Coming Of Age Catcher In The Rye

Holden has matured in many ways throughout the novel. He had grown from an immature child who only cared about himself to a mature adult who wanted to make something of his life. In the beginning of the story we are introduced to

Throughout the story Holden emphasizes his love for childhood innocence. In a passage he says “The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the golden ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything.” (Salinger 211) This immediately points to his affinity for innocence and not having the limits of being and adult. The

Holden’s immaturity causes him many problems throughout the story. Although he is physically mature, he acts more like a child. “All of a sudden I

He may still be a young boy but he is very independent and basically lives on his own for the entirety of the book, but his negative outlook transforms independence into isolation. He is incredibly lonely but also pushes people away when he has a chance to get close to them. Such as his date with Sally Hayes which was going very well until he pushed her away with his harsh words, “You give me a royal pain in the ass, if you want to know the truth” (Ch. 17 pg. 173). Just because Sally wouldn’t run away with him and be independent with him he pushed her away. Holden may think he wants to be free and independent but his negative outlook just feeds his loneliness and

Holden sees growing up and becoming an adult as a loss of innocence and an onslaught of changes he isn't quite ready to make. Albeit that growing up is full of change and discovering new things, it isn't necessarily a "loss of innocence". In chapter 22 of the book Holden describes his dream to be the catcher in the rye. Basically he wants to save children, who are apparently playing in a big field of rye and not paying attention to their surroundings, from falling to their demise off a cliff. The field represents childhood and untainted innocence, whereas the cliff represents the transition from childhood to adulthood. Where Holden is perched. And the descent off the cliff symbolizes entering the corrupt and crooked adult world. Thus is Holden's obsession with shielding children he encounters from phonies who represent the corrupt adult world in his eyes. However, this perception of the mature world is false. Life isn't a line that goes straight toward impure adulthood, it's more like a circle where one goes around and around in a journey to and from innocence. Which is why Holden could feel "so damn happy all of a sudden [watching] the way old Phoebe kept going around and around." (Salinger 213). He realizes that growing up isn't a direct loss of innocence and that, maybe, growing up isn't as bad as he originally

The goal that that Holden has to try so hard to fulfil is symbolic of his need to differentiate himself from the "phonies" around him. Holden’s image of people is pretty bad because he believes no one acts how they truly feel. Growing up scares Holden because it leads to adulthood. In his eyes once he hits adulthood, it'll eventually lead into the same phoniness as the rest of the adults. His constant avoidance and dodging of people and situations causes him to become more and more distant from normal society and social stability.

Holden is literally about to crash. Near the beginning and the end of the novel, Holden cant keep himself in the same school for very long, mostly because he never applies himself in his classes, for example holden says in the book: “they kicked me out. I wasn’t supposed to come back after Christmas vacation, on account I was flunking four subjects and not applying myself at all”,(4) holden is obviously aware of his flunking and still doing nothing about his failures within the classes he has taken. Many times in the novel we see Holden lie multiple times throughout the book. At one point in the book Holden even realizes he is a compulsive liar claiming "I'm the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life"(16) Holden almost seems proud of himself for being such a great liar.

Within these three days that the book takes place, many things happen to Holden. For starters, he is already getting kicked out of his current school. Holden seems to hate this school. He hates the people, the classes, and he hates how everybody is so phony. Holden continues to tell us that all adults are phony through this book. He can’t stand that all the adults are trying to imitate someone they aren’t and they continue to do awful

In [What novel?] the novel, Holden Caulfield is a teenager who was just expelled [Based on the first and last chapter, you should have been able to tell that this is a flashback. Holden is in a mental institution working with a “psychoanalyst guy they have here” (213) and plans to “go home next month” (1).] from school for failing in his academics and as he decides one night to leave the school, he leaves running into many situations where it is shown that he despises the adulthood yet has already taken interest in things like alcohol, cigarettes, and sex. He seems to be sarcastic and careless in the novel with his remarks but with these kind of characteristics is also a boy who relates to teenagers all over the world in ways such as rebelling

Every teenager feels problems in their day to day life. How they face them is an entirely different story. Holden in the book The Catcher in the Rye is a great example of a teenager who can’t move past the grief of a brother and the process of growing up. Holden was just sixteen in Pencey prep when he decided that rather than waiting to go he got upset because of roommates and left. It also helped him not disappoint his parents.

