Holden Caulfield Symptoms

Over the course of the novel The Catcher in the Rye, the main character, Holden Caulfield, experiences symptoms which effect his mind and body. I am diagnosing Holden Caulfield with clinical depression based on the following observed symptoms. According to WebMD, the symptoms of depression include sadness, trouble sleeping, increased fatigue, thoughts of death or suicide, mood swings, and increase in purposeless physical activity. Holden displays many of these symptoms in his behavior. Holden feels that he is on the "losing team" of the world, which causes sadness. Holden often experiences suicidal thoughts, and things that "depress the hell out of him", which is another symptom for depression. Holden also constantly has trouble sleeping and smokes, which causes him to fatigue easily and weakens his body. Also, in the last chapter Holden is watching Phoebe on a carousel, and immediately begins to feel joy, even though he was sad and depressed before, which is a mood swing, a symptom of depression. In addition, roughly 17% of adults experience depression in their lives, meaning that it is likely that Holden is experiencing depression, and that it most commonly appears in late teenage years to early twenties. "Everybody was asleep or out or home for the weekend, and it was very, very quiet and depressing in the corridor. […] All of a sudden, I decided what I'd …show more content…
In Holden's case, he