Catcher In The Rye Holden's Complex

JD Salinger, the author of the most controversial novel in American literature The Catcher In The Rye, was one of the most influential American writers of the 20th century. He lived during World War II, serving in the army while writing chapters of the novel when he had the chance. His writing was published as a novel in 1951 whose protagonist was a teenage boy by the name of Holden Caulfield. In the novel, taking place in the 1950s, Holden is a rich teenager who has been kicked out of several schools. He is at a rest home at the time he is narrating, but the novel takes place in NYC over the course of a few days. Holden demonstrates three major complexes in the novel; the Protector Complex, the Peter Pan Complex, and the Messianic Complex. These complexes

Symbols usually enhance the understanding of a theme or character, and in this case, symbols can be used to explore Holden’s complexes. The main cause his complexes is Allie’s death. When Allie passed away because of leukemia, Holden had no one to blame since the disease wasn’t causes by anyone in particular. Because Holden had no one to blame, he started to blame society for his problems. One complex that Holden has is the Protector Complex. This is Holden’s want to protect anything that he considers weak, vulnerable, or innocent. Holden’s hat that he wears can be attributed to his revolt against conformity and his desire to be unique, but can also act as a safety blanket for him. He always puts it on when he is feeling alone and also gives it to Phoebe when he sees her in the end of the novel. The snowball in Chapter 5 also represents his Protector Complex. When Holden packed a snowball, he started to throw it at a car. However, he stopped because “the car looked so nice and white”. The color white is often attributed to innocence and purity, which explains why Holden doesn’t want to ruin the