Holden is so scared to enter adulthood because he is not accustomed to change nor conflict.Every teenager eventually goes through that stage where they do not even know what they are doing anymore because they are about to enter a world they have never experienced before. Although it can be scary, one has to be be prepared for what is gonna be thrown at them Although he sometimes tries to act like an adult it 's obvious he 's not ready for the life that is waiting for him. Although it may seem as if Holden has everything, deep down inside he feels empty. Since Holden is the middle kid, it can symbolize how he is struggling to grow up. He wants everything to stay the same but Holden is going to have to grow up sooner or later. Everyone eventually has to grow up because that is the reality of life. Time is the biggest enemy a person can have because time goes by so fast that we never realize how much has changed throughout the years because we still believe that nothing has changed.It is never easy to grow up because all a person wants to do is just be a kid and not worry about anything. Having no support from anyone can be pretty tough because no one 's there to push you forward. Although Holden didn 't have support from his parents or friends, bad things are not forever. There is no stopping of adulthood. You 're never gonna be alone when something difficult is happening because

​Holden considers himself an outcast in comparison to those around him. Maturing at a young age, he struggles to find his purpose in the world and refuses to accept the beginning of adulthood. Still grieving from the death of his younger brother, Allie, Holden believes that his childhood was taken away from him tragically and unfairly. This mindset doesn’t allow him to grow

After Holden creeped into his house and observed Phoebe lying in D.B.’s room he said, “You take adults, they look lousy when they’re asleep and they have their mouths way open, but kids don’t,”(159). He then elaborates on how kids can do anything in their sleep such as drooling all over the pillow, but they still look “all right”(159). This corresponds to how earlier in the book when talking to Mr. Spencer about his concerns for his future Holden replies with, “Oh, I do feel some concern for my future… But not too much I guess,”(14). These examples show that Holden does not hold being an adult in a high regard. He seems to want to stay as a child and even thinks that being a child is better than having to go out into the adult business world

Due to Holden pretending to be older than he is adults would treat him like a grown up and Holdens child like mindset he is not able to understand what they meant and is seen multiple times interpreting things the wrong way. For example, When Mr.Antolini pats Holden on the head as a way to show he cares Holden responds very uncomfortably: ”..I was so damn nervous. I know more damn perverts, at school and all, than anybody you ever met, and they’re always being perverty when i’m around”(Salinger, 249). Even though this was not a perverted situation, Holden responds as though a child would with fear and nervousness.By Holden reacting this way it solidifies a feeling of Holden states his view towards adults and how he believes once you grow up and lose your innocence, your physical appearance changes too: “you take adults, they look lousy when they’re asleep.. But kids don’t”(207). Therefore, by Holden saying this to the reader, he/she will get the sense that he recognizes that this will soon be his fate too when he enters adulthood. Holden does not want to lose purity and become just one of the adults who looks “lousy” when they are asleep. Matt Evertson, a critic of The Catcher in the Rye, states “ Salinger points out the situation vague and ambiguous, capturing the sense of the child facing the actions and motives of the adult world with such uncertainty.” Holden, himself, is holding onto his innocence, so he is often left confused or misguided by situations only people with adult mindsets would easily

Everyone goes through the mysterious stage of life known as adolescence. Here, “most adults value exploration, growth and pain” (Spacks 3). For some individuals, its all about finding where you fit in society or choosing to stand out. Will you conform to society’s expectations? Or become individualistic? Because of these distinct paths, young adult literature has taken on two competing models in order to tackle the adolescence stage. In a entwickhungsroman novel, you see the protagonists’ general growth rather than their introspection. In a Bildungsroman novel, however, the plot involves the moral and psychological growth of the protagonist from childhood to adulthood. The Catcher in the Rye is a primary example of this type of genre. Despite trying everything in his power to not grow up, Holden Caulfield finally realizes that its inevitable and must be done. Appropriately written in the 1950s, Salinger does an excellent job of bring in the “teenage rebellion” culture to life. Getting kicked out of numerous schools, fighting with roommates, smoking cigarettes, and disobeying parents are some of the events Holden has done during his adolescent years.