Argumentative Essay On Catcher In The Rye

While Holden undergoes hardships and fears of the adult world, his heroic characteristics slowly reveal. Holden often thinks everyone is phony because of his loneliness in life. During the conversation with Mr. Spencer, Holden asserts “Game, my ass. Some game. If you get on the side…Nothing. No game”(Salinger 8). From the beginning of the story Holden commented on the game of life, testifying his true feelings of isolation and unfortunate contradicting his identity as the son of an intellectual lawyer, having access to a favorable education, and immense wealth. In addition, Holden also encounters a rough relationship with both men and woman, as seen in the text, Holden got in a fight with his amorous and arrogant roommate Stradlater, then another conflict with the deal of the prostitute Sunny. However, the death of Holden’s beloved brother Allie clearly framed an abhorrent impact on him. As evidence from the book where Holden portrayed his behavior after realizing the death of Allie, “I slept in the garage that night he died…just for the hell of it.”(Salinger 39). The effect was undoubtedly painful and fearful, that led Holden into a depressive break down state, and it may have altered Holden’s concept of getting along with others.

Holden has very noble goals, he wants to protect children’s innocence. He says to his little sister “‘Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody’s around-nobody big, I mean-except me. And I’m standing on the edge of

Holden’s contempt for adults goes deeper than teen angst or a need to rebel. Rebellion is done out of a need for attention, however in Holden’s case he acts upon a fear and unresolved childhood trauma. Throughout the novel, we see our character Holden bouncing around denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and finally acceptance. Holden lost his brother to leukemia; Holden was 13, while Allie was 11. Holden was left devastated. At the beginning of this book we see Holden in isolation watching the football game on his own atop a hill after a long disappointing day in New York. Holden tells us about when he found out about Allie’s death, and in a fit of rage punched the windows out of the garage of their summer home, breaking his hand with the desire to punch the car windows out. Holden was unable to reconcile the loss of Allie. He missed the funeral because of his accident and continues to not visit the grave because of his denial of the situation. Holden used bargaining when he asked Allie to catch him in his fall through depression. Holden perceived the children of the rye as falling, while he was the only one actually falling with no one to catch him. Throughout the entire novel except in short bits, Holden claims to be depressed and hates being around those with less than himself. Finally, at the end of the book, Holden reaches an acceptance that he can’t control everything and life continues. He has to let go and allow others to reach for that carousel's golden ring even if they do fall along the

Holden shows that he might've made a good actor in chapter 14 after meeting Maurice, the elevator operator/pimp, who barges into his room demanding the extra money that he claims that is still owed for Sunny, the prostitute's, services. Holden resists handing over any extra money because he had already paid her. So, Maurice beats him up. Holden goes into the bathroom after he's punched by Maurice and has trouble breathing because he was scared. "I thought I was drowning or something. The trouble was, I could hardly breathe" (Salinger 103). But when he gets into the bathroom, he doesn't tend to his wounds, he goes into a fantasy/imaginary experience pretending that he was shot. "I sort of started pretending I had a bullet in my guts. Old Maurice

The Catcher in the Rye is a novel by J.D. Salinger. It is narrated by Holden Caulfield, a cynical teenager who recently got expelled from his fourth school. Though Holden is the narrator and main character of the story, the focus of Salinger’s tale is not on Caulfield, but of the world in which we live. The Catcher in the Rye is an insatiable account of the realities we face daily seen through the eyes of a bright young man whose visions of the world are painfully truthful, if not a bit jaded. Salinger’s book is a must-read because its relatable symbolism draws on the reader’s emotions and can easily keep the attention of anyone.

Holden Caulfield had finally decided to leave Pencey after being expelled for three days. When taking an interview with him, he said, “When I was all set to go, when I had my bags and all, I stood for a while next to the stairs and took a last look down the goddam corridor. I was sort of crying. I don’t know why” (52). Before Holden actually left, Holden yelled at the top of his lungs, “Sleep tight, ya morons” (52). Holden left Pencey sometime after curfew. Since it was too late to call for a cab, he walked all the way to the station. After he got off at Penn Station, he wanted to call someone, so he went to the phone booth to call up someone. At first, Holden couldn’t think of anyone to call. He thought of giving Jane Gallagher's’ mom a call,

Many students and adults do not like the novel,”The catcher in the rye”. The writer of this paper is one of those people. Most of the time the problem is the main charachter, 16 yaer old Holden Caulfeild’s tendencies an language. “ the catcher in the rye”, has been banned from many schools for these reasons, but when one takes a closer look at this seemingly spoiled teenager, one may notice that Holden has a mental illness. Holden Caulfeild has symptoms relating to post traumatic stress disorder, depression, and bipolar disorder. He should be admitted to the State Sanitariom for specialized treatment, thus resulting in better and more stable mental healt in the future for him.

Holden Caufield emphasizes on the loss of innocence in children. He feels that once they lose their innocence, they will soon turn into phonies like everyone else. The loss of innocence is very common in the development in human existence. It is caused by many factors. Past a certain age, children are either forced or led unintentionally into a pathway of corruption. A child is also known to lose their innocence by desires, fantasies, and attention. But once they lose their innocence, they tend to desire to go back and pretend to be young again. In the Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden discusses the importance of innocence in children's lives. He feels that once a child loses his/her innocence, he/she will soon be leaded to a

Regardless of the time, place, or culture, every generation has unique challenges they must face in order to adapt to the environment around them. While specific situations may vary, the internal conflicts and negative thoughts that one may address during their transition to adulthood are universal. In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, the story revolves around the difficulties of Holden Caulfield and his reactions as he navigates through New York City in the 1940s or 1950s. As the novel progresses, the author uses the personal struggles and uncertainty in the life of an adolescent boy to spread awareness about the dilemmas of humanity and the darker perspectives of the world. The consistent cynical outlook combined with the briefly

“It killed me, it really did.” Remember this phrase from somewhere? It’s the line Holden Caulfield says every time in the iconic novel; The Catcher in the Rye. Since the book was published in 1951 by J.D. Salinger, many people from all over the world have loved it. This book was even carried by the killer of John Lennon, and was banned in the past. The protagonist Holden Caulfield is a 16-year-old boy who has just gotten expelled from his Prep school. And until the end, the story is has been about Holden’s journey in New York City. He's alone. He does have a family and parents, but he hardly has any contact with them. It makes him lonelier and lonelier. What does he need? Why is it that Holden is mentally struggling so much even though he’s rich and goes to good schools? It’s because Holden isn’t getting the right help he needs. Holden has been alone ever since Allie died. He was close to his siblings, but from far away. He hardly had any close friends. The adults he seeks advice from his former teachers. They cared about Holden, but they had their own lives. Old Spencer was old and sick, and Mr. Antolini wasn’t as unconditional as he seemed to be. He needs his parents. It is a pity that his parents weren't trying to communicate with their son as much about his feelings, but Holden had every chance to approach them first. After he gets off the train when he arrives in New York, he gets a chance to call his parents. He thinks, “I couldn’t think anybody to call up. My kid

This shows that Holden strives to be more adult, but is frightened by sexual experiences. This is also shown in his anger about Stradlater and Jane. Once the prostitute arrives in his room, she undresses but Holden becomes uncomfortable and just wants to talk. He lies and claims that he had a recent surgery on his “clavichord”. Holden pays the prostitute

     This is shown when Holden meets Sunny, a prostitute at a hotel. He pays her, but sends her back without having sex with her. He feels depressed and sorry for her. The next morning Holden has a date with an old girlfriend, Sally Hayes.

Rather, he is saddened by her sitting in his room in her slip. He imagines her buying the dress she has just taken off and realizes that she is a real person and not just a toy to be used for his pleasure. Holden's desire to understand and feel for other people stops him. Holden also admits to being a coward, but the reader realizes he is just a scared boy trying to act like a man in an adult world. Even so, he doesn't flinch in the face of danger when threatened by bullies, such as his roommate Stradlater or the pimp, Maurice. Much more important than his physical courage is the moral tenacity with which he clings to his beliefs in the face of a hostile society. (Lettis, 5)

Holden is then upset after sally leaves him and ends up trying to get ahold of Jane. Jane did not answer the two times he tried calling so he decides to sneak into his parents apartment and talk to his sister Phoebe, She was sleeping when he saw her but when he woke her up, she was happy to see him. He tried to apologize to her but she refused to listen. After a while he finally got her to listen and explains why he has been failing his classes and tells her why he hates school. Phoebe calls him out for not liking anything. Holden pictured himself in a field of rye on a cliff with a bunch of children playing, and when the children get too close to the cliff he catches them before they fall so he can be “the catcher in the

Holden Caulfield, a boy who struggles with his mental health, starts his story by saying, “I’m not going to tell you my whole goddam autobiography or anything. I’ll just tell you about this madman stuff that happened to me around last Christmas” (Salinger 3). Published in 1951, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger depicts a three-day journey of Holden as he tries to find out more about himself. Through his struggle, Holden experiences many obstacles and events, such as depression and profanity, that take place in most teenager’s lives, making the book a primary target for banning due to offensive language, suicidal tendencies, sexual content, violence, and outright negativity (Information). Though The Catcher in the Rye contains controversial topics, such as depression, vulgar language, and sexual discrimination, the novel is still relevant and relatable to teens today; therefore, the story should remain an option for students to read.