J.D Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye emulates what it is to be alone and gravely misunderstood. Holden Caulfield, the story’s recalcitrant protagonist recounts his dejected fall from sanity. Holden, shows little empathy for others and often rejects himself in an effort to cope with his brother, Allie’s death. The death of Allie propels Holden to adopt an angry/hateful view towards society in order to cope with the loss.
On the surface Holden’s incessant ramblings about society’s misgivings convey a solitary and blunt message; Holden hates phonies, and society in general. He often finds himself at the opposite end of an ideological spectrum; annoyed by idiocy. Constantly contemplating his purpose in the realm of phoniness that plagues his …show more content…
The prematurely destroyed bond between the two causes Holden’s first (notable) lapse in stability. It propels him into the teen misanthrope that he embodies. Ultimately heading for the “fall” he is retelling. However, Holden only shows off antagonism to mask the pain of Allie’s death. He first demonstrates this irritation by “[breaking] the windows in the garage”, following Allie’s surrender to leukemia (page 39). His reliance on anger turns his vulnerability into power, convincing himself that he has a way to fight back. That the unjust removal of Allie and the vulnerability Holden feels are remediable. However, no matter how depressed Holden is or how successfully he withdraws, he keeps going back to Allie. Holden summons his memories of Allie in times of vulnerability and tenderness. During Holden’s walk on Fifth Avenue he asks Allie to “[not] let [him] disappear” (page 198). To Holden, Allie represents both vulnerability and dauntlessness because his death causes Holden to feel weak but his memory revives Holden from weakness. Nevertheless, Holden is capable of shielding himself from the outside world without the aid of Allie. Holden’s fault less strategy for improving his self image (temporarily) is to bash others relentlessly until he is a saint in comparison. His technique is essentially an effort to avoid self awareness; trapping
On the surface Holden’s incessant ramblings about society’s misgivings convey a solitary and blunt message; Holden hates phonies, and society in general. He often finds himself at the opposite end of an ideological spectrum; annoyed by idiocy. Constantly contemplating his purpose in the realm of phoniness that plagues his …show more content…
The prematurely destroyed bond between the two causes Holden’s first (notable) lapse in stability. It propels him into the teen misanthrope that he embodies. Ultimately heading for the “fall” he is retelling. However, Holden only shows off antagonism to mask the pain of Allie’s death. He first demonstrates this irritation by “[breaking] the windows in the garage”, following Allie’s surrender to leukemia (page 39). His reliance on anger turns his vulnerability into power, convincing himself that he has a way to fight back. That the unjust removal of Allie and the vulnerability Holden feels are remediable. However, no matter how depressed Holden is or how successfully he withdraws, he keeps going back to Allie. Holden summons his memories of Allie in times of vulnerability and tenderness. During Holden’s walk on Fifth Avenue he asks Allie to “[not] let [him] disappear” (page 198). To Holden, Allie represents both vulnerability and dauntlessness because his death causes Holden to feel weak but his memory revives Holden from weakness. Nevertheless, Holden is capable of shielding himself from the outside world without the aid of Allie. Holden’s fault less strategy for improving his self image (temporarily) is to bash others relentlessly until he is a saint in comparison. His technique is essentially an effort to avoid self awareness; trapping