Catcher In The Rye Loss Of Innocence Theme Essay

He couldn’t give a single, solid answer to the question. All he said was Allie. But Allie is gone, and Holden is holding on the the past, a place where he feels, or felt, safe and wants to go back to his times with Allie, who he misses very much. This conversation with Phoebe made Holden really think about what he was been doing for the past years, pushing everyone to the side, not caring about anyone or anything; no friends, failing school, and he comes to recognize that childhood was good, not adulthood or this awful in-between that he is stuck in.

Holden and Phoebe both have childlike minds, except Phoebe is actually a child. In the novel, it appears that the only people Holden likes are innocent people like children and the two nuns. Holden does not want to grow up and experience things as an adult, he wants to keep his innocence even though it is time for him to be a grown up. Phoebe is young, so naturally her mind is childlike since she has not had to be mature yet. “I was sixteen then, and I’m seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I’m about thirteen.” (Salinger, 9) Holden knows he does not act his age, and evidently does not care to change

Holden's younger sister Phoebe, is also in need of Holden's protection. He must protect her because he failed to protect his brother Allie from death. Holden feels that it is his responsibility to protect Phoebe from whatever may put her in danger, even himself: "I was glad. All of a sudden I wanted her to cry till her eyes practically dropped out. I almost hated her. I think I hated her most because she wouldn't be in that play any more if she went away with me." (207) He does not want Phoebe to turn out like himself. He wants

Salinger comes to accept the fact that all children do eventually grow up and that protecting their innocence is truly impossible. He realizes that he, himself, must grow up as he has been trying to protect his own innocence by calling almost everyone that is an adult in this world a “phony”. In the novel’s conclusion, Holden has emerged from the depression stage of grief into the acceptance stage. Similarly, all human beings must come to realize that death along with adulthood is an inevitable part of growing up. In addition, all humans must learn that it is okay to admire those that are innocent, but wanting to keep them innocent forever is a true fault. Just as all humans are born into this world without a clue about the corruptions and misfortunes that life entails, all humans eventually grow up to encounter everything that the real world has to offer, for better and for

Holden’s desires and actions ultimately show how innocence is almost impossible to protect and is temporary. Holden wants to save everybody from maturing because he is afraid of change. All he sees are the bad things adulthood has to offer and is struggling with the hardships he is facing. He misses the innocence of his childhood and doesn’t want anyone else to lose it. Therefore, he tries several times to protect them from the downfall he is facing. Ultimately, his attempts are useless because innocence turns into an illusion as you mature. You can never change back once you become an

The relationship between Holden and Phoebe forms a major theme that the novel aims to deliver. The fact that he is having this conversation with Phoebe, a child who is anything but simple and innocent, reveals the oversimplification of his worldview. Holden himself realizes this to a degree when he acknowledges that his idea is “crazy”, yet he cannot come up with anything more pragmatic; he has trouble seeing the world in any other way. His “catcher in the rye” fantasy reflects his innocence, his belief in pure, uncorrupted youth, and his desire to protect that spirit. On the other hand, it represents his extreme disconnection from reality and his naïve view of the world. Phoebe exposes to Holden a living embodiment of childhood. And it is a scene with her where she exposes to Holden the illogical nature of his supervisory actions, indicating that his desire to preserve her innocence will only halt her own inevitable development. Phoebe is the Greek word for “protector of children” (Bloom 2009, p185). Within the novel she is Holden’s protector. She comforts him, provides him with financial security, and protects him from getting in trouble with their mother. Reiff describes this reversal of roles between Holden and Phoebe as “Now, instead of saving the world by protecting the children, Holden wants to reject the world and shut himself off from evil by becoming a ‘deaf-mute’ in the West. It is Phoebe who rescues him from this total withdrawal” (Reiff 2008, p71). Phoebe forces Holden to view her as a human—living and progressing— rather than as a forever preserved child, and it is this humanization that causes Holden to accept her eventual progression into

Richard Lettis discusses this in his work: “Though he is afraid she many fall and injure herself, he decides that he must not try to stop her. It is not that Holden has become less concerned for children … When children are ready to encounter the larger world of adult experience, we must not inhibit them” (Lettis 107). Lettis points out that even though Phoebe may get hurt, Holden understands that there is a point where he can no longer protect her innocence and must let her grow up. While this moment contradicts the behavior he has displayed throughout the rest of the story, it is not because he was motivated by something other than protecting innocence in those moments; however, it is due to his character developing and making progress through his psychological

