Holden Caulfield Compare And Contrast Essay

Holden Caulfield is a young boy who has no direction or purpose in his life. The only person that he loves and trusts is his sister, Phoebe. In The Catcher in the Rye, Caulfield decides that he wants to run away from his problems, instead of face them. He is as scared as a toddler in the dark. ☺ Simile. He chooses to head out west. After a brief discussion with Phoebe, he realizes that what he wants is to be a catcher in the rye. He ends up deciding to stay home. He finally appreciates his family, and he realizes their importance. Throughout the novel, Holden is on a search for self-worth. Mr. Shelby is a character in Uncle Tom’s Cabin. He owns many slaves including Eliza Harris, Harry Harris, and Uncle Tom. Haley is a rich man who threatens

Adolescence, this is a time where you figure out who you truly are. This soul searching leads to self realization. Holden Caulfield from The Catcher In The Rye by J. D. Salinger, has trouble accepting himself. Throughout his days he would put on a cap just to be someone else. It is his get away place, a place of isolation. A way for him to seclude from the world and become someone he isn’t. This is relatable to numerous teens. Though Holden could be described using numerous adjectives, Holden's character can be perfectly described as ignorant, a liar, and a slacker. He is ignorant because he does not learn from his mistakes. He is a compulsive liar. Finally, he is a slacker because he avoids work. Holden is just like countless people out there who do not apply themselves. You see, Holden could be smart. He could be successful. He just doesn’t have the motivation or ambition to do so.

J.D. Salinger, the author of the Catcher in the Rye, was a skilled writer. Salinger wrote about a wide variety of characters throughout this novel, many of these characters had a complex personality. Holden Caulfield is the main character in the Catcher in the rye. Holden is a unique character and he shares very little traits with the other people he encounters throughout the novel besides his younger sister, Phoebe. Holden and Phoebe Caulfield have two very different personalities but they share some distinct similarities. Holden is a gloomy, pessimistic, and unstable teenager. Phoebe, on the other hand, is a lively, optimistic, and innocent child. Throughout the novel Holden spends his time trying to act mature while Phoebe is living out the childhood he never had. Phoebe and Holden have very different personalities and outlooks on life. While the two have such opposing traits, they have a similar background and upbringing.

Unlike Holden Caulfield, Frank tired in school, had parents that depended on Frank to help with the other children. Frank was expected to grow up faster than most kids by having to take care of his sibling when his parent started to fall apart. Frank many times had to find small jobs to help support his family because his father as we know kept on drinking all the money he made away. Frank has the biggest heart, for an example of why he has the biggest heart is before he had a job he would say how he would get a job and wouldn’t drink it away. Referring he would be different than his father, better father, and really wanted to do as much as he could for the family, think like an adult. He was Striding to be a better person in general. Even

Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger is a story about the trials of life and the toll it can take on the psyche. I believe that Holden Caulfield is an under credited hero. He is a teenager forced to grow up in a time of turmoil with severe emotional handicaps placed upon him by family, friends and life in general.

There are quite a few characters who influence Holden Caulfield, whether it be positively or negatively. Three minor characters have had a profound influence on Holden- Mr. Spencer, Sunny, and Mr. Antonelli. The actions of each of these individual characters has had an impact on Holden in some way, shape, or form. The following quote, stated by Holden Caulfield himself, show a complete turnaround in his personality and demeanor- ‘"The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but it's bad if you say anything."’ The quote describes Holden’s vain attempt to protect all of the innocence in the world. Mr. Spencer, Sunny, and Mr. Antonelli, although relatively minor characters in the grand scheme of the novel, did have a major impact on Holden’s view of the world and of himself. These three characters can best be described as foil characters, which is a minor character whose actions parallel the main character’s, therefore illuminating the main character.

Again, Huck describes feeling “wicked” and “ornery,” though this time he tries to justify his emotions with plausible insights into his upbringing; however, this is to no avail as Huck finds himself back in his perpetual state of self-deprecation. A key difference between Huck’s previous moral conundrum and this one is consistent religious reference, which is similarly reminiscent of Huck’s early morality. For example, Huck’s early rejection that Providence could love him is realized in this later scene. This example is what was previously referred to as the “religious enforcement of Huck’s emotions” and evidently does not subside; however, Huck, with his newfound empathy, now allows those emotions to lead his decision making. In doing this, Huck allows himself to surpass the status that religion attempts to fix him in. In this manner, the parallels between Huck’s early and late morals are necessary to show the extent of his shift in ideals and, moreover, Huck’s willful dislodging of his place in society, the thought of which had previously plagued him. Because of his connection with Jim, that relationship is the stable place that Huck needed and therefore his relationship to the greater society is unimportant, allowing Huck to make a definite and permanent decision of eternal hell (this idea reverts the seemingly immoral status of hell to a semblance of higher

Through this quote, Holden shows his understanding of what he wants to do. He understands that he wants to protect adolescents from falling into the harsh adult world. Therefore, he makes heroic efforts to protect kids, such as scrubbing off the vulgar writings on the wall of the bathroom. Unfortunately, this is still a superficial explanation. He knows that he would like to protect adolescence, but he does not provide a reasoning as to why. The readers themselves are left to figure out why such fascination exists within Holden. Maybe it’s due to his own experience of being thrown into the phoniness of adulthood, or maybe it’s due to the death of Allie. Either way, Holden does not ponder the topic. Aside from this example, Holden does show other moments of deeper understanding, such as when Mr. Antolini warns Holden about the ‘fall’ he could experience. As Holden understands it, innocence must be protected and he therefore aims to catch children from “falling” into adulthood. On the other hand, Mr.

Holden Caulfield is a person we can all relate to. For Holden the death of his brother Allie has impacted him through out the book till the end. He has collapsed after his brothers death. It has impacted him a lot he miss his brother Allie so much. Holden loved his brother very much and idealized him so much.

In the novel “The Catcher in the Rye”, protagonist Holden Caulfield recalls the events that lead up to him being admitted into a rest home. Making no effort to give the reader any back story about his life, he hurdles directly into the start of his journey. He describes sitting atop Thomson hill overlooking the football game currently being played at his school. Holden doesn’t join his fellow peers down at the stadium because he had recently been dismissed from his school, Pencey Prep. Moreover, Holden had newly lost a surplus of fencing supplies, despite being the fencing captain. Consequently, he is filled with shame and dismay and wishes to not be encompassed by his successful classmates. Throughout the novel, Holden tells his adventure

In the novel The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, the theme is based on the teenage confusion of the main character Holden Caulfield. Salinger introduces Holden Caulfield, second out of four children coming from an upper middle class New York family, who tells the story of his youth. The Catcher in the Rye is the most famous J.D. Salinger’s novel and has made a great impact when it came out due to its controversial nature. Holden is portrayed as a 17-year old who feels lost in the modern society and finds flaws in almost all of its segments, resulting in repulsion towards nearly everything he encounters.

The patient is Holden Caulfield, a sixteen-year-old teenage boy. Caulfield's appearance is tall for his age and surprisingly has quite a few gray hairs at the age of sixteen. Holden comes from an upper-middle class family. His family has enough money to support Holden with many luxuries including skates and expensive suitcases. It appears that Mr. and Mrs. Caulfield aren?t there to talk, care, and be there for Holden, which seems to drive Holden away from his family. However, he has an intimate bond with his younger siblings, who embody innocence and youth. The death of his brother Allie has left a large scar on Holden. He has a cherished and intimate relationship with his young

Youth is the time of deadly dangers. It is a time where one simple mistake can spiral the rest of one’s life out of control. Although trials and tribulations await for those who enter this stage of life, there are many of those who have survived through this treacherous storm of confusion and angst. Two of these contestants that have made huge strides in this game are Holden Caulfield from The Catcher in the Rye, and Junior from The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Holden, a youth from New York, has been expelled from his high school: Pencey Prep. Finally, having enough of his life, he goes out and ventures onto wherever the wind blows. With only himself and his pessimistic personality to brave the world, he desperately clings

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain and The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger are arguably two of the most popular American novels. Both novels have withstood the test of time through their timeless themes and relatable characters. Their protagonists, Huckleberry Finn and Holden Caulfield, are memorable and unique with their own distinctive personality traits. Due to each characters originality, it is interesting to note the similarities and differences between them.

Despite an ardent view on slavery evident through interactions with Jim, Huck’s slowly shifting view of Jim from that of ignorance to seeming acceptance expresses his ability to stray from flawed societal values to his own developed moral code of conduct. This becomes evident when Huck protects Jim from men who board his raft, by hinting he has smallpox. Although one can see this as compassion for Jim, Huck questions with racist undertones, “s’pose you done right and give Jim up; would you felt better than you do now? No, says I, I’d feel bad” (Twain 127). However, he later affirms himself to “do whatever come handiest at the time.” (Twain 127). At this point, society still influences Huck, but his statement marks his decision to detach from societal values, and eventually allows him to form his own views on Jim. This comes slowly, as Huck cannot shake free from racism.