Social anxiety is one of the most common, but detrimental mental illness in the United States of America, affecting more than 15 million people in a given year. It is defined as the fear of being judged and evaluated negatively by other people, and is one of the causes behind feelings of embarrassment, humiliation, and depression. In modern literature, writers often employ the idea of social anxiety as a theme in their work. In the novel, The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of the story, suffered from this mental disorder. From giving small talks to meeting new people, Holden’s social anxiety is evident throughout his narration. Social anxiety is also a theme focused on by Curtis Sittenfeld in
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Holden from The Catcher in the Rye has trouble forming a stable relationship with others because of his violent outbreaks, although he tends to be understanding of those in need. True, by the usage of verbal abuse, Holden has hurt Sally’s feeling when he tells her, “You give me a royal pain in the ass, if you want to know the truth” (Chapter 17). And yes, Holden has ruined his friendship with Ward Stradlater when Holden got jealous of the fact that he had a date with Jane, leading to a row between the two characters. But this does not explain why Holden donated $10 to two desperate nuns who he had never seen before. Until this moment, Holden has been portrayed as an insensible and jaded person, but now he is showing compassion and …show more content…
In the novel, Holden is constantly withdrawn from the social world because of his fear of being perceived as foolish and not meeting the standards. Holden did not tell his parents, for example, that he dropped out of school because he is worried what they would think of him. He did not like actors because he thought that they are fakes and phonies for having the fame and success he would never have. Most importantly, at the beginning of the novel, Holden revealed how he was born with a “lousy childhood,” and how he “don’t feel like going into it” Holden’s bad childhood experiences embitter him and reminds him of the things he would never have as an outsider. In fact, Holden’s negative thinking and intense self-consciousness are psychological symptoms of social anxiety. However, the point is that people like Holden with social anxiety want to be “normal” socially; they want to make friends; they want to get involve and engage in social interactions. Having social anxiety has prevented Holden from being able to do the things he wanted to do. It did not, though, prevent his desire to help those who are not better off than him, and those who are vulnerable to the harsh truths of the world, mainly because he has his own share of insecurities, and would not want others to face the same thing as
Holden from The Catcher in the Rye has trouble forming a stable relationship with others because of his violent outbreaks, although he tends to be understanding of those in need. True, by the usage of verbal abuse, Holden has hurt Sally’s feeling when he tells her, “You give me a royal pain in the ass, if you want to know the truth” (Chapter 17). And yes, Holden has ruined his friendship with Ward Stradlater when Holden got jealous of the fact that he had a date with Jane, leading to a row between the two characters. But this does not explain why Holden donated $10 to two desperate nuns who he had never seen before. Until this moment, Holden has been portrayed as an insensible and jaded person, but now he is showing compassion and …show more content…
In the novel, Holden is constantly withdrawn from the social world because of his fear of being perceived as foolish and not meeting the standards. Holden did not tell his parents, for example, that he dropped out of school because he is worried what they would think of him. He did not like actors because he thought that they are fakes and phonies for having the fame and success he would never have. Most importantly, at the beginning of the novel, Holden revealed how he was born with a “lousy childhood,” and how he “don’t feel like going into it” Holden’s bad childhood experiences embitter him and reminds him of the things he would never have as an outsider. In fact, Holden’s negative thinking and intense self-consciousness are psychological symptoms of social anxiety. However, the point is that people like Holden with social anxiety want to be “normal” socially; they want to make friends; they want to get involve and engage in social interactions. Having social anxiety has prevented Holden from being able to do the things he wanted to do. It did not, though, prevent his desire to help those who are not better off than him, and those who are vulnerable to the harsh truths of the world, mainly because he has his own share of insecurities, and would not want others to face the same thing as