Ideal and Reality
Everyone has an idea of an ideal world, particularly children. When children grow up, they start to realize that the reality is different from their ideal world. While children go through the adolescent stage, they will act differently than normal and have to handle huge changes both mentally and physically. This is demonstrated by the main character Holden Caulfield, in the Catcher in the Rye. Holden Caulfield, a sixteen year old boy, who always talks hostile and uses negative language, grows up and he realizes that the real life is very different from his ideal world. After Holden’s brother Allie’s death, Holden goes through a serious grieving process by constantly observes people as “phonies”. According to Ms. Ortiz, “Perhaps
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“Holden says that he has a lousy childhood” (Salinger 1). I think that no one can understand Holden’s world since he lock himself up after Allie’s passing. The only person that Holden can trust and talk to is his little sister Phoebe. As Holden goes through his mourning and adolescent stages, he develops lots of anger and anxiety. This leads him to lose motivation in life and not care about others ex-cept those who he cares. After Holden flunked out of Pency Prep, he plans to go to West living by himself. “Before Holden start hitchhiking his way out West, Phoebe is the only one that Holden would like to say goodbye to” (Salinger 218). But Phoebe tries to go with Holden to-gether to the West. This freaks Holden out and he says that: “I got sort of dizzy and I thought I was going to pass out or something again” (Salinger 226). Holden cares about Phoebe’s educa-tion and expects her to be in the school play, instead of dropping the school and wandering the world with him, so he strongly refuses to go to the West with Phoebe. It makes Phoebe cry and doesn’t talk to Holden for a short while. At the end, Holden gives up going to the West because of …show more content…
Indeed, Allie’s death causes Holden’s acting and talking weird. Holden can’t get over it, so he talks crazy and hostile. On the other hand, Holden is in his adolescent years. During puberty, teenagers are acting very rebellious and talk differently than normal. There would be lots of mental and psy-chical changes during that period. Holden chooses to grieve Allie’s death by complaining about the surrounding phonies. It’s because when Holden grows up, he finds out that the real society such like schools is very different from what he imagines before. This is shown in the text when Holden says: “I was surrounded by phonies. I can’t stand that stuff. It drives me crazy” (Salinger 17). I think that Allie’s death depresses Holden for a while. Holden doesn’t understand why other people choose to be phonies to live, while his brother Allie would have to die at such an early age. “His depression leads him to think negatively and only see what he perceives as phoni-ness in others, judging others based on what he thinks is suitable. This in return makes it difficult on Holden’s social life because he is quick to only see what he thinks is phony and therefore pushes himself away from others” (Rivera). Holden regrets his Brother Allie’s death and locks himself up to his own world. As is shown in the text Holden always says that: “I feel so lone-some and depressed.” (Salinger 169). That’s because no one would
In the novel, Allie has an immense impact on Holden through his journey. Allie is Holden’s brother that died of Cancer when Holden was young. Holden is always sad about Allie’s death and is always thinking about Allie. Allie’s impact on Holden’s life sparks from Holden feeling like Allie missed out on opportunities.Allie also brings Holden a sense of guilt and also pain because he feels that Allie is missing out and that it is unfair for him to experience life. Holden can never get over Allies death and Allie because of his guilt that stems from his beliefs of Allie’s inability to experience life. When talking to Phoebe he says, “I Know he’s dead? Dont you think I know that? I can still like him, though, can't I? Just because somebody's dead, you don't just stop liking them, for God’s sake-especially if they were about a thousand times nicer than the people you know that’re alive and all” (Salinger 171). This quote shows Holden’s reluctance to not forget Allie, and move on with his life not living in regret of Allie’s...
Phoebe tries to help Holden by asking him to name one thing he likes. However, when Holden mentions Allie, Phoebe tries to be his wake up call and remind him that Allie is dead (Salinger 171). This part in the novel shows how Holden is still attached to Allie, and will not forget about him. However, Phoebe tries to remind Holden that Allie is dead, attempting to make Holden let go of what happened in the past. Phoebe attempts to get Holden’s mind off of his removal from his school by asking him what he wants to become in the future (Salinger 172). This is when Phoebe’s words of advice and support start effecting Holden. Holden begins to think about his options, and what he truly wants to do in the future. “Why can’t I? Please, Holden! I won’t do anything-I’ll just go with you, that’s all! I won’t even take my clothes with me if you don’t want me to-I’ll just take my-” (Salinger 206). This quotation shows how supportive and encouraging Phoebe is towards Holden. When Holden tells Phoebe that he is leaving, Phoebe’s reaction is very affectionate. Phoebe brings a suitcase filled with her clothes, and begins to beg Holden to let her follow him. Phoebe’s encouraging words of advice, is another source of familial love for Holden to move on, and look forward towards his
Holden’s apparent desire to be separated from the majority of his family and friends appears to have been triggered by the death of his younger brother Allie. From Allie’s there has been a downward spiral in Holden’s relationships, as he begins to avoid contact with others and isolate himself more. The reason I believe this is because we can see how immense his anger is after Allie’s death, ‘I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist’. The death of Allie has become like an awakening to Holden, and has alerted him how precious childhood innocence is, when Holden comes to this realisation he convinces himself to do everything within his power to protect the innocence of himself and those around him, to protect them from what he sees as a false adult world. Although Holden clearly fails to protect himself, as he falls into all sorts of situations which hardly boasts of innocence and virt... ...
