Preview

Catcher In The Rye Nun Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
193 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Catcher In The Rye Nun Analysis
Towards the middle of the book “Catcher in the Rye”, the main character Holden Caulfield comes across two nuns while sitting at a train station. The nuns play a minor role, and in this scene are used as a way for the reader to learn more about Holden’s beliefs and thoughts. As Holden is speaking to the nuns, the reader is able to use their conversations as a way to analyze Holden’s views, and therefore tell us more information about the character. For example, Holden begins to have a conversation with the nuns about literature, more specifically one of Shakespeare’s plays “Romeo and Juliet”. Prior to this scene Holden tells the readers that he isn’t considered to be all that smart and that his brothers and sisters are 50 times more intelligent
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Analysis Of Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman's A New England Nun
    • 444 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Analysis Of Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman's A New England Nun

    In A New England Nun, Mary Eleanor Wilkins Freeman writes vividly about the feelings of her character Louisa Ellis after her breakup with her new ex fiance Joe Dagget. But, the difference between this breakup and the average is the fact that Louisa is now old and seasoned as she has awaited for the averal of her fiance for fourteen years while he was off in Australia, only to have it broken off upon his return.…

    • 444 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Catcher in the Rye & Eleve Seconds
    • 814 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Catcher in the Rye & Eleve Seconds

    In Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield deals with society in an unusual way. When his brother Allie died, four years before his story, he decided to break windows with anger. Doctors observed this action physically and mentally. I think that the doctors help him cope with his feelings for Allie because they try to fix any problems he might have. Also, when he was expelled from Pency Prep, he rented a hotel for the night. He should have stayed at the school until they picked him up in a few days, but he didn’t. While at the hotel, this 17-year-old boy orders a prostitute, since he was depressed, but decides he is not in the mood for sex when she arrives. In addition, Holden also smokes a lot and is a heavy drinker, and this doesn’t help him with his depression. For example, “ I ordered a scotch and a soda, and told him not to mix it,” proves that he drinks under age. I think that when Holden is in NYC he cannot manage and cope with his feelings of his brother Allie because he is so depressed and keeps thinking of his deceased brother. Another method Holden uses to cope with society is to be sarcastic. An example of this is shown when he tells the mother of a kid he finds obnoxious, that he was kind shy, and adaptable in his school, just for his pleasure. A quote from the book that explains this is, “Well, a bunch of us wanted old Ernie to be president of the class.” This way of joking makes him feel better but is a wrong thing to do. A last example of Holden’s actions to deal with society is that he plans to become a deaf mute and live out west .He thought that if he did this it would solve his problems and keep him away from the “crumby” people in society. All of his actions and plans show signs of immaturity in him and that his choice making to deal with things is not very successful.…

    • 814 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Catcher in the Rye Chapters 20,22, and 26
    • 380 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Catcher in the Rye Chapters 20,22, and 26

    Holden yearns to be the catcher in the rye. He pictures himself being almost like a God figure compared to all the “thousands of little kids” (173). He describes a situation where he would be their hero/savior. Holden is fixated on saving young people because he worries that they will have to suffer what he did. Holden shows a parental characteristic with wanting to be the catcher in the rye. When Holden narrates “I have to catch everybody if they start to go off the cliff-I mean if they’re running and they don't look where they’re going i have to come out of somewhere and catch them” (173) he describes the youth as naive and unaware of what they are doing. He knows that he has made mistakes in his past because he wasn't looking where he was going and wants to make it easier for others to not fall into his steps.…

    • 380 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Character Analysis Of Catcher In The Rye By J. D. Salinger
    • 908 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Character Analysis Of Catcher In The Rye By J. D. Salinger

    In the novel The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger portrays the protagonist, Holden Caulfield, from two very different sides. On one hand, Holden is passionate about the protection of innocence, and he attempts to shelter all kids, especially his younger sister Phoebe, from any knowledge which might compromise their innocence. On the other hand, Holden is repeatedly revealed to be experienced and knowledgeable in society. He constantly swears, drinks, and smokes, sharply criticizes everyone he sees, and generally does not conform to society. Because Holden lost his own innocence so early in his life, he becomes fascinated with the idea of guarding it in others. Salinger shows Holden protecting the innocence of people many times throughout the novel. Some examples include Holden’s anxiety about Jane, Holden’s protection of Phoebe, and Holden’s general frustration…

    • 908 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Phoebe Caulfield Catcher
    • 2282 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Phoebe Caulfield Catcher

