost every class at his elite boarding school and claims that the school is just a phony place where students are equipped to become phonies in adulthood (168). By choosing to flunk out of school and therefore contravene society’s established path of success by flunking out of school, Holden expresses his disdain for the adult world’s hypocrisy and shows he lacks the naiveté of a child. Because he is beyond child-like naiveté and looks down upon the naiveté of the “phony” people around him, it might appear Holden does not value the naïve nature of innocence. In sum, based on a preliminary assessment, Holden’s defiance and non-compliant actions appear as if he looks down upon the idea of innocence.
In addition to Holden’s defiance of authorities and societal norms, he also continually engages in adult-like activity, giving the impression he does not hold innocence sacred. Throughout the book, Holden lies about his age in order to enter bars and drink. When denied alcohol at a hotel club because of his age, Holden laments that he is “a goddamn minor” (70). Holden’s angry profanity in describing his under-age status could imply that he does not want to associate with the innocence of youth. Holden runs away from his boarding school a little after “eleven, eleven thirty” at night (47), and “smoke[s] around two packs” of cigarettes before he finally goes to sleep (100). This habit of chain smoking is definitely not a normal occurrence for a sixteen year-old. Holden engages in activities not normally permitted for children and does not exhibit any effort to separate himself from them. In addition to smoking cigarettes and drinking, Holden also chooses to pay for a prostitute, “sort of want[ing] to just get it over with” (93). Holden does not appear to be very excited about the prostitute, but he still proceeds to pay for the woman. His only interest in having sex with the prostitute appears to be losing his status as a virgin. He believes his current status is childish and wants to move past it. In sum, Holden’s choices about activities that are far beyond acceptable for his age give the impression that he sees innocence as shameful rather than sacred.
Holden’s poor judgment and unhealthy habits, however, do not completely define him, as the intentions of Holden’s heart are far more important than just his outward persona; in other parts of the novel, Holden reveals his deepest desires and aspirations, conveying that he strongly values innocence.
He hints at the idea of preserving innocence when he is at a museum and loves the glass cases because inside “everything always stay[s] right where it [is] and nobody move[s]” (121). Holden does not want things to change or mature. Furthermore, this parallels with his desire for people to stay young and never grow up. When Holden’s roommate Stradlater goes on a date with Holden’s childhood friend, Jane, Holden “[keeps] thinking about” them and it makes him very “nervous” because he knows what a “sexy bastard Stradlater [is]” (34). Holden does not want Stradlater to strip away Jane’s innocence. He values the Jane he once knew who “liked the way her [kings] looked [on a checker board] when they were all in the back row” (32). So the thought of a guy like Stradlater, who only cares about sex, going on a date with Jane scares him because he wants Jane to be protected from fake people who do not truly appreciate her. Holden likes innocent things and is troubled at the thought of them changing or being stripped of their innocence. This leads him to try and protect and preserve the purity in others as best he
can.
Holden takes it upon himself to preserve the nature of childhood and keep people innocent. He reveals to his younger sister Phoebe that the “only thing [he] really [wants] to be is a “catcher in the rye” (173), catching children who “start to go over the cliff” (173). This situation is a metaphor for the task that Holden feels is his responsibility. The fall off the cliff represents the fall into the non-innocence and phoniness of the adult world. Therefore, Holden will be keeping the children in their world of innocence and away from the adult world. Later when Holden visits Phoebe’s elementary school, he sees the phrase “Fuck you” written on the wall which drives him “crazy” so he “rub[s] it out” (201). Holden’s distress over this small written phrase exemplifies his obsession over preserving innocence. He does not want elementary school children to be exposed to this profanity and he takes it upon himself to rub it out, therefore protecting the children from it. Later, when Holden and Phoebe approach a carousel in a park, although Phoebe claims she is “too big” to ride (210), Holden nudges her on and upon watching her ride; Holden feels “so damn happy” (213). In this scene, the carousel represents an innocent childhood activity. Holden does not want Phoebe to be beyond this innocence and thinks it is his responsibility to keep her from maturing. When she truly enjoys herself on the ride, he is convinced that she hasn’t yet lost her innocence. This realization is what makes him very happy. Holden’s actions and aspirations exemplify his presumed duty to protect innocence.
All in all, despite Holden’s disobedience and unhealthy habits that can provide the impression he believes innocence is not sacred, Holden genuinely values and strives to protect innocence. His outward persona revealed through his adult-like behaviors and anti-authority attitude does not fully depict his character. In actuality, the desires of Holden’s heart in his most genuine and passionate moments convey what he truly values -- in this case, innocence. In the end, it is important to recognize that externally observed behaviors and attitudes do not fully define a person’s values and being. One must look deeper to get a clearer and fuller perspective of a person’s true character.

Work Cited
Salinger, J.D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1951. Print.