Catcher In The Rye Love Analysis

578 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: What does j.d salinger want us to view holden

Holden’s love life distinctly reflects that of Salinger’s, as he strays from the orthodox motivations of society and hopelessly seeks a steadfast relationship. After physically fighting with Stradlater over his impulsive actions toward Jane, Holden ponders the sincerity of his intentions in having intercourse with her. He disapproves of Stradlater’s careless motives and discovers his personal desire for a long-lasting romantic bond as he states, “I just kept laying there on Ely's bed, thinking about Jane and all. It just drove me stark staring mad when I thought about her and Stradlater parked somewhere in that fat-assed Ed Banky's car. Every time I thought about it, I felt like jumping out the window” (Salinger 26-27). Using a reflective tone, Holden recognizes his desire for a sincere relationship through his shock and …show more content…

. . Salinger [said] they had gotten married partially because the two of them had a telepathic connection” (113). To help cope with his emotional anguish, Salinger looked to a compassionate feminine figure for caring support, which led their relationship to thrive on the basis of a real and profound passion for each other. By finding relief and a sense of belonging in their heartfelt discussions, Salinger alluded to his craving for an honest relationship formed by a powerful connection, which directly correlates to Holden’s ideals of a relationship being genuine and pure. Reflecting the views of Holden, Salinger valued the emotional side of a relationship as well as the strength and sincerity of a romantic bond. Through the examination of Holden’s unstable relationship with Sally Hayes, Trowbridge discusses Holden’s hatred for conformity and examines his hope for a more intimate and true connection: “She fits in beautifully with his genuine leather bags from Mark Cross, but . . . one of the things that most bothers Holden . . . is that appearances seem to have more power than reality. How much money you have, what your social position is

Show More
Related

  • Examples Of Insecurity In Catcher In The Rye

    884 Words  | 2 Pages

    Vin Diesel once said, “It's insecurity that is always chasing you and standing in the way of your dreams.” In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden struggles with insecurity and accepting his personality and intellect. We get glimpses of these very traits Holden is insecure about through his observations of certain people he looks up to, namely his brother Allie and his old friend Mr. Antolini. It can’t be a coincidence that the people he admires happen to have certain ideal traits on which Holden expresses self-doubt. Salinger uses the description of characters that Holden holds in high regard to represent key traits that Holden is insecure about within himself.

    Read More

  • Holden's Depression and Self-Doubt in Salinger's Catcher in the Rye

    722 Words  | 2 Pages

    Holden’s first betrayal was that of his memory and innocence by an egotistical peer. At Pencey Prep, he roomed with a student named Stradlater; the epitome of a teenage jock. Stradlater was openly very vain; as Holden stated as he watched Stradlater gaze at himself in the mirror, “he was madly in love with himself. He thought he was the handsomest guy in the Western Hemisphere” (27). Because of his inflated ego and good looks, Stradlater figured that he would steal the breath from any girl he wanted. To Holden, he admitted that the girl of the hour was a “Jean Gallagher” (31). Here was the betrayal: this “Jean” and the Jane that Holden had spent childhood summers with playing a cool game of checkers on the porch were one and the same. Holden had ...

    Read More

  • Free Essays - Catcher in the Rye

    773 Words  | 2 Pages

    Salinger’s view of the world is lived out thought Holden – his persona. The novel is Holden’s steam of conscience as he is talking to a psychoanalyst “what would an psychoanalyst do…gets you to talk…for one thing he’d help you to recognise the patterns of your mind”. At the start of the novel it is addressed directly to us “if you really want to hear about it”. This gives us a sense of reality as though it is us that is the psychiatrist. We see the random thought patterns of Holden’s mind as he starts to feel more comfortable, Holden goes off on to many different tangents while he is talking. Salinger is using Holden as a type of easy way out to confess his view of the world.

    Read More

  • Holden's Depression in The Catcher in the Rye

    642 Words  | 2 Pages

    The first way J.D. Salinger shows that Holden’s depression is not only affecting him, but also the people around him, is...

    Read More

  • Disillusionment In The Catcher In The Rye By J. D. Salinger

    902 Words  | 2 Pages

    Salinger continues his use of installing reality in fiction by Holden’s hospitalization. The reader finds out within the first chapter that Holden is being hospitalized due to a recent mental breakdown (Salinger). Interestingly enough, Salinger was also hospitalized shortly after his combat in WWII for his mental breakdown (Biography). Clearly, Salinger was making a major connection to himself through Holden by giving his character his

    Read More

  • Catcher In The Rye Relationship

    896 Words  | 2 Pages

    “All I know is, I sort of miss everybody I told you about. [….] Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody” (Salinger 277). Holden Caulfield comes in contact with many females throughout the novel. Some of them are for better, and some cause him to be more depressed. Holden is currently in a mental institution. He is telling a psychoanalyst everything that has happened to him a few weeks before last Christmas. In J.D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye the author demonstrates how two characters can help Holden hold his sanity or can make his whole world fall apart through the use of Sally and Phoebe to show that relationships can be difficult and confusing or the exact opposite.

    Read More

  • Holden’s Sexual Confusion in The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger

    1295 Words  | 3 Pages

    Holden’s sexual struggles are visible through his interactions with Sunny, Sally Hayes, and Carl Luce. Holden’s fascination with sex interferes with his elevated morals; as much as he wants to engage in intercourse, he voices his need to establish an emotional connection with his partner first, which prevents him from having casual sex. As much as physical intimacy is important to him, Holden needs to be taken care of and understood emotionally, as well, displaying that he holds sex in high regards and does not view it as something to be done carelessly. Holden just needs to be loved; but, unfortunately, his romantic life is sub-par at best, and until that changes, he’ll always feel confused – and very, very lonely.

    Read More

  • Catcher In The Rye Love

    822 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are great sorrows buried within everyone; some choose to move on and others choose to mask their sadness. In the book The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, the main character Holden Caulfield initially gives the impression of an careless and rebellious teenager, and his behavior and attitude cause him much trouble. However, as the story progresses, he begins to show his softer side and becomes very loving. Love can be expressed in many ways, and for Holden, he shows his affection by constantly thinking about the people precious to him. Because he cares about them so much, they strongly influence his decisions and actions, for good or for bad. Therefore, he is best described as a "loving" character because of his vivid remembrance

    Read More

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

    826 Words  | 2 Pages

    Holden is a pessimistic, remote, and miserable character and he expresses this attitude through dialogue, tone, and diction. Throughout the book he has remained to be a liar, a failure, a loner, and lastly, a suicidal guy who feels like he has no purpose in life. Perhaps Salinger expressed his perceptions and emotions of his teen years in this book and it was a form of conveying his deep inner feelings of his childhood. Readers can see this clearly shown in The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger.

    Read More

  • The Catcher in the Rye: Stuck In Adolescence

    692 Words  | 2 Pages

    Holden returns to school and goes to his bedroom in the dorm. In his room quietly reading, his neighbor Robert Ackley came in. Holden describes him as a pimply, insecure, annoying boy with a bad dental hygiene. When Holden’s roommate Stradlater who was “madly in love with himself” (27) arrived home after the football game, Ackley abruptly left. Stradlater tells him that he has a date with a friend of his, Jane Gallagher. Jane is someone that Holden really cares for and because he knows the way Stradlater is, Holden became worried for her. “It just drove me stark raving mad when I thought about her and Stradlater parked somewhere in that fat-assed Ed Banky’s car”. (48) Holden became depressed and lonely, so out of the blue Holden decides to pack his things and leave for New York a few days earlier. On the train to New York, Holden meets the mother of one of his schoolmates. Not wanting to tell his whole life story, he told her his name was “Rudolf Schmidt”, the name of th...

