Because Holden uses this word numerous times at the beginning of the novel, he reveals himself to be angry, careless, and self-defensive. The word sometimes does in fact describe a noun, such as checkup, but the word also has deeper meaning. The word nearly acts as a barrier to protect himself when he feels uncomfortable, vulnerable, and annoyed.…
Before Holden arrived at Pency he failed to meet academic standards at his previous schools that have “given him the axe”. The idea of Pency Prep seems to follow him everywhere because whoever he meets seems to know about it and how good of a school it is. It is a symbol of failure. Pency is not the first school Holden has flunked out of as a result his family is not too pleased with him and nonexistent academic ambitions other than in English.…
There were recurring patterns Holden unconsciously fell into that contributed to his depression and then there were events that halted these depressions. The events that contributed to his depression were that he judged people, he judged himself and he did not take care of himself. Of course there were events that halted the depression such as the act of love shown by his sister Phoebe. Love is perceived as forgiveness, peace, living in the moment and happiness. His sister is the only person in the book who shows these characteristics. As for Holden he never doesn’t experience love at all, he is always depressed and is never really happy in the book. Except when he is with his sister, he feels happy and is in the moment.…
Whether it be the bards that soaked up the noise and appeased the doldrums of ancient life, or the juggernauts and giants whose etchings are in cave clay walls, there has been a myriad of means in which humans convey quests and narratives. Although, these mediums may drastically there are countless fundamental traits that withstand in the dynamic realm of literature. J.D Salinger’s realistic fiction novel Catcher in the Rye follows the titular character Holden Caulfield and his inevitable fall from sanity. Holden is an adolescent who was recently kicked out of Pencey Prep, an elite private school, as a result of his inability to apply himself. Instead of going back home on the wealthiest side of New York City, he explores the underbelly of…
“I close my eyes, and this image floats beside me.A sweaty toothed mad man with a stare that…
The novel, The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger is about a teenage boy named Holden Caulfield who struggles to find his identity. Holden wants to be an adult but he also subconsciously wants to stay young and maintain his innocence. Holden shows this when he hires a prostitute but doesn’t have sex with her. Holden’s negative encounter with the prostitute shows that although he tries to act like a tough adult he is still a kid at heart.…
In The Catcher in The Rye, by J.D, the main character, Holden, can be seen as a troubled teenager growing up in a less than perfect society. Throughout the novel Holden struggles with the fact that many young and innocent kids will grow up and see the world from a different perspective. He naturally becomes worried for all future generations who will one day grow, as he did, and loose their innocence. The fixation of youth and innocence can be seen in the title of the book, as well as throughout the novel.…
Throughout the novel, Holden is afraid of losing his innocence. After he leaves Pencey Prep, Holden stays in a hotel and meets Maurice, who works in the elevator at the hotel. Maurice asks Holden “Innarested in having a good time, fella? Or is it too late for you?” (Salinger 101) When Maurice asks him this at first he does not know what to say because he does not understand what he is asking and then when he realizes what Maurice means he is shocked that someone would be so open to ask him. Out of loneliness and fear of being alone Holden says yes to Maurice, Maurice then sends the prostitute to Holden’s room. All Holden actually wants is someone he can talk to and spend time with. When the prostitute, Sunny, arrives at his hotel room, Holden realizes that he does not want to do anything with her. Holden became nervous and he did not want to lose the innocence he had held on to for so long. In order to protect this innocence he makes up a lie that he had surgery on his clavichord.…
Everybody has a moment some point in their life where they feel as if they can not struggle any more. We see this in detail in The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger. Holden Caulfield, the main character, is a sixteen year old teenager who has not had the easiest life. The novel focuses on Holden’s journey from getting kicked out of private school in pennsylvania to having a wild weekend in New York City hiding from his parents, told from his room in a mental hospital near hollywood. Although it is told over the course of a couple of days, Holden is sub consciously fighting to keep his life from spiraling out of control. Towards the end of the novel, Holden is in his little sister Phoebe’s room after sneaking into his own apartment, and…
The novel The Catcher in the Rye takes place in New York during the 1950's. The main character is a fifteen-year-old boy Holden, he takes the reader through a story depicting the loss of innocence. Holden believes everyone is innocent, but they inevitably loose it somehow by the time they are adolescent. Holden believes innocence is lost in childhood. Holden is extremely concerned about this and believes he can stop the loss of innocence by becoming the "Catcher in the Rye."…
There are many examples in the Catcher in the Rye, that show Holden's hate toward the idea of losing innocence. Holden mentions a lot about children, his love for them and how he wants to save their innocence. He seems to relate more to people younger than him, whether they are male of female. He cares about them so much, becuase they haven't lost their innocence, unlike adults who are all "phonies." There are three main things he does and talks about, that shows his concern. His fascination to save innocence, erasing profanity, and Allie's baseball glove.…
Holden Caufield, the protagonist of J.D. Salinger’s iconic coming of age novel, cycles through various emotional states towards people, places, items, and events throughout the story. However, most of his feelings can be categorized under the umbrellas of either contentment or dissatisfaction. For most of the novel, he exists in a state of deep depression that overshadows him and skews his view of many events. Holden’s emotions are very contradictory as well; he simultaneously abhors and desperately wants to be a part of the world he lives in. He is both fascinated and disgusted with the people he meets on his journey and finds himself in situations that make him feel many emotions, whether that emotion is joy, disgust, or just plain contentment.…
There are many people who have a fear of having to grow up. When a child grows up their innocence starts to fade away. It is something that happens no matter how much someone wants to keep it. Some people cannot accept the fact that growing up is a part of life. That as one grows up they learn and understand things that they did not when they were children. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is the protagonist who is not too keen of having to grow up. Throughout the novel this fear is shown. He is caught between being a child and turning to an adult. He knows that growing up is something that going to happen no matter what. There is no way he could prevent or at least help the children from losing their innocence. But he still wants to be able to try and do something about it. He wants to be the catcher in the rye and preserve the innocence of the children. Holden Caulfield’s protection of innocence can be seen through his talks about the Museum of Natural History, Jane Gallagher and Phoebe, but he…
In J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, the subject matter of Innocence is explored as Holden’s quest throughout New York City unfolds and his views on society develop. The novel is narrated by Holden Caulfield who is telling us the story of how he got to the mental hospital where he is currently a patient. Holden starts off at Pencey Prep, a preparatory school in Pennsylvania but eventually leaves after he is expelled. Holden wanders through New York City where he originally plans to go home after 5 days but continuously ponders the idea of running away after he visits his sister Phoebe. Throughout the novel, Holden’s mental state worsens dramatically and eventually leads to his mental breakdown. In Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Holden’s…
Innocence, the theme repeated so many times within the novel. Our hearts all want to hold on to the innocence that we had as children. However, the adult world doesn’t allow for innocence, it only allows blood, sweat, tears, and stress. This spiritual theme of innocence is described perfectly when Holden states "Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around – nobody big, I mean – except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff.” (Salinger, 191) He is spiritually saying that he would like to be the guardian of innocence stopping children from falling into the terrors of…