How Is Forever Young In Catcher In The Rye

796 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Technology and teenager

Forever Young J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye is a novel about a boy, Holden Caulfield, who is a perfect representation of modern day teenagers. This novel has made me look at my life and realize that I need to start to grow up more so that I’m not like Holden and the other teenagers in the world. Caulfield is going through a difficult time trying to figure out where he belongs in the world. He believes that it is him against the world. Just like many other teenagers, Holden Caulfield feels lonely and isolated, fears the future, doesn’t act his age, and tries to gain others acceptance. Many young people often find themselves struggling to find their own identity and place in society. This search leaves young people feeling lonely and isolated from their surroundings. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is on the verge of having a nervous breakdown because of his loneliness.
One of the reasons that …show more content…

Holden was close with his brother, Allie and he idolizes him. There are many young adolescents out there who have lost loved ones and it has affected them greatly.
Holden Caulfield is afraid of the adult world, which is something all young adults fear. Many teens fear the future because they do not know what to expect. Holden is afraid of his future because of this and because he does not want to grow up. He is also afraid of the change and the struggle that comes along with this change. This is very common in average teenagers as start to grow up.
A lot of young adults are unprepared to enter the adulthood because of their maturity levels. For example, Holden lied to the mother of one of his classmates because he found her attractive. His habit of lying exemplifies his child-like behavior especially when he does it at unnecessary times. There is a very large amount of the youth population who has this same childish

Show More
Related

  • Essay On Holden Caulfield Alienates Himself

    1025 Words  | 3 Pages

    Holden Caulfield alienates himself from the rest of society to hopefully escape the means of growing up shown by his dialogue and behaviour. Holden doesn’t want to grow up because he doesn’t want to have to accept the responsibilities that come with it. Holden is constantly getting kicked out of different schools, “They kicked me out. on account that. I was not applying myself and all.”

    Read More

  • The Catcher in the Rye: Holden Caulfield's Coming of Age Story

    2363 Words  | 5 Pages

    It takes many experiences in order for an immature child to become a responsible, well-rounded adult. In J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger’s main character Holden Caulfield matures throughout the course of the novel. In the beginning of the novel, Holden is a juvenile young man. However, through his experiences, Holden is able to learn, and is finally able to become somewhat mature by the end of the novel. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield’s story represents a coming of age for all young adults.

    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

  • Holden Caulfield Quotes

    1116 Words  | 3 Pages

    In J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is seen by some critics a a drop out student destined for failure in life, but I see him as a symbol of an adolescent who struggles to adapt to the reality of adulthood.

    Read More

  • The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

    963 Words  | 2 Pages

    Holden Caulfield, the narrator of The Catcher in the Rye, is a troubled man who does not have everything going right for him. He shows obvious signs of depression and a few symptoms of an anxiety disorder. Throughout the book he keeps thinking about his brother Allie, who passed away. The only reasonable explanation for his mental illnesses is that he misses Allie, and he does not know how to function normally again. Everything he does reminds him of Allie in some sort of way. Mental illness is very common in someone who is suffering from the loss of a love one, but it is in no way a normal act of a teenager.

    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

  • The Innocence of Childhood in The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

    1249 Words  | 3 Pages

    Growing up and becoming mature can be an intimidating experience; it is difficult to let go of one’s childhood and embrace the adult world. For some people, this transition from youthfulness to maturity can be much more difficult than for others. These people often try to hold on to their childhood as long as they can. Unfortunately, life is not so simple. One cannot spend their entire life running from the responsibilities and hardships of adulthood because they will eventually have to accept the fact that they have a role in society that they must fulfill as a responsible, mature individual. The novel “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger follows the endeavours of Holden Caulfield, a sixteen-year-old teenage boy who faces a point in his life where he must make the transition from childhood to adulthood. In an attempt to retain his own childhood, he begins hoping to stop other young children from growing up and losing their innocence as well. As indicated by the title, “The Catcher in the Rye” is a book that explores a theme involving the preservation of innocence, especially of children. It is a story about a boy who is far too hesitant to grow up, and feels the need to ensure that no one else around him has to grow up either. His own fear of maturity and growing up is what leads to Holden’s desire to become a “catcher in the rye” so he can save innocent children from becoming part of the “phoniness” of the adult world.

    Read More

  • The Theme of Hypocrisy in The Catcher In The Rye

    499 Words  | 1 Pages

    Holden fears adulthood because it brings responsibilities and trouble. He believes all adults possess an aurora of "phoniness." His disgust of everyone around him reveals his fear of growing up. Holden exhibits insecurity, so to make himself feel better, he exercises the power to condemn people for the way they behave. Holden believes hypocrisy is evident in every adult he sees...

    Read More

  • The Catcher In The Rye Literary Analysis

    887 Words  | 2 Pages

    Some people feel all alone in this world, with no direction to follow but their empty loneliness. The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D Salinger, follows a sixteen-year-old boy, Holden Caulfield, who despises society and calls everyone a “phony.” Holden can be seen as a delinquent who smokes tobacco, drinks alcohol, and gets expelled from a prestigious boarding school. This coming-of-age book follows the themes of isolation, innocence, and corrupted maturity which is influenced from the author's life and modernism, and is shown through the setting, symbolism, and diction.

    Read More

  • How Does Holden Caulfield A Conflicted Teenager

    671 Words  | 2 Pages

    J.D. Salinger’s, “The Catcher in the Rye” explores the journey of a curious and conflicted teenager who struggles to accept and overcome the inevitable fear of change. At a staggering height of “six foot two and a half” feet tall with “millions of gray hair,” Holden Caulfield is unable to disguise the fact that he appears more mature than his age. Although only sixteen years old, the teenager is physically unfit, lacking the ability to run long distances due to being a “heavy smoker” and having a “skinny” physique. In addition to his physical weaknesses, Holden possesses poor mental health. His state of mind constantly changes from curious and thoughtful, to angry and depressed making him an unreliable narrator throughout the novel.

    Read More

  • Holden Caulfield Mental Break

    697 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Everything will change. The only question is growing up or decaying.” The American poet Nikki Giovanni reflects on maturity, whether one decides to grow up and become an upstanding, mature adult or to fall into the hateful, corrupt world adulthood seems to be at times. In the novel The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger explores the topics of depression and the refusal to grow up. He, through the eyes of the 17 year old Holden Caulfield, takes the reader through a three day adventure that had occured the preceding winter. Salinger analyzes a boy facing one of the hardest decisions of his life, whether to grow up and become a “phony” or live in the past. Caulfield suffers a mental break, causing him to reflect on why he cannot accept the many

    Read More

  • Holden's Lonliness Catcher In the Rye

    600 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Catcher in the Rye

    966 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Catcher in the Rye”, written by J.D Salinger, is a coming-of-age novel. Narrated by the main character, Holden Caulfield, he recounts the days following his expulsion from his school. This novel feels like the unedited thoughts and feelings of a teenage boy, as Holden narrates as if he is talking directly to readers like me.

    Read More

  • Growing Up in The Catcher in the Rye

    764 Words  | 2 Pages

    Growing up poses challenges to most people at some point in their lives. 16-year-old Holden Caufield is no exception. He is an apathetic teenager who’s flunked out of many schools. Underneath the cynical exterior, though, Holden is troubled. He has different methods for escaping his problems, but in the end they just cause him more problems.

    Read More

More about How Is Forever Young In Catcher In The Rye

Open Document