    “Nobody’s around – nobody big, I mean – except me” clearly reveals this statement. People are not where they are suppose to be, at least not paying attention. There is a gnawing scene in the book – Holden is wandering aimlessly along the Broadway and there is a little boy and his parents walking in front of him. ”The cars zoomed by, brakes and screeched all over the place, his parents paid no attention to him and he kept on walking next to the curb and singing ‘if a body catch a body coming through the rye’”(Salinger 115). At the end of the story, when Holden takes his sister to carrousel, worrying Phoebe falling off the horse, Caulfield watched her carefully as a catcher. Suddenly the rain pours, and “all the parents and mothers and everybody went over and stood right under the roof of the carrousel , so they wouldn’t get soaked to the skin or anything”(Salinger 212). All these description are epitomes of the world in which adults abandoned their responsibility of taking care of the children. As a 16-year-old child, Holden experienced expulsion three times. He lies, makes fun of Ackley and pretends to be outsider from the world around him only to conceal the fact that he is fragile. He doesn’t receive any warm cares or even any attempts to understand his willings from the adults. Holden’s Lawyer father always wants him to go to Yale or Princeton and cares nothing else; His mother messed up with his gifts – Holden wanted a speed skating but received a figure skating instead. Even coming home Holden has to hide in the closet to void his parents getting home from a party and stealthily sneak out before being noticed. Clearly, Holden no longer trust his parents, who don’t play the role as catchers to their children…

    • 2282 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Essay On Holden Caulfield's Journey
    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Essay On Holden Caulfield's Journey

    Holden Caulfield is a teenager who is struggling to fit into adult society. This is evident from very early on in the book when Salinger immediately characterises Holden as a very judgmental and cynical person. Examples from the very first page include when Holden refers to his brother D.B as a prostitute because he writes scripts for movies. He then continues “I there’s one thing I hate, it’s the movies. Don't even mention them to me”. He doesn’t even give his brother the benefit of the doubt over his occupation, and it is through phrases like this where Salinger creates the characterisation of Holden as a judgmental and stubborn personality. This is further continued throughout the novel where Holden continually uses the phrase “phony”, to refer to other people. He perceives the world as superficial, whereas it is his views on society that are lacking depth. This immediate characterisation of Holden by Salinger…

    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Holden Caulfield Attitude Analysis
    • 646 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Holden Caulfield Attitude Analysis

    In The Catcher and the Rye by J.D. Salinger, the protagonist Holden Caulfield experiences myriad personal difficulties originating from the tragic event of his brother's death from cancer. Subsequently, his perspective towards the whole world has deteriorated into a pessimistic attitude, derived from his own personal sense of inferiority. As a result, Holden feels isolated and alone. In his desire to feel connected to someone, he travels home to visit his sister, Phoebe, hoping to receive emotional support. Instead, Phoebe criticizes his pessimistic attitude towards life, much to his own surprise. However, the criticism that Holden receives from his sister motivates him to improve his perspective towards life, by having become more optimistic, and leading to rapid and significant maturity within his personal development.…

    • 646 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest Literary Analysis
    • 867 Words
    • 4 Pages

    One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest Literary Analysis

    Much of Holden’s separation from society is due to his standing between childhood and adulthood. Holden does not have the maturity to become an adult, and expresses his many weaknesses by talking about how “phony” or “ignorant” people are. “It's full of phonies, and all you do is study so that you can learn enough to be smart enough to be able to buy a goddam Cadillac some day, and you have to keep making believe you give a damn if the football team loses, and all you do is talk about girls and liquor and sex all day, and everybody sticks together in these dirty little goddam cliques” (Salinger 131). Holden expresses his desire for being different from others and does not want to live by societies norms. Much of Holden’s confusion and lack of desire to be involved with other individuals is caused from the pain and disappointment received by it. Holden finds himself being lonely for much of the novel, and whenever he finds a companion, he will lead him/her on resulting in pushing a possible new friend away. Due to Holden’s lack of friends and involvement with other groups, he does not participate in common events that other kids his age would. “I remember around three o’clock that afternoon I was standing way the hell up on top of Thomsen Hill…You could see the whole field from there” (Salinger 2). Caulfield lives his life as a “spectator” standing far away from the events that are happening, just watching the…

    • 867 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Holden Caulfield In The Catcher In The Rye
    • 554 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Holden Caulfield In The Catcher In The Rye

    Holden Caulfield, the novel’s protagonist, is a pivotal character in The Catcher in the Rye. Holden is characterized as an innocent, apathetic, naive teen who is seeking knowledge of life and the meaning of becoming an adult. Holden’s struggle with seeing the genuine nature of people is something that acts as a barrier for him throughout the novel. Holden is troubled and burdened throughout the story, which causes him to have a warped view on an array of subjects. Holden passes strict judgement on everyone, as he struggles to transition from adolescence to adulthood. Holden appears to be stunned when he sees how different the life of an adult is comparison to that of children. His views on topics such as, life, his future, and sex. Holden approaches each of these subjects with strict views, and feels dejected when he realizes there are more multiple perspectives to these topics.…

    • 554 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Catcher In The Rye: A Literary Analysis
    • 1991 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye: A Literary Analysis