Throughout the whole novel Holden has always been in denial of everything. As stated by Freud, denial is the “Refusal to recognize a threatening impulse or desire” (Sigmund Freud). When he visited his ten year old sister Phoebe, she was trying to communicate with Holden but she was nervous that it would displease him. She stated “Because you don't. You don’t like schools. You don't like a million things. You don't…Why the hell do you have to say that?” I said. Boy was depressing me” (Salinger 169). Even though Holden is very fond of Phoebe he didn't bother to listen to what she had to say, this demonstrates that Holden is very in denial because he got very upset when Phoebe said that he dislikes everything. Which furthers shows how he is unable to recognize that what Phoebe is
Immediately after Allie’s death, Holden changes immensely. His very first act after Allie died was smashing all his garage windows with his fist. Following this aggressive act, he becomes a recluse and judges every person he crosses to- I assume- Allie, because of how much he still reminded Holden of innocence, and will for the rest of his life. Cynthia Barron states, “Holden is sixteen… in a unique position, caught in the limbo between childhood and adulthood. Thus faced with their inability to adapt to an adult world that is hypocritical and corrupt, both boys seek a return to the realm of childhood” (Barron). In my personal opinion, i believe that he ...
However, his feelings suggest that the true reason for his depression is his loss of Innocence. When he was 13 years old, he lost his little brother Allie to leukemia. Allie meant a lot to Holden. He even becomes a symbol in the book. Allie is the one who keeps Holden from falling of the cliff, he’s the reason that he hasn’t lost his innocence yet. “Every time I came to the end of a block and stepped off the goddam curb, I had this feeling that I'd never get to the other side of the street. I thought I'd just go down, down, down, and nobody'd ever see me again. Boy, did it scare me. You can't imagine. I started sweating like a bastard—my whole shirt and underwear and everything. Then I started doing something else. Every time I'd get to the end of a block I'd make believe I was talking to my brother Allie. I'd say to him, "Allie, don't let me disappear. Allie, don't let me disappear. Allie, don't let me disappear. Please, Allie." And then when I'd reach the other side of the street without disappearing, I'd thank him.” (Sallinger) In this part, Allie plays the role as the Catcher in the Rye and keeps Holden from falling of the cliff. This is why i believe that Holden wants to become a “ Catcher in the Rye”. He wants to help people like Allie has helped him. He feels that it's what he’d meant to do with his
Holden’s family is obviously very important to him. The novel opens with talking about his parents and his brother. Holden negatively criticizes them to hide the fact that he truly loves them. But, one would ask, how can you love those you never see? Holden is constantly being shipped from one boarding school to another. This absence between him and his parents intensifies his general alienation from everyone. Holden’s only real love in the family is for his sister Phoebe. The bond and respect between brother and sister can not be broken no matter how far the distance between them. When Holden arrives back in New York, he immediately wanted to call someone; his sister Phoebe. "She wouldn’t’ve cared if I’d woke her up…" (Salinger 59) Many people her age would not appreciate being woken up that late at night, especially by their brother, but there is a mutual respect between Phoebe and Holden that would allow for this event to occur. Through out the whole novel, this relationship continues because she is his little sister and he would never hurt her. In today’s world, this type of relationship is next to impossible.
A human society is often described as a group of people involved in persistent personal relationships, or as a large social grouping sharing the same geographical or social territory. People tend to believe that doing what everyone else does, is the only correct path for life. If someone dares to break the pattern, does what he wants, or wears different clothes from what everybody else wear, he would frequently be seen as a strange or weird person. This is not it, every little thing someone does that differs from what it is “normal”, is seen as bad or bizarre. Holden Caulfield, of “Catcher in the Rye” is a character who stands out from common people. Holden doesn’t believe that he needs to follow what everyone else does. Contrary to that, Holden does what he wants and acts how he likes. By acting like this, Holden is not considered as a normal teenager, but as a unique one. Caulfield has often trouble fitting in society. Holden won’t fit into society because he doesn’t want to be a part of it. Hints displaying Holden not wanting to be part of society are his constant failing at school, his powerful revulsion for “phony” qualities, and his distancing himself from people.