Lastly, the loss of innocence throughout the transition from adolescence into adulthood plays a large role in the development of a new person in a new era. J.D Salinger, in The Catcher in the Rye, highlights this occurrence constantly throughout the novel by showing contrasting moments in Holden’s thoughts and opinions. The war has ended in the recent past, and therefore the current society is working towards getting back to normal, and therefore Holden loses his innocence during this challenging and exciting time period. In the beginning, he mentions that, upon the death of his brother, his family “[was] going to have [him] psychoanalyzed and all, because [he] broke all the windows in the garage” (Salinger 38). This shows the moment that

Lastly, Allie Caulfield is important to the book because Holden wants to keep Phoebe young. Near the end of the book when Holden spends some time with his younger sister Phoebe there are a few occasions were he tries to keep Phoebe young. For example when he tries to get her to ride the carousel but Phoebe didn’t really want too because she isn’t a little girl

That is the main reason why Holden does not like this school. Despite the fact that Phoebe is 6 years younger than Holden, he calls her “Old Phoebe”, since she listens carefully what Holden says, and understands him better than anyone else, even better than himself (75). She seems to be an adult, but only honest one. Holden believes in child’s innocence, and he does not want to be insincere with Phoebe in return. In addition, when Holden tells a little unknown boy that he has “his pants open”, this boy immediately buttons them up without any sign of embarrassment (223).

Holden’s best friend is his wise and likeable little sister Phoebe. When Phoebe is first introduced, Holden makes a point to note how she is different from kids her age. She is intelligent, “You should see her. You never saw a little kid so pretty and smart in your whole life. She’s really smart. I mean she’s had all A’s ever since she started school.” (75) Obviously Phoebe cannot be the average 10-year-old if a sixteen-year-old boy seeks solace in her company. Phoebe is so intuitive, meaning Holden can bring up and topic and she can pick it up instantaneously. She knows exactly what her big brother desires to be told even if he refuses to admit aloud. Holden describes Phoebe as emotional, at times too much, and creative. She displays these characteristics through stories about the orphan, ‘Hazle’ Weatherfield (76.) Another example of her empathic, nearly psych, nature is when she guesses that the reason Holden was home early was because he was expelled. Of course when her fear is confirmed, she has a meltdown claiming that, “Daddy’s gonna kill you,” over and over again (182-183.) Throughout Catcher in the Rye, Holden is seen not having anyone truly care about where he will end up as a young man that is until Phoebe illustrates the intense devotion and admiration she has for Holden. Once Holden resolves to running away from New York and starting a new life out

Phoebe gave Holden a feeling of love that he thought was gone when his brother Allie died. Holden made decisions based upon what he thought was best for the life with his sister, and he always thought about what was best for her. Phoebe is the one who in the end made Holden realize that he had to let some things go. “The thing with kids is, if they want to grab to the gold ring you have to let them do it and not say anything. If the fall off, they fall off, but it’s bad if you say anything to them.”

The understandings that he has come up with about being both a child and an adult allow Holden to leave himself far from the world by protecting himself by not trusting people’s motives in life. As the book goes deeper into the story, we can see that Holden’s experiences, especially those where he meets Mr. Antolini and his sister Phoebe, show how his conceptions have become of little

His battle with his owns coming of age and the worlds phoniness is constant. The only time he ever seems to be happy is when he is talking about or too his little sister Phoebe. Even though she is much younger then him, she is mature for his age and always will listen and understand him. She too challenges him sometimes, like when she yelled at him for flunking out again, but nonetheless, understands him better then anyone else in this novel. Phoebe is a symbol for Holden’s hope.

Everyday people face the hard decisions of what path to take and the consequences that may come after. On a daily basis people make these decisions, those decisions can dictate whether or not you keep your innocence. For some letting go of that innocence is hard and they can not cope with losing it and entering adulthood. Similarly, from the start of The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger to the finish, innocence is questioned and tested. Holden is staying in New York trying to find a way to protect his innocence from adulthood that he feels is creeping up on him every so quickly. During his visit to New York Holden is faced with prostitutes, graffiti, and many adults. These factors tried to influence Holden's innocence,