    Read More

  • Holden's Perception of Others in Catcher in the Rye

    1179 Words  | 3 Pages

    Holden has a respect for women that he views as unnatural. He feels that his sexual desires should be similar to those of his roommate Stradlater and peer, Luce. Holden shows his confusion by saying, "The thing is, most of the time when you're coming close to doing it with a girl, a girl that isn't ...

    Read More

  • 1950's Culture Exposed in The Catcher in the Rye

    1360 Words  | 3 Pages

    Holden attacks various weaknesses in the 50's society. He criticizes nearly everything that he observes, and refuses to pull punches. Often Holden uses his brilliant talent of observation to discover the true motives behind the people he calls "phony." Through his observations the reader can interpret Salinger's view of the 1950's culture. Holden's perceptions of paranoia, conformity, and the consumer culture convey Salinger's views.

    Read More

  • Catcher In The Rye Selfish Quotes

    936 Words  | 2 Pages

    It is made evident that Holden is enamored with Jane Gallagher, and this first manifests itself when Holden talks about her to Stradlater. “I used to play checkers with her,” Holden recounts. “ ‘She’d get [her kings] all lined up in the back row. Then she’d never use them. She just liked the way they looked when they were all in the back row.’ Stradlater didn’t say anything. That kind of stuff doesn’t interest most people” (41). In a world where almost everything is so “goddam depressing,” thinking about Jane’s minor traits actually makes Holden happy, even if it is the kind of stuff that does not interest most people. It allows him to channel his childhood, where he was oblivious to the phoniness around him. However, this silly nostalgia cannot get across to Stradlater, who is more interested in Jane as a sexual being than trivialities such as her checker tactics or struggles with ballet. This physical interest eventually becomes the root of their brawl in their dorm. Although Holden’s interrogative mood agitates Stradlater, Holden is only showing his genuine care for Jane. Unlike Stradlaer, Holden has enough sense to know that Jane, being the humble, intelligent girl she is, deserves to be treated right. So, even though Holden lets his anger get the better of him and eventually start a fight, he has reason to do

    Read More

  • Summary Of Holden's 'Catcher In The Rye'

    1691 Words  | 4 Pages

    In his fight with Stradlater, Holden’s character is shown as a defender of innocence. He defends the memory of his brother through the report he writes for Stradlater. Because of Stradlater’s criticism on his brother’s death, Holden destroys the essay and says “All right, give it back to me, then,’ I said. I went over and pulled it right out of his goddamn hand. Then I tore it up.” Holden is tormented by the memory of his brother throughout the novel, and in this fight he defends his brothers memory by protecting the baseball glove. Later in this scene Holden is upset with Stradlater’s relationship with Jane. Holden explains, “If you knew Stradlater, you 'd have been worried, too. I 'd double-dated with the bastard a couple of times, and I know what I 'm talking about. He was unscrupulous.” Holden tries to defend Jane’s innocence and the reader is able to see Holden’s ethical code to protect the innocence and memory of others. In Holden’s confrontation with Maurice, Holden displays his detestation of the evil phony. “All of a sudden I started to cry. I 'd give anything if I hadn 't, but I did. 'No, you 're no crooks, ' I said. 'You 're just steeling five ' 'Shut up, ' old Maurice said and gave me a shove.” The scene between Maurice and Holden over the prostitute Sunny shows his emotions when it comes to fake people. In this scene he

    Read More

  • Sally Hayes Catcher In The Rye

    843 Words  | 2 Pages

    In literature as in a life, an individual’s true identity is revealed not only by the person himself but by the people who surround him. In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D Salinger, Sally Hayes, Holden’s old girlfriend, plays a necessary part in showing who Holden really is. Although often overlooked, Sally Hayes is second only to Holden as the most important character in The Catcher in the Rye. Sally captures Holden’s story by mirroring all of Holden’s major flaws, being his answer at his weakest point, and representing all of Holden’s relationships, which ultimately end in one way: failure.

    Read More

More about Catcher In The Rye Love Analysis

Open Document