Holden feels as if he is stuck in his 13 year old self. Although he is aging he isn’t necessarily maturing the way his classmates and other people are around him. This is due to the fact that he never received closure when Allie died. When he starts picturing his own funeral because he might get pneumonia and die, he remembers D.B. telling him about his brother's funeral. He stated, “I wasn’t there. I was still in the hospital. I had to go to the hospital and all after I hurt my hand” (Salinger 171). Since he never attended the funeral he never got to say his final goodbyes to the one person he truly loved. Holden feels as if he can’t connect with anyone else in the world like he did with Allie. If he did then he would most likely push them away, so he wouldn’t have to experience the trauma of loss again, because it greatly impacted his life the first time. The trauma Holden experienced when he was younger resulted in him not being able to form stronger relationships with people which made him more depressed and
Like everyone else, Holden goes through the 5 steps of grieving. Step 1 would be Holden experiencing denial and isolation. Holden has a lonely, introverted personality. Even though Holden travels to New York, he still feels isolated, unable to make a connection with people. He finds himself in constant criticism of other people, unable to realize his poor treatment and judgment of others.. In this way, he keeps himself completely isolated from everyone, even Phoebe. When Phoebe expressed her desire to run away with Holden he tells her immediately to "shut up" and in this way, isolates himself from the one person he loves most. Salinger uses The Catcher in the Rye to express Holden’s denial of maturing into an adult. Step 2 would be the feeling of anger after a loved one’s passing. After Allie died, the first thing Holden did was punch out all the windows in his garage with his bare fist. “I was only thirteen, and they were going to have me psychoanalyzed and all, because I broke all the windows in the garage. I don't blame them. I really don't. I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist, just for the hell of it.” (Salinger He also lets out his emotions by attacking Stradlater when Stradlater refused to use Holden's essay about Allie's mitt. Holden felt Stradlater was dissing Allie, and acted blinded by
Holden Caulfield suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder throughout the course of the novel. In fact, the root of all his problems come from Allie’s passing; he died from leukemia. Holden used to be extremely close with him and his imminent death changed his entire life and psyche. Holden seems to relive the event of his beloved little brother Allie’s death over and over. “What is clear, however, is that many of the symptoms Holden displays in the course of the novel mirror the classic symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder. The death of his younger brother, Allie was a traumatic event in Holden Caulfield’s life and is perhaps at the root of the depression he battles in the novel. The death of a sibling can trigger post-traumati...
This anecdote is a reflection of Holden’s personality. All of the literary devices link back to how Holden is as a person. We learn more about Holden’s contradicting and depressing personality. He contradicts himself by calling the man that carried his bags not very intelligent and terrible, when he said that he wasn’t the smart one in the family. He also links back old age to depression. Ever since Allie died, Holden’s personality has drastically changed. Being expelled from school and passing only his English class was just a taste of what was to come. He was bipolar, which really didn’t help at all. Allie’s death had a huge impact on Holden’s life. Holden’s contradicting personality reflects his bipolar issues. When people are bipolar they
The actors in this movie make it what it is. The storyline is strange and can be weird at times but the actors’ emotion and fluidity make the ever so impossible plot and storyline, seem as realistic as ever. Gloria Swanson (Norma Desmond) and William Holden (Joe Gillis) were unfazed by the unusual plot they had to illustrate to viewers and rather did it flawlessly. As a viewer you really believe you are watching in real life, such a indifferent love story take place before your eyes. I guess that’s what usually happens when you have a 2 time Oscar nominated actress and 2 time NBR Award winning actor in the same movie right? Not to mention the numerous awards they both won after this work including a best male nominated Oscar award and a best actress in a leading role Oscar winner by Swanson.
In J.D. Salinger’s the Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield tells the story of how he arrived at his current destination. The novel is a narrated flashback of his previous life experience up until his current point in time. Throughout the book, it is debated whether or not he is a truthful and reliable narrator. However, it is obvious that Caulfield is an unreliable narrator. This is shown through his hypocrisy and mental state.
From this previous passage, we see that Holden’s deceased brother Allie brought happiness to his life, even though he’s gone, and the traumatic, emotional effects that this loss has on him. The memory of Allie that Holden reminisces on actually brought happiness and optimism to his life, in contrary to the depressive and very pessimistic mood Holden seems to be stuck in throughout the novel. Phoebe’s reminder that their brother Allie was dead, shows that she has coped and accepted Allie’s death, though Holden hasn’t accepted that he was gone. He latched onto the happiness he felt with Allie, being one of the very few things that are bringing him happiness during the depressive, continuous downfall he’s currently experiencing in life, besides