    He sees adults and friends who succumb to these norms, and he outwardly looks down upon them and call them phonies of society. As an author, J.D. Salinger created Holden Caulfield as a character to challenge the expected norms of this time period, and as a whole, the novel addresses the challenge of accepting societal norms and diverging from norms to create a different lifestyle. For Holden, although many other reasons attribute to his refusal to accept society, he mainly believes that the 1950’s American Dream culture valuing marriage, family and education is not one that he wishes to be associated with. It is also crucial to note that by the end of the novel, Holden ends up in a mental institution, the location from which he narrates Catcher in the Rye. This element of the novel is crucial to our understanding of Holden as a character; he seems to have rejected the values and views of the post-war era so intensely, he is literally unable to function and has been…

    • 1991 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Holden's Coming Of Age Analysis
    • 2510 Words
    • 11 Pages

    Holden's Coming Of Age Analysis

    Throughout the story Holden has been given many opportunities to show his mature side. He helped children by marking out the graffiti at his sister's school. He also talked to his sister about wanting to be The Catcher in the Rye is because he wants to help kids who are rushing into their adulthood and not enjoying their childhood. He wants to catch them before they make the jump into adulthood. Holden himself is a very unique character. He occasionally shows that he cares even though it is thought that he doesn’t care about anything. Holden often tries to hide his nice side in order to portray as if he doesn’t care. All of these are shown in the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger he goes into detail to…

    • 2510 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Phony In Catcher In The Rye
    • 498 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Phony In Catcher In The Rye

    The two nuns, for instance, are not phony because they are different from other Christians Holden knows. They do not spoil their conversation by asking if Holden is Christian or by asking for a donation. The nun that teaches English “[does not] even sound much like a nun” (123) when talking about books. Holden even appreciates that she does not focus on criticizing the sexual aspects of the book and instead focuses on the story itself. Phoebe and Allie also challenge society’s standards as children. They differ from other children due to their incredible intelligence and maturity that most children and other adults fail to exhibit. They even differ from other redheads, which is astonishing considering a redhead is unique in himself or herself from everyone else with brown or blonde hair. Both Phoebe and Allie further their uniqueness among the particular redheads by challenging the idea that redheads are temperamental through their kindness. Above all, Holden admires his little siblings the most for their individuality among children and their objection to social…

    • 498 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Persuasive Essay
    • 520 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Persuasive Essay

    Presented in the book entitled Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield rebels against what life has to offer. Symbolized throughout the book, Holden shows his many dislikes towards the normal actions of a human being. The normal things that take place in society seem to irate Holden. Stated in chapter two, Holden says “People always think something’s all true.” Holden is explaining his frustration of the lack of education towards things people say and do. Holden tends to see the bigger picture, and the smaller details. Also stated in chapter two of Catcher in the Rye, Holden states “People never notice anything.” This also shows Holden’s great attention to detail. Holden notices the little things; he notices the little girl, later on in the book, that is having…

    • 520 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Rhetorical Analysis Of The Catcher In The Rye
    • 1112 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Rhetorical Analysis Of The Catcher In The Rye

    In this novel, Holden Caulfield gets kicked out of his school and stays in New York for a couple of days before returning home. During his travels Holden does not maintain any relationships and he associates most adults with being phony. He is constantly trying to protect himself and his sister Phoebe from being exposed to the harsh adult world. In The Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger uses rhetorical devices to explain Holden’s struggles and establish the theme of preserving his own innocence and the innocence of those around him.…

    • 1112 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Literary Analysis Of Catcher In The Rye
    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Literary Analysis Of Catcher In The Rye

    Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in Rye speaks to core of being an outsider, but beyond the anti-hero, anti-establishment persona that Holden reflects, Salinger wrote a portrait of a boy deeply troubled by the end of simplicity. Past the cynical nature and the reclusion from people, Holden is a little boy saddened by the death of his brother. Holden was never able to get closure over Allie’s death and because of this he has never been able to move on. To remember his brother and a simpler time Holden treasures innocence and has remained a child himself in many ways. Through the uses of metaphorical landscapes, a relatable anti-hero, and the setting of a repressed post-war American society Salinger depicts the journey of a young boy fighting, resisting the transition from childhood to adulthood. Holden Caulfield’s cynicism and reclusion are his defense mechanism, they warn of phony and slobs alike, but leave him lonely. He is both a figure for the youth and old alike, because Holden’s disdain of hypocrisy, longing for innocence, and his need for acceptance transcend age groups, these are human emotions that bother any age group. At the end of the novel, Holden says “Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do you start missing everybody” (Salinger 214). There are times when Holden comes off as neurotic, but in this case he meant that you will the way life used to be if you remember it. At the end Holden realizes that Allie’s death and his longing to go back to his childhood were holding him back, keeping him from applying himself. Many readers come away from that last line and feel that there is no happy ending for Holden, but the negative tone of the comment is less of a warning and more of a new being for Holden, meaning that Holden’s dream of being the catcher in the rye can can…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics