Preview

Holden's Hardships

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1362 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Holden's Hardships
In J. D Salinger 's novel, The Catcher in the Rye, the protagonist, Holden, goes through many hardships in his journey to self-knowledge. In the beginning, Holden has to deal with being kicked out of school and not having any place to call home. He is also struggling with the unfortunate tragedy of the death of his beloved younger brother Allie. At the same time, Holden is trying to deal with growing up and accepting the adult world. Throughout the novel Salinger addresses the conflicts faced by a young man struggling with the trials and tribulations of growing up while also confronting personal loss and loneliness along the way. In the beginning of the novel the reader learns that Holden has been kicked out of his school Pency-Prep. Holden talks about how he has been kicked out of schools in the past and says, "They gave me frequent warnings to start applying myself… but I didn 't do it. So I got the ax"(4). This shows that Holden doesn 't really care about school, it is not all that important to him. In fact, he decides to leave school early, a few days before Christmas break begins saying that, "I just didn 't want to hang around anymore. It made me too sad and lonesome"(51). Holden clearly doesn 't feel like he belongs at Percy and he doesn 't seem too upset about having to leave either. However, when he does leave Holden isn 't ready to go home yet. Stating I "decided I 'd take a room in a hotel in New York…and just take it easy till Wednesday"(51). The fact that Holden isn 't going home is a sign that he doesn 't really feel like he belongs there any more than he feels he belongs at Percy. Holden doesn 't really have anywhere to go, not even a friend 's house. Most teenage boys who were running away from school because they flunked out and didn 't want to face their parents just yet would very likely choose to retreat to a good friend 's house for a few days. But Holden doesn 't have many friends other than his little sister Phoebe. Holden has to deal with
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Passage Analysis
    • 250 Words
    • 1 Page

    Catcher In The Rye Passage Analysis

    Throughout works of literature, past events are significant towards impacting a character’s present attitudes and values. In The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger aims to bring out the character values of a young man, Holden Caulfield, through the recollection of various events in which Holden embarks on a journey for adulthood after being kicked out of school. Throughout the novel, Salinger utilizes Holden’s disdainful views towards the process of maturity from his past to reveal the message that growing up can be a painfully difficult experience.…

    • 250 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Holden's Contradictions In Catcher In The Rye
    • 1708 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Holden's Contradictions In Catcher In The Rye

    When Holden was with Phoebe, she was hurt by him moving away. He then promises her, “I'm going home. Im going home as soon as you go to school” (Salinger 208). This contrasts and contradicts what he earlier said about wanting to move away. He had planned out his whole life out West. He was so set on going somewhere that no one would know him and that he would not have to communicate with. He may have done this because he realized that he was not ready and that he was still a kid. He may have seen that he should get an education and that he needed help, which he got.…

    • 1708 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    What Is Holden's Downfall Of The Catcher In The Rye
    • 736 Words
    • 3 Pages

    What Is Holden's Downfall Of The Catcher In The Rye

    In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden gradually displays the downfall of his mental welfare by consistently worrying about protecting children’s innocence. At first glance, Holden appears to have a sumptuous life; he has his money, two parents, siblings, friends, love interests. As Holden continues to reveal his journey, his true emotions and experiences are exposed. Holden lives in depression after experiencing the death of his younger brother Allie. Because Holden never receives the help he needs mentally from his brother’s tragic death, he carries a huge burden throughout his life. Holden admits “I’m in bad shape. I’m in lousy shape.” Allie’s sickness shows Holden the devastating progression of Allie’s loss of childhood innocence. This triggers Holden’s craving to save childhood innocence. Throughout Holden’s reminiscence, he explains his penchant to become a catcher in the rye. A catcher in the rye attempts to prevent children from losing their childhood innocence. Holden believes “Certain…

    • 736 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Symbolism
    • 1550 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Symbolism

    Adolescence can be an exciting and new experience. But for some, it becomes a difficult period of no escape. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is a novel about adolescence and the struggle of personal growth, told from the eyes of a cloudy and cynical teenager named Holden Caulfield. A narrow and simple-minded narrative point of view demonstrates the lack of connection a character has to the setting. Symbolism in The Catcher in the Rye exhibits the difficulties of personal growth. Ambiguous character growth testifies to the difficulty of personal growth. The Catcher in the Rye exemplifies the lesson that personal growth is a very demanding process, through the literary elements of narrative point of view, symbolism and character development.…

    • 1550 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better 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
  • Good Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Holden Character Analysis
    • 810 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Holden Character Analysis

    In the novel “The Catcher in the Rye”, J.D. Salinger challenges the nature of growing up through symbolism, point of view, and characterization. Holden, throughout the novel, expresses his loneliness and the difficulty of growing up because, like most teenagers, Holden is stressed out and depressed because of the expectations he has for himself…

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

    The Theme Of Adulthood In Catcher In The Rye
    • 1530 Words
    • 7 Pages

    The Theme Of Adulthood In Catcher In The Rye

    J.D. Salinger explores the difficulties associated with the passage from youth to adulthood in his novel, The Catcher in the Rye. The author especially highlights the importance people staying connected to others in order to make a mentally healthy and successful life transition. Holden Caulfield, the protagonist in the novel, is desperately clinging to his youth. Holden is obsessed with the phony nature of adults and judges the people around him based upon their degree of insincerity, two-facedness, and pretension. Holden is equally preoccupied with preserving childhood innocence. He is unable to sacrifice his purity in order to gain adult privileges. In fact, Holden is so disillusioned about adulthood that he eventually cuts off all ties in his life that could possibly help him through the transition of adolescence. Thus, the author, through Holden, explores the difficulties of this stage of life and how easy it is to stray from “the path” without “a village” to support this journey.…

    • 1530 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Catcher in the Rye: Life's Many Obstacles
    • 877 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Catcher in the Rye: Life's Many Obstacles

    In J. D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye" the protagonist, Holden, is faced with many obstacles. Like most tragic heroes, he is a man who is reasonably happy at the beginning of the tragedy, but as the tragedy develops, some failure in his personality begins to affect events, so that his progress is a movement from happiness to misery. The ultimate misery results from his final awareness of his personalities limits or failures. Much of Holden's misery is a result of his inability to successfully handle particular problems regarding adolescence.…

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

    The Catcher In The Rye Essay
    • 1452 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The Catcher In The Rye Essay

    The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is about a boy named Holden Caulfield and his struggle with life. Like any other teenager, he is simply looking for his place in the world. However, it is shown that Holden is no ordinary teenager for he displays many signs of depression. His depression seems to escalate throughout the novel. For example, many nights he has trouble sleeping, he also is quite the alcoholic and a heavy smoker, he doesnt feed his body with the proper nutrients and he talks of committing suicide at various points in the novel. Holden feels he has been alienated his whole life and that after losing his brother Allie, there was really no place for him anywhere. Holden Caulfield is a complex character that is in need of some real therapy because the problems he faces are not those of a normal boy his age, but are more serious in that hes really hurting himself and he is not nearly aware of these circumstances.…

    • 1452 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Isolation In Catcher In The Rye
    • 119 Words
    • 1 Page

    Isolation In Catcher In The Rye

    In J D Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, the story is told from a cantankerous adolescent boy named Holden Caulfield. At this point, he is looking for something, but is still unaware of what it is. He feels somewhat alienated, looking in. He immensely feels his constant state isolation and, although he does reveal a sort of self-awareness, his uncertainty about his place--or anyone else’s--in the world, is intensified by his critically pretentious assessments of not only the people in his life but also himself. The dilemma of being expelled from prep school is what sets the foundation for the story where he faces two options of either returning home to his parents or starting afresh on his own.…

    • 119 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    How Does Holden Caulfield See Himself as "The Catcher in the Rye"?
    • 1066 Words
    • 5 Pages

    How Does Holden Caulfield See Himself as "The Catcher in the Rye"?

    Most teenagers are rebels because they do not know how to deal with the transition from childhood innocence to adult corruption. This is a recurrent behavior displayed by the protagonist in J.D. Salinger’s, ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ – Holden Caulfield. The book maps the three impactful days that played a pivotal role in his life. During this time frame, Holden got thrown out of school, ran away from his school before he was scheduled to leave and went to New York. We do not know Holden’s exact location while he is narrating the story but it is clear that he is undergoing treatment in a mental hospital. Holden expresses his desire to preserve innocence in the world by repeatedly saying that the only thing he would ever want to be is ‘The Catcher in the Rye’.…

    • 1066 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Catcher in the Rye Depression
    • 532 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Catcher in the Rye Depression

    Everybody feels depressed at some time or another in his or her lives. However, it becomes a problem when depression is so much a part of a person's life that he or she can no longer experience happiness. In Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye, the author develops the theme of Holden’s depression because it fully portrays Holden’s outlook on the ‘real’ world and life itself. The cause of Holden’s depression can be seen as his lack of personal motivation, his inability to self-reflect and his stubbornness towards people who try to interact with him, which collectively results in him giving up on life before he ever really has a chance to get it started.…

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

    What Is Holden's Lack Of Respect For Lawful Behavior
    • 809 Words
    • 4 Pages

    What Is Holden's Lack Of Respect For Lawful Behavior

    This day in age the stage of adolescence is highly regarded as one of the most complicated phases of the human growth cycle. That being said, most, if not all negative attributes that coincide with any teenager’s behaviors are quickly blamed on hormonal imbalances, and are not to be second-guessed. Yet once in a while, one teen’s behavior may possibly exert irregular patterns that do not fall within the expectations of the regular mind. Scenarios such as these are when psychoanalyses must be completed to determine whether or not external intervention is to be provided. An exceptional example of the aforementioned statements can be observed in Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of J.D. Salinger’s…

    • 809 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Examples Of Mental Isolation In Catcher In The Rye
    • 491 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Examples Of Mental Isolation In Catcher In The Rye

    Despite being surrounded by others, many people tend to feel alone in society. This feeling of mental isolation is shown throughout J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. A sixteen-year-old boy, Holden Caulfield, wanders around New York City after being expelled from his most recent school and encounters numerous people, particularly women, before going back to his family. Though Holden tries to surround himself with others, he never seems to be able to connect to them.…

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

    The Catcher in the Rye's Relevance to a Present Day Audience Essay Example
    • 1298 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The Catcher in the Rye's Relevance to a Present Day Audience Essay Example

    The style and the concerns of The Catcher in the Rye, written by J. D. Salinger in 1951, continue to interest a present day audience as it draws attention to human problems through the eyes of Holden Caulfield, who rejects the “phony world of adults”, the teenage conflict of staying as a child and “growing up” and rejection of society for the sake of self – protection. J. D. Salinger has shown this through the creation of the unique voice of Holden Caulfield. Some of the examples of events shown through this voice also teach us lessons about life.…

    • 1298 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More