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the catcher in the rye essay

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the catcher in the rye essay
The Catcher in the Rye rough draft Essay
‘’A people shooting hat’’ is a disturbing utterance. Spoken by protagonist Holden Caulfield in J.D. Salinger the Catcher in the Rye. This dynamic character exhibits mental deterioration throughout the novel, which is illustrated through his depression, emotional instability and illusions of fantasy world. Holden’s depression worsens throughout the course of his journey and is debilitating by the end, thus showing a mental deterioration. Also Holden’s mental capacity declines as his journey continues and he experiences “real life” situations. Lastly, Holden’s ultimate breakdown becomes evident when he invents situations of reality and fantasy, specifically, when he pretends to be shot in the stomach. Holden's instability has derived from various events and personality traits. Event in Holden's life lead him to become depressed. Holden's depression centers on the loss of his younger brother Allie from leukemia at a young age. Allie died three years earlier, he was Bright, sensitive, and exceptional. Wrote poetry on his baseball mitt. Holden had a close relationship with his brother Allie, this is obviously Holden's way of alienating the entire world and delaying the consequences of facing reality. Holden is also unable to believe that Allie is now in a better place. "You'd have liked him" (Salinger 38). His lack of personal motivation, and his loneliness. Since Holden has no one to turn to when he feels depressed, because he thinks that everybody is phony, this causes him to go into a deeper state of depression. Holden fell into a state of depression, because of the unfair fact that a kid as perfect as Allie should die. Moreover, he feels guilty for his death. Holden’s thoughts indicate a personal struggle with depression, a psychological disease that strongly influences him. In many instances throughout the novel, Holden relays to the reader a feeling of deep sadness.

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