Preview

How Does Holden Caulfield Change Throughout The Catcher In The Rye

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
278 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
How Does Holden Caulfield Change Throughout The Catcher In The Rye
In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger, Holden Caulfield is a very engaging character. He relates to many tennagers but in a quirky and bizarre way. He tells everything like he sees it. There is no sugarcoating and no censoring to his thoughts. He deals with issues like many of us as children, but whether he deals with them well and overcomes them is the tricky part. I believe that Holden Caulfield does not change very much throughout the entirety of the novel. However, I do believe that he is capable of it. Holden is scared of rejection, isolation, and loneliness, even though he often mentions that he wants to disappear and get away for a little bit. He does not want to get attached, and that is what is keeping him from allowing total change.
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Character Analysis: Holden Caulfield
    • 122 Words
    • 1 Page

    Character Analysis: Holden Caulfield

    Holden Caulfield is J.D. Salinger’s main character in The Catcher in the Rye. We learn several interesting things about Holden, however, while learning the these we are not experiencing or seeing what Holden is. We learn about it through Holden’s perspective throughout the entire story like, for example, the death of his younger brother, Allie or the time James Castle committed suicide by jumping out of the school window. Most of these experiences have a significant meaning behind them and we find these out by reading the book. We get to know Holden in a personal way. While reading, comprehending, and understanding Holden’s emotions towards the encounters he has with the characters in this book, which makes it very interesting.…

    • 122 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Holden Caulfield - Catcher In The Rye
    • 1048 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Holden Caulfield - Catcher In The Rye

    Holden Caulfield is a typical anti-hero from the 20th century who features as the main character from the novel, Catcher In The Rye by J.D Salinger. The young teenage boy says that he wants to be the one who stands at the bottom of the cliff and catch the children that are playing in the Rye that may run off the edge accidently. This is a dream, not reality however it indicates that Holden is desperate to preserve childhood. Holden is an anti-hero because he lacks heroic qualities. In the novel, he often refers to himself as a yellow character. He wants to hit someone but he won’t because he is too much of a coward and he knows this. Holden talks negatively about most people, often referring to them as “phonies.” Phonies are people whose surface behavior distort or disguise their inner feelings. Holden can be a phony himself and believes if he puts society down, then he can’t be disappointed. He does however, cherish family, more so his siblings rather than his parents. He is very lonely and tends to push people away. Holden has been suspended from four schools. He underachieves, has a habit of being able to lie easily and has a fragile, mental state that ends up leading to a breakdown where he ends up in an asylum.…

    • 1048 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Holden Caulfield's Change
    • 344 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Holden Caulfield's Change

    The novel “The Catcher in the Rye”, by J.D. Salinger, details the story of 17 year-old Holden Caulfield. Holden is stuck between childhood and adulthood, and his outlook on life makes his transition even more difficult. By the end, Holden begins the process of change and starts to show some maturity, but still has not fully transitioned into adulthood.…

    • 344 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Holden Caulfield Character Analysis
    • 761 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Holden Caulfield Character Analysis

    In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger writes about a troubled teen named Holden Caulfield who undergoes failing school and travels through New York City at night. Salinger depicts Holden as someone with uncontrollable anger, many anxieties, extreme loneliness, powerful love, and numerous fears. All of this molds Holden into a complex person with an unusual personality and unique traits that make him different and unable to accept most of the people around him. In addition, there seems to be a deep connection between many of the things that he did and his own personality traits. The most prominent traits of Holden Caulfield, displayed through his speech, actions, and thoughts, are that he is judgmental, lonely, and depressed.…

    • 761 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Alienation Of Holden Caulfield In 'Catcher In The Rye'
    • 1321 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Alienation Of Holden Caulfield In 'Catcher In The Rye'

    Holden purposely alienates himself from others and doesn’t hold many close relationships. He displays lack of interest in his education. It is not straight forward, but Holden believes he has no future, does he even want one? Detachment is also represented when he fails out of every school he is sent to. He rebels against those who wish for him to have a decent life. Mr. Antolini was one of those who cares and stated “ the mark of an immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of a mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one” which Holden takes advantage of . Holden is particularly introverted (Salinger 188). He wanders the city, passing hundreds of by standards, he is still all alone. Sure he wants to talk to people but he doesn’t know how to hold a proper conversation. He is a constant critic of others actions although his actions make him come off as an arrogant pest, therefore Holden isolates…

    • 1321 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    English 9 Final Essay Tcitr
    • 775 Words
    • 2 Pages

    English 9 Final Essay Tcitr

    Imagine being kicked out of many different schools after your brother passed away and all while not having many friends and being bullied. That is exactly what happened to Holden Caulfield, the main character in the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Salinger uses many different symbols throughout the book to show Holden’s maturation and thoughts as he goes through a very stressful time in his life.…

    • 775 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Holden Caulfield In The Catcher In The Rye
    • 554 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Holden Caulfield In The Catcher In The Rye

