Catcher In The Rye Adult Analysis

In many ways, children and teenagers try to act like adults by doing things such as applying for jobs and trying to get a later curfew. As soon as children realize the struggles and responsibilities of being an adult, they want to be a child forever. Sometimes, there are the few teens that are a part of both worlds; wanting to become an adult but being fearful that they can never be a child again once they cross the line of child and adult. In The Catcher In The Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is a minor who finds himself in many adult situations such as being the bearer of bad news, drinking alcohol, and interacting with others using his childish mentality to tackle these situations. Every child has the fear of telling their parents of their wrong doings. Many children try and hide what they have done to avoid punishment from their parents. On the other hand, most times adults come …show more content…
Relationships that involve dating begin at another time in life. Holden has only been experiencing these relationships for a short time. He has had some relationships in the past, but none of them were ever serious. Holden even states “I’m a virgin” (92) when talking about his relationships he has had with other girls, thus proving none of them were ever serious. Holden tries to interact with older women by lying about his age being “twenty-two” (94) and his name being “Jim Steel.” (94) Holden lies about his name and his age multiple times throughout the entire story. Not only does Holden lie to get relationships with women, but when he does not get his way or is angered by the young lady, he throws a tantrum. An example of his tantrums is after telling Sally his plans on wanting to run away with her, he began to yell at her and he even stated “she was even crying” (134) when he finished his yelling. Holden handles relationships and interactions with females by acting like a child instead of an