More handpicked essays just for you.
Essay on the catcher in the rye theme
Change and holden in the catcher in the rye
Development of Holden's character in the Catcher in the Rye
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Essay on the catcher in the rye theme
Throughout the novel Holden evolves to have the feeling of being needed by those around him. He comes to a sense of conclusion that he must help those around him, he must be the ‘catcher in the rye.’ This conclusion really arises after the loss of James Castle. Due to the admiration, he holds of James Castle, and the fact of Holden feeling helpless during the act of James’ death. Holden feels helpless because of the fact that he can hear everything that is going on yet, still can not help him. “I was in the shower and all, and even I could hear him land outside” (170). Holden listens to the whole situation go down, yet from the wording the reader can infer that he is far away. Because he seemingly ‘tells’ the reader that even he could hear
...from outside disturbances and distractions which is a reason to alienate himself. This shapes Holden in a sense to know how to act responsibly and to being thoughtful of others as he is trying to protect children from the adult word, which he sees as “phony”.
In J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in The Rye Salinger writes about the main character Holden Caulfield and his life. Holden is a teenager who comes from a wealthy family, he loves his family and lives very happy until the death of his brother Allie. After his brother died Holden becomes troubled, being kicked out of school again and again developing a negative view of the world. Holden throughout the book shows anger,denial, and acceptance over the loss of his brother.
Holden met James Castle at Elkton Hills school, and even though they only have one conversation together, there are striking similarities between the two characters. Both James and Holden are quite skinny and weak looking. In math class, the role call went “Cabel, R., Cabel, W., Castle, Caulfield,” (171). Holden’s name was right after James’. James is always one step ahead of Holden, implying to the reader that Holden could possibly be the next James Castle. James Castle passes away because he jumps out a window, after some boys had chased him into the bathroom because he “wouldn’t take back something he said about this very conceited guy, Phil Stabile” (170). James refused to take back his comment. Both Holden and James find flaws in people, and are very judgemental. This could lead to Holden’s demise, just like it did with James. If Holden is not careful, saying the wrong thing to someone could throw them off the edge, or Holden could drive himself mad with all those negative thoughts....
J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye is a compelling narrative on the themes of isolation and individualism. Holden Caulfield’s loneliness, a distinct manifestation of his isolation problem, is a driving force throughout the book. A majority of the novel portrays his almost frantic quest for companionship as he darts from one meaningless encounter to another. However, while his behavior is a stark indicator of his loneliness, Holden consistently shies away from self-reflection and therefore doesn’t really know why he keeps behaving as he does.
Despite Holden's resistance to change, he starts to change. "Catcher in the Rye," reminds us that changing is not easy to process mentally. Going through the true process of change, it requires us to let go of the past and move on which is hard. The novel represents the hardship of changing. It reminds us how great the value of finding something special and precious is as well as a valid reason although it requires us to let go and move on with our lives. All it requires is to simply let
This reveals Holden’s fantasy of an idealistic childhood and his role as the guardian of innocence. Preventing children from “going over the cliff” and losing their innocence is his way of vicariously protecting himself from growing up as well. Holden acknowledges that this is “crazy,” yet he cannot come up with a different lifestyle because he struggles to see the world for how it truly is, and fears not knowing what might happen next. Holden’s “catcher in the rye” fantasy reflects his innocence, his belief in a pure, uncorrupted youth, and his desire to protect it. This fantasy also represents his disconnection from reality, as he thinks he can stop the process of growing up, yet
The Catcher in the Rye Holden Gets Influenced Everyone gets influenced by someone, even heroes do. The Catcher in the Rye, a novel written by J. D. Salinger, talks about Holden Caulfield, a 16 year old boy that is trying to live through his problems. Holden tries to learn from his experiences as well as from the ones of others. He goes through many hard times, but he always takes them as a chance to imagine how it could have ended if he had done something about them or what cold had happened if he was not so “yellow”.
Holden wants to shelter children from the adult world (Chen). In Chapter 16, the catcher in the rye finally appears. This is also a symbol for what Holden would like to be when he grows older. He pictures a group of many kids playing in a field of rye, where it is his job to catch them from falling off the cliff. This shows Holden’s love for childhood and his need to preserve it in any way he can. According to Alsen, “The way Holden explains why he wants to be the catcher in the rye shows the kindness and unselfishness of his character. However, the surreal nature of the metaphor also reveals his unwillingness to face the real life choices he needs to make now that he is approaching adulthood.” By the end of the book, Holden realizes in order for kids to grow, there can’t be protection from all of potential harm. “He therefore gives up his dream of being the catcher in the rye and is ready to make a realistic choice of what he wants to do with his life” (Alsen). Holden’s dream world, that doesn’t involve change, is unrealistic. He is terrified by the unpredictable changes of the adult world, but there is no way for Holden to avoid the experiences and changes that the
In 1950 J.D. Salenger captures one of society’s tragedies, the breakdown of a teenager, when he wrote The Catcher In The Rye. Holden Caulfield, a fickle “man” is not even a man at all. His unnecessary urge to lie to avoid confrontation defeats manhood. Holden has not matured and is unable to deal with the responsibility of living on his owe. He childishly uses a hunter’s hat to disguise him self from others. The truth of his life is sad and soon leads to his being institutionalized. He tries to escape the truth with his criticisms. Knowing he will never meet his parents’ expectations, his only true friend is his eight-year-old sister Phoebe, to whom Holden tells that he really wants to be ‘the catcher in the rye”. Holden admits his only truth and shows that Phoebe is his only friend. Another form of escape for Holden is his acting, which he uses to excuse the past. Holden has tried to lie, hide, and blame his way through life; when he finds that it is not the answer he collapses.
James Castle is one of Holden’s former classmates at Elkton Hills. He died from jumping out of a window when he was approached by bullies because he gave them one of them an insult. Why this is important to Holden is the fact that James Castle is a "skinny little weak-looking guy, with wrists about as big as pencils". He had no chance of fighting the congregation of bullies that arrived at his room looking for vengeance, nevertheless that didn't stop him from dying a noble death for an unworthy cause. His death appealed to Holden because he believes that phonies take words back, even if they meant to say them. In addition to James Castle's death being important to Holden other than he didn't die phony is the fact that James Castle was wearing
Holden is against the routine that he believes creates the life of an ordinary adult as he imagines what his future would be like if left to Sally, “working in some office, making a lot of dough, and riding to work in cabs and Madison Avenue buses, and reading newspapers, and playing bridge all the time, and going to the movies, and seeing a lot of stupid shows.” Instead of this Holden would rather “drive up to Massachusetts and Vermont” and stay in “cabin camps” and “chop all his own wood in the wintertime”. Instead of being a lawyer like his father, who gets the priority of making money confused with helping people, Holden would rather be “the catcher in the rye” who saves the children from falling off the edge of the cliff. Like Huck, Holden also chooses death over conforming, volunteering to sit on the atomic bomb rather than fight in a war.
The origins of Holden’s disillusionment and the reason that it all started is the death of his younger brother which he was very fond of and admired, Allie, three years ago. The death of Allie is very significant in Holden’s mind since it is an event which he remembers quite clearly at multiple occasions during the book. For example, when Holden is writing a descriptive composition for his roommate Stradlater, he decides to write about Allie’s baseball mitt since it is the only thing on his mind. “My brother Allie had this left-handed fielder’s mitt. He was
J.D. Salinger’s, The Catcher in the Rye successful in many respects, from its popularity among adolescent readers, to its 29 weeks spent on the New York Times Bestseller List. One part of The Catcher in the Rye that was not successful is its main character, Holden Caulfield. Holden mentions at a certain point in the novel that he aspires to be a “Catcher in the Rye”. Whether he achieved his goal is controversial amongst many readers. I believe that in the end, Holden was not successful in becoming, the “Catcher in the Rye” because he cannot change the the lives of others by protecting their innocence.
Many young people often find themselves struggling to find their own identity and place in society. This search for self worth often leaves these young people feeling lonely and isolated because they are unsure of themselves. Holden Caulfield, J.D. Salinger's main character in the book The Catcher In the Rye, is young man on the verge of having a nervous breakdown. One contributor to this breakdown, is the loneliness that Holden experiences. His loneliness is apparent through many ways including: his lack of friends, his longing for his dead brother, and the way he attempts to gain acceptance from others.
The protagonist, Holden Caulfield, interacts with many people throughout J.D. Salinger's novel The Catcher in the Rye, but probably none have as much impact on him as certain members of his immediate family. The ways Holden acts around or reacts to the various members of his family give the reader a direct view of Holden's philosophy surrounding each member.