    Holden Caulfield, the novel’s protagonist, is a pivotal character in The Catcher in the Rye. Holden is characterized as an innocent, apathetic, naive teen who is seeking knowledge of life and the meaning of becoming an adult. Holden’s struggle with seeing the genuine nature of people is something that acts as a barrier for him throughout the novel. Holden is troubled and burdened throughout the story, which causes him to have a warped view on an array of subjects. Holden passes strict judgement on everyone, as he struggles to transition from adolescence to adulthood. Holden appears to be stunned when he sees how different the life of an adult is comparison to that of children. His views on topics such as, life, his future, and sex. Holden approaches each of these subjects with strict views, and feels dejected when he realizes there are more multiple perspectives to these topics.…

    • 554 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Diagnosing Holden Caulfield
    • 948 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Diagnosing Holden Caulfield

    In the book The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, the main character, Holden Caulfield, has strange tendencies that could be diagnosed as a mental disorder or multiple disorders. Thinking like a psychiatrist, this book has plenty to dissect. Reading a classic, such as Catcher, can really draw the reader into the story and make them feel like they are a part of that world. Holden Caulfield’s world has a lot going on.…

    • 948 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Holden's Loss Of Innocence In Catcher In The Rye
    • 883 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Holden's Loss Of Innocence In Catcher In The Rye

    Holden Caufield, either mentally unstable or too morally advanced for society, misses the innocense of his childhood. Holden's mentality, although confused and seemingly unstable, show the effects of exposed innocence. He becomes frustrated that he does not belong where ever he goes. He travels away from his school with no logial direction for a more internal desire to find his place. Holden has trouble understanding why he does not fit in anywhere and implies mental deterioration from stress. Holden Caufeild struggles with the contrast of society's standards of innocence, change and affection to his own intuitive values.…

    • 883 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Holden Caulfield Phony
    • 1558 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Holden Caulfield Phony

    The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger is a reflection of his own life being shown through a teenage boy, Holden Caulfield. Like Salinger in the novel Holden jumps from prep school to prep school not finishing each time, however excels in English classes. Holden’s life in the novel shook the nation with controversy and curiosity. Illustrated in the text it conveys extreme depression, sexual tension, love, and lewd language. Holden attempts to see the “phony” world through a new light, however fails due to the type of person he is, his troubled background, sexual confusion, family issues, and fallacious world we all live in.…

    • 1558 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Holden as a Teenager
    • 1025 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Holden as a Teenager

    Holden Caulfield, portrayed in the J.D. Salinger novel Catcher in the Rye as an adolescent struggling to find his own identity, possesses many characteristics that easily link him to the typical teenager living today. The fact that the book was written many years ago clearly exemplifies the timeless nature of this work. Holden's actions are those that any teenager can clearly relate with. The desire for independence, the sexually related encounters, and the questioning of ones religion are issues that almost all teens have had or will have to deal with in their adolescent years. The novel and its main character's experiences can easily be related to and will forever link Holden with every member of society, because everyone in the world was or will be a teen sometime in their life.…

    • 1025 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Adulthood Analysis
    • 815 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Adulthood Analysis

    Holden Caulfield, a cynical and paradoxical teenager not ready to embrace adulthood goes on a journey to explore the phoniness of the adult world. J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye published in 1951 reflects on Holden as a child as well as an adult. His neglection of adulthood and his blindness on the innocence of youth presents a great challenge in his life. The bulk of the novel displays Holden, a 16 year old teenager who just flunked out of Pencey Prep fleeing to his hometown, New York City in hope of staying at a hotel for a few days before revealing his expulsion to his parents. Throughout his stay, Holden has unusual encounters with past colleagues, his former neighbor, his sister Phoebe, and his old teachers. From these encounters, Holden acquires different perspectives on life and adulthood.…

    • 815 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    How Does The Catcher In The Rye Change
    • 642 Words
    • 3 Pages

    How Does The Catcher In The Rye Change

    “If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” Change is only if the person wants to change; people will not change if they don’t want to. According to Holden, certain things should never change and should stay the way they are. Change starts with the person who is willing to change. Many people change when they’re around different people, do different hobbies, or have a more positive/negative outlook on life.…

    • 642 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Catcher in the Rye
    • 447 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Catcher in the Rye

    Inside J.D. Salingers classic novel, Catcher in the Rye, the main character, Holden Caulfield, is a social outcast and is isolated in his own world. He has a way of pushing people away with his quirky personality and constant need to not just feel but be different from the average person.…

    • 447 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Catcher In The Rye: Holden Caulfield A Rebllious And Confused Adolescent
    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The Catcher In The Rye: Holden Caulfield A Rebllious And Confused Adolescent

    In the book The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield became a model of the rebellious and confused adolescent who detected the “phoniness” of the adult world. This showed that he had a serious psychological problem. From the start to the end, Holden has no sense of direction or resolution in deciding what to do with his life. Though the characterization of Holden's remains static and irresolute through the book, Salinger's writing leaves ample room to delve deep into Holden's psychology in order to pose a much more critical question, why does Holden behave in this manner?…

    • 500 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics