Character Analysis of Holden Caulfield of Catcher In The Rye

1006 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Relationships in Catcher in the Rye

Character Analysis of Holden Caulfield

Ever since its publication in 1951, J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye has served as a firestorm for controversy and debate. Salinger's portrayal of Holden, which includes incidents of depression, nervous breakdown, impulsive spending, sexual exploration, crudeness, and other erratic behavior, have all ascribed to the controversial nature of the novel. Holden embarks on a journey and through every turn in the road, he deals with conflicts within himself searching for the truth in a society full of falsity. Holden is by far the most complex character in the book. His role is surrounded by 2 main themes that serve as his inner conflicts: a critic towards society and an adolescent stuck between the world of childhood and adulthood. Both these themes are related to him through the two children in his life he respects most – his brother Allie and his little sister Phoebe. They play the biggest role in Holden's self-realization.

There are two Holden's in this play. One is the character and the other is the narrator. His honesty is entirely internalized. He admits his faults and lies in narration, but can't do the same with other people. I personally like reading stories where the main character is telling the story. In this way, I have noticed some contradictions in Holden's personality. He criticizes everyone in society because they are being phonies when he lies all the time leading him to be a phony himself. Right from the beginning of the story he starts to "shoot the bull" with his history teacher, Mr. Spencer, who had flunked him. In chapter 3, his first line is "I'm the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life." Even as he's leaving Pency Prep, he gives a fake name to the mother of one of his classmates. It seems to me, his criticism of the world first lies within himself. He has shut himself out from the world, which makes him an outcast. And by criticizing everything around him, it seems to be a way for Holden to justify how the world is a bad place and to grow up and leave adolescents behind is just something that no one should do.

Holden's journey takes him though a cross section of American society.

Show More
Related

  • Symbols In Salinger's The Catcher In The Rye

    1121 Words  | 3 Pages

    Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye follows the journey of a young boy, Holden Caulfield, from adolescence to adulthood. There are a number of symbols that Salinger uses to help to portray the various stages that Holden goes through as he matures into adulthood. The snowball incident, his sense of fulfillment when at the museum, and his run in with a pimp, are all representations of how Holden is deeply obsessed with innocence thoughts and how reluctant he is to give them up.

    Read More

  • Holden Caulfield Betrayal

    738 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger is a popular novel that was originally published in the 1950’s. In the book, Salinger explores various themes through the main character Holden and his interactions with others. Some of these themes include, alienation, loss and betrayal. Holden constantly feels betrayed throughout the novel by several people, including his roommate, teacher, and sister.

    Read More

  • Free Essays - Catcher in the Rye

    773 Words  | 2 Pages

    Salinger went through many of the experiences Holden went though.  Salinger much like Holden had a sister that he loved very much, in the novel Phoebe is the only person that Holden speaks highly of; both men also spent time in a mental institution; Holden is telling the story from inside a institution; they were both kicked out of prep school and most importantly they were both a recluse from society.  This is why Salinger uses Holden as his persona all though out the book.  The ‘catcher in they Rye’ is almost like an autobiography for Salinger. He is using Holden as his persona to let us, the reader, dive into his thought pattern and find out some of the thoughts that he kept locked up in there.

    Read More

  • Free Essays - The Phony Holden of Catcher in the Rye

    1438 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the novel Holden is what you would call an unreliable narrator. The definition of unreliable is - a person or thing that cannot be counted on or trusted. You cannot trust Holden if you know that he lies all the time. Since the reader knows that he is a habitual liar you may never know the difference from when he is telling the truth or when he is telling another one of his stories. Holden goes in and out of mental lapses throughout the novel that affected his mind and psychological state greatly.

    Read More

  • Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger

    1148 Words  | 3 Pages

    Catcher in the Rye is one of the most famous books in American literature. Written by J. D. Salinger, it captures the epitome of adolescence through Salinger’s infamous anti-hero, Holden Caulfield. Holden Caulfield learns about himself and his negative tendencies, and realizes that if he does not do something to change his perspective, he may end up like his acquaintance James Castle whom he met at Elkton Hills. Holden tries to find help to mend his outlook on life through Mr. Antolini so he does not end up like James, who did not want to face the problems he created for himself. This is proven by the similarities between James Castle and Holden, Mr. Antolini’s willingness to try and help Holden, and Holden’s future being forecasted by James.

    Read More

  • Catcher in the Rye

    329 Words  | 1 Pages

    The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is an enthralling and captivating novel about a boy and his struggle with life. The teenage boy ,Holden, is in turmoil with school, loneliness, and finding his place in the world. The author J.D. Salinger examines the many sides of behavior and moral dilemma of many characters throughout the novel. The author develops three distinct character types for Holden the confused and struggling teenage boy, Ackley, a peculiar boy without many friends, and Phoebe, a funny and kindhearted young girl.

    Read More

  • Free Catcher in the Rye Essays: Holden as the Typical Teenager

    1021 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Grief and Bereavement in The Catcher in the Rye

    2501 Words  | 6 Pages

    The Catcher in the Rye has been described, analyzed, rebuffed, and critiqued over the years.  Each writer expresses a different point of view:  It is a story reflecting teen-ager's talk--thoughts-emotions--actions; or angst.  I believe it is an adult's reflection of his own unresolved grief and bereavements.  That adult is the author, J.D. Salinger.  He uses his main character, Holden, as the voice to vent the psychological misery he will not expose -or admit to.

    Read More

  • Holden's Pessimistic View of the World in The Catcher in the Rye

    826 Words  | 2 Pages

    Lies, failure, depression, and loneliness are only some of the aspects that Holden Caulfield goes through in the novel The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger. Salinger reflects Holden’s character through his own childhood experiences. Salinger admitted in a 1953 interview that "My boyhood was very much the same as that of the boy in the book.… [I]t was a great relief telling people about it” (Wikipedia). Thus, the book is somewhat the life story of J.D. Salinger as a reckless seventeen-year-old who lives in New York City and goes through awful hardships after his expulsion and departure from an elite prep school. Holden, the protagonist in this novel, is created as a depressed, cynical, and isolated character and he expresses this attitude through his dialogue, tone, and diction.

    Read More

  • What Does Holden's Hat Symbolize

    1104 Words  | 3 Pages

    Holden Caulfield, the teenage protagonist of Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger, struggles with having to enter the adult world. Holden leaves school early and stays in New York by himself until he is ready to return home. Holden wants to be individual, yet he also wants to fit in and not grow up. The author uses symbolism to represent Holden’s internal struggle.

    Read More

  • The Mental Health of Holden Caulfield

    725 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the novel, Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is an example of a prosaic rich adolescent boy,with a pedestrian set of problems, but a psychoanalysis reveals that Holden has a plethora of atypical internal conflicts. Internal conflicts that other students at Pencey, such as Stradlater and Ackley, would not normally experience.

    Read More

  • A Comparison Of The Confidy Of Holden Caulfield In The Catcher In The Rye

    1648 Words  | 4 Pages

    Imagine a teenage boy who has flunked out of high school and is already dealing with a tremendous amount of sadness. Now imagine that being this boy and not having any adults to confide in or talk to about these emotions and struggles. This is the exact reality for protagonist Holden Caulfield in the novel The Catcher in the Rye by Arthur Miller. Struggling with depression and being expelled from his high school, Holden had no adults that he could confide in, and adults that try to support him he pushes away due to his failing relationships with other adults. His parents are absent in his life, for he goes to boarding school and they also struggle with their emotions. When he tries to confide in one of his favorite old teachers, Mr. Antolini,

    Read More

  • Holden Caulfield Depression Essay

    597 Words  | 2 Pages

    The catcher in the rye by J.D. Salinger is about a boy named Holden Caulfield and his struggles in one part of his life. Holden seem very normal to people around him and those he interacts with. However, Holden is showing many sighs of depression. A couple of those signs that are shown are: trouble sleeping, drinking, smoking, not eating right, and he talk about committing suicide a couple times during the book. On top of that Holden feel alienated plus the death of Holden’s brother Allie left Holden thinking he and no where to go in life.

    Read More

  • Catcher in the Rye Essay: Holden and His Phony Family

    1224 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye

    640 Words  | 2 Pages

    Holden Caulfield can be analyzed through his thoughts, actions and circumstances which surround his everyday life. Holden acts like a careless teenager. Holden has been to several prep-schools, all of which he got kicked out of for failing classes. After being kicked out of the latest, Pency Prep, he went off to New York on his own. Holden seems to have a motivation problem which apparently affects his reasoning. The basis of his reasoning comes from his thoughts. Holden thinks the world is full of a bunch of phonies. All his toughs about people he meets are negative. The only good thoughts he has are about his sister Phoebe and his dead brother Alley. Holden, perhaps, wishes that everyone, including himself, should be like his brother and sister. That is to be intelligent, real and loving. Holden’s problem is with his heart. It was broken when his brother died. Now Holden goes around the world as his fake self, wearing his mask. Holden is looking for love, peace and understanding. He is scared to love because he is afraid he might lose it like he did with his brother. That is the reason for Holden's love of the museum, he feels safe because it never changes it always stays the same. Holden is troubled with the pain of death, it effects every aspect of his life causing him to not care about the future, himself or anyone, except Phoebe and Alley.

    Read More

More about Character Analysis of Holden Caulfield of Catcher In The Rye

Open Document