Catcher In The Rye Alcohol Quotes

There are many symbols in The Catcher and the Rye that stand out to the reader, but the one that stood out the most to me is alcohol. Alcohol represents how Holden was in a very bad place both physically and mentally. He was very depressed because everything around him seemed to be crashing down. Aside from that, alcohol seems to be what Holden turns to every now and then throughout the book because it takes his mind off of everything he thinks about like Ally, Jane Gallagher, being kicked out of high school, etc. Another thing is it gives him an escape from reality. Alcohol contributes to the reader’s understanding of the novel because when he drinks he goes through all of his emotions, which helps the reader understand his problems that he

He also pretends to do unnecessary things like walking around imagining himself with bullets in his guts. On chapter 20, page 149 Holden says “When she was finished, she beat it out of the room so fast I didn't even get a chance to invite her to join me for a drink” I chose this because this is an example of how Holden is desperately trying to talk to someone so he can vent himself and get everything off his mind. But it always seems that when he talks to someone he puts himself in a bad position. On chapter 20, page 150 Holden also says “When I was really drunk, I started that stupid business with the bullets in my guts again. I was the only guy at the bar with bullets in their guts.” This goes back to what I was saying about him being depressed and being physically and mentally ill because who in their right mind, even though he’s drunk, would imagine having bullets in their guts and blood dripping everywhere. Last but not least, on page 151 Holden says “When I’m drunk, i'm a madman” Holden comes right out and says that he’s not a responsible drinker and this also proves that even though he drinks, all of his problems still exist and the effects of those problems come down harder on him than they did when he is