What Are The Effects Of Holden's Inability To Take Action

Exploring Holden Caulfield’s relationships with his siblings in The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger It is a common belief in society that the influence of one’s siblings assists in shaping their personality and character. This belief is prevalent in J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye, particularly in the eyes of protagonist Holden Caulfield. Holden is a troubled teenager who finds himself lost and confused in the ‘real world’. During the story, Holden’s relationships and attitudes towards his three siblings help in shaping his mindset and worldviews.

The catcher in the rye tells the story of Holden Caufield, a teenage boy who recently got kicked out from his fourth school. Holden decides to leave the school before he is scheduled to and wanders around New York. Holden shows many symptoms of depression throughout the novel such as, disengaging from activities, not doing his school work and having no interests or hobbies. Holden shows little to no change throughout the novel and does not develop as a character. Holden’s flight reaction is something that stays with him throughout the book.

Sally Hayes then Practically calls his idea ridiculous and Holden loses it, but what can be taken out of Holden’s ranting is that he can’t pass as an adult is because he is too childish and immature. Holden does not use common sense and proposes ideas before he actually considers them, and that is immature not only the adult world but also in a child’s world. A few hours later, Holden sneaks into his home and talks to Phoebe. When they talk, Phoebe then asks Holden what he likes, Holden says “I like Allie….Allie’s dead-you always say that!

He said “I just didn’t want to do it. I felt more depressed than sexy.” (page 107 Salinger). Holden had occasional outbursts of anger towards other people. In his dorm at Pencey, Holden threw a punch at his roommate, Stradlater for dating his old crush, Jane.

As Stradlater talks about spending time with Jane, Holden realizes his lewd implication and he “tried to sock him” (49). Stradlater blocks Holden’s hand from hitting him, but as a result, Holden insults him saying that this is “the trouble with all you morons,” to which Stradlater “really let one go at me” (50). Holden, as he tells the story, reflects on the choices he made, and how he wants Stradlater to have a reaction. It is easier to cause an argument than to resolve a conflict maturely. At Pencey, Holden does not want to resolve any conflicts properly or maintain any relationships with the people he knows because he greatly dislikes them all.

The Catcher in the Rye Thematic Essay Imagine living a lonesome life, full of fear and little hope of better days to come. Imagine the toll this would take on a person’s life and how they develop as a person. For Holden Caulfield, the main character of J.D Salinger’s classic The Catcher in the Rye this, is his reality. Holden is a sixteen year old troubled boy suffering through major mental issues and living a rather a depressing life for a teenager. Throughout the novel he goes through many hardships that only worsen his depression making him feel hatred towards his seemingly hellish world.

Salinger utilizes this discrepancy to demonstrate that while it is easy for Holden to pass judgment on others, he cannot evaluate his life choices correctly. If Holden self-evaluates himself accurately, he will realize that his personality mirrors the phonies, allowing him to make decisions to alter his personality

Salinger is demonstrating in this phrase the fact that Holden admires his

Salinger continues to explore the theme of change and a major lesson he wishes to teach is the importance of being able to accept change. An example of the importance of changing can be explained by Mr. Antolini with the following quote, “ ‘The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one.’ ” (Salinger 188). This quote argues that people who fail to change for the better are living in a state of constant immaturity, and it is important to be adaptable to live a successful life. Sadly, Holden is portrayed as someone who isn’t adaptable and refuses to grow up and change, which leads to a lonesome lifestyle and a constant feeling of alienation and depression.

Holden cannot handle accepting blame for his shortfalls. This is evident in the way he retells his story. Holden repeatedly tells the reader outrageous claims about his character. However when he ends up coming short on these expectations, he backtracks his previous statements in order to shift the blame away from himself. When he first discusses his fight with Stradlater he says, “All I know was I

He talks to his brother as if he 's there searching for help from him. This novel is about him moving through New York and witnessing this and not wanting to be a part of it, yet knowing he has to fit in there somewhere. Holden grows a very dangerous drinking problem. In the novel The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger, Holden is a lost and depressed boy looking for a purpose in life. Holden believes that growing up is going to cause him to lose all innocence in himself.

Holden’s Struggle To Find Himself: Throughout the novel, The Catcher In The Rye, by J.D. Salinger, Holden struggles to find himself and who he truly is in order to be happy. His struggles relate to many things that he does or say in particular. Holden lacks with a social status with women and his family, whether it’s a relationship or being antisocial. Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield experiences the complexities and struggles involved with both physical and emotional relationships.

“If you do something too good, then, after a while, if you don’t watch it, you start showing off. And then your not as good anymore.” (Salinger 140) Holden hates how phony adults are, and how they are all acting a part. He will always take a dislike to his own childhood experiences, but he does everything he can to protect others from experiencing bad moments. Holden never had the childhood he dreamed of, and he holds onto the hope that he can provide innocence for Phoebe.

In the paradoxical personality of Holden we discover something much deeper. As Holden makes himself out to be tougher than what he actually is, Salinger introduces stubbornness. Holden’s true nature of gentleness and sensitivity offered throughout the book often brings bedlam into his life, though Salinger brings into

In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger illustrates how children mature through their exposure to trauma. Salinger uses character interactions to show the effects of a child's mindset when experiencing childhood trauma. Holden experiments with many different illegal activities including drugs and alcohol, which connects back to his childhood home experience. Holden grew up in a very intense childhood home situation.