Preview

Mark Philips Revisits Holden Caulfield

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
730 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Mark Philips Revisits Holden Caulfield
Mark Philips revisits Holden Caulfield in J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye. This novel results in inspiring him to live his life by its teachings, starting off the same age as the protagonist and ending roughly thirty years of age in the same mind track addressing both J.D. Salinger's novel and Holden to life. Mark Philips ends with a deep passion towards the book and its character Holden Caulfield. Mark views Holden as a hero, a person who understands the universe and argues society's faults. He states "… a reader of J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye learn immediately that its narrator is at war with "crap", seek truth and speaks Americanese that's vibrant with sincerity." Making direct comparisons through events, Mark relates his life to Holden's, such as his time as an "alienated freshman" in college and the football games he failed to attend because of the way the student body was supposed to behave. He proves that Holden is not insane, but a regular teenager filled with angst throughout the book acknowledging that "… the book is a simplistic tale of a boy's unhappiness over biological fact: teenagers must grow to adult hood…" He feels that Holden's character completes him in a way that he does not feel alone; that only he understands. Holden's brutal honesty and witty remarks touch Mark as he implies, "…I was not alone. Even if my fellow sufferer was fictional …". Society fears sincerity, thus the excuse of the banning on Holden's characterization. As Mark explains in context such as, "… Because our nation was founded with such idealistic optimism…" this proves that conformists are deadly because they murder the innocence of a person they try to protect. The novel comes about as a bible to Mark preaching and giving him directions from the only man who "understands" society avoiding the adult teachings. Upon the third time rereading the novel, Mark was straightening his bookshelf and without thinking about it, he picks up the book. From the
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    How Does Holden Caulfield Contradictions
    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages

    How Does Holden Caulfield Contradictions

    When someone is young, they tend to have innocence about them. As children grow up, they no longer possess this natural innocence. Exposure to all of the hatred in the world causes this loss. Holden Caulfield realizes this simple fact, as he himself grows up, and has a difficult time with the change. He experiences problems with communication as well as his school work. A common theme used throughout The Catcher in the Rye has to do with contradictions Holden makes. In J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, first person point of view is used to highlight contradictions Holden makes throughout the novel.…

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

    Holden Caulfield Character Analysis
    • 868 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Holden Caulfield Character Analysis

    Trivial and interesting are the personality traits that come to mind when thinking of the character, Holden Caulfield. The title of the book by JD Salinger reveals much about the personality of Caulfield. Holden Caulfield, the main character of The Catcher in the Rye, is explained in great detail with the title. The life experiences of Caulfield have shaped him in each and every way. Holden Caulfield’s personality is revealed to be protecting, childish, and at the same time very confused.…

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

    How Does Holden Caulfield Mature
    • 580 Words
    • 3 Pages

    How Does Holden Caulfield Mature

    The world of childhood is sheltered from the corrupt adult world and maturation is a sometimes difficult pathway between the two. The Catcher in the Rye, by J. D. Salinger, is a fictional novel seen through the eyes of sixteen year old Holden Caulfield after he is expelled from Pencey Prep. Holden leaves Pencey two days early to explore New York City before he has to return home. On his excursion, he meets prostitutes, nuns, his old girlfriend, and his sister Phoebe, while traveling around the city contemplating life and his future. Through the varying behaviors of Holden Caulfield, his maturity is shown to be stuck in a limbo between his imminent departure from the childhood world and his fear to move into the world of adults. Holden finds sexual activity intriguing in some situations, but also perverse and immoral. When Holden comes home,…

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

    How Does Holden Change Catcher In The Rye
    • 852 Words
    • 4 Pages

    How Does Holden Change Catcher In The Rye

    Imagine having the world at your fingertips, having the opportunity to learn what you need to know, and the ability to shape your own destiny, but refusing to do so in order to avoid change because all you can think of is what is to be lost than what is to be gained. Holden Caulfield is that exact same way, he refuses change therefore refuses to progress. The Catcher in the Rye, a novel published in 1951 by J.D. Salinger, is about Holden who after being kicked out of a prep school for failing most of his classes goes to New York for a few days. Throughout his time there Holden encounters many problems as he struggles with the idea of having to grow up. In addition, Holden tries to fabricate wild escape plans in order to avoid the inevitable reality of maturing. Although The Catcher in the Rye is a very elaborate book…

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

    Holden Caulfield Character Development
    • 1855 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Holden Caulfield Character Development

    Many adolescents often suffer from a lack of direction. Not knowing what they are doing or where they are headed, faced with the many obstacles of both life and adult society as they struggle to find direction in the world. Many long for acceptance and love that they do not receive. This description perfectly suits the situation befalling Holden Caulfield, the controversial protagonist and main character of J. D Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye. In the novel, after being expelled from his fourth school, Pencey Prep, Holden goes on a journey of self discovery through New York. He becomes increasingly unstable in a world in which he feels he does not belong, with the company of people he deems "phonies". Holden, not unlike a typical teenager, is also on his own quest in order to find himself, yet he re­sorts to ignoring his problems as a way of dealing with them. Holden tells his story from the confines of a psychiatric hospital, having been there to recover from a neurotic breakdown caused by his outlandish and often over the top actions. Holden Caulfield’s unachievable dreams, delusional fantasies, and erratic behaviour all lead to the breakdown of his character throughout the course of the novel Catcher in the Rye.…

    • 1855 Words
    • 8 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
  • Good Essays

    Diagnosing Holden Caulfield
    • 948 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Diagnosing Holden Caulfield

    In the book The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, the main character, Holden Caulfield, has strange tendencies that could be diagnosed as a mental disorder or multiple disorders. Thinking like a psychiatrist, this book has plenty to dissect. Reading a classic, such as Catcher, can really draw the reader into the story and make them feel like they are a part of that world. Holden Caulfield’s world has a lot going on.…

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

    Holden Caulfield Phony
    • 1558 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Holden Caulfield Phony

    The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger is a reflection of his own life being shown through a teenage boy, Holden Caulfield. Like Salinger in the novel Holden jumps from prep school to prep school not finishing each time, however excels in English classes. Holden’s life in the novel shook the nation with controversy and curiosity. Illustrated in the text it conveys extreme depression, sexual tension, love, and lewd language. Holden attempts to see the “phony” world through a new light, however fails due to the type of person he is, his troubled background, sexual confusion, family issues, and fallacious world we all live in.…

    • 1558 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Holden Caulfield And The American Dream
    • 889 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Holden Caulfield And The American Dream

    Holden Caulfield is a teenage boy whom fails to find human connection, this sense of alienation makes it clear that Holden is victim to the American dream. The American dream is the idea that through hard work and determination it is possible for anyone to become prosperous and wealthy. This prosperity should naturally lead to happiness, which in turn suggests that, the American dream is actually about achieving fulfilment. ‘The catcher in the Rye’ is a novel written by J.D. Salinger in 1951, J.D. introduced the world to ‘The teenager’ when he created a seventeen year old male protagonist whom proves himself to be an unreliable narrator. Holden is a part of a wealthy family, his father being a Lawyer and his brother writing for films in Hollywood,…

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

    Depression In Catcher In The Rye
    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Depression In Catcher In The Rye

    Stress, depression, and confusion, has made the protagonist a interesting character. The author J.D Salinger represents Holden in The Catcher in the Rye as a failing student at Pencey Prep trying to go through life the best he can. However Holden's life has not been easy many things have happened to Holden. Throughout Holden's life many things have hurt him and many things have helped him such as adults, children, women, and peers. How ever as throughout the book Holden has changed how he interacts with people.…

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

    Catcher In The Rye Adulthood Analysis
    • 815 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Adulthood Analysis

    Holden Caulfield, a cynical and paradoxical teenager not ready to embrace adulthood goes on a journey to explore the phoniness of the adult world. J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye published in 1951 reflects on Holden as a child as well as an adult. His neglection of adulthood and his blindness on the innocence of youth presents a great challenge in his life. The bulk of the novel displays Holden, a 16 year old teenager who just flunked out of Pencey Prep fleeing to his hometown, New York City in hope of staying at a hotel for a few days before revealing his expulsion to his parents. Throughout his stay, Holden has unusual encounters with past colleagues, his former neighbor, his sister Phoebe, and his old teachers. From these encounters, Holden acquires different perspectives on life and adulthood.…

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

    Loneliness In Catcher In The Rye
    • 892 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Loneliness In Catcher In The Rye

    “You could tell they didn't want me around”, Holden constantly displays his lack of self-confidence through bringing himself down in J.D Salinger’s the Catcher in the Rye, which follows seventeen year old, angsty teen, Holden Caulfield as he tells the in depth story of a trip to New York after flunking out of Pencey School. Holden’s loneliness and isolation highlights his inability to recognize his traumatizing past and lack of closure due to his brother’s recent death, establishing his depression and furthering his apathetic attitude towards school, aspirations, and his future entirely.…

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

    Coming of Age in Catcher in the Rye
    • 1139 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Coming of Age in Catcher in the Rye

    The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D Salinger is a coming of age story. It is a story narrated by the protagonist, Holden Caulfield, who is a sixteen year old boy, but has a mind of a ten year old innocent kid. In the beginning he thinks of innocence as important, but later he realizes that growing up cannot be stopped. He wanders around the New York City by himself and gains experience of life that teaches him to become mature. This book is clearly written to show the theme of coming of age because it shows many symbols of coming of age, it shows the changes of young adults in modern life, and it creates an image of Holden growing up.…

    • 1139 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Catcher In The Rye Theme Analysis
    • 1037 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Catcher In The Rye Theme Analysis

    J.D Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye is about a young Holden Caulfield’s growth into maturity. Caulfield begins the novel as an inexperienced boarding school student attending Pencey Prep, a private boarding school located in Pennsylvania, who is struggling academically and socially. After getting kicked out of yet another boarding school, Caulfield travels to New York City before going home. After staying in New York for the time period between when he got kicked out and when he can return home Caulfield learns the struggles of living in the adult world. As he experiences New York, it opens his eyes to the painfulness of growing up and he wants to escape it. A major theme in this story is keeping innocence, which is portrayed through Caulfield’s theory about the catcher in the rye, his need to protect his sister, and the red hunting hat.…

    • 1037 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More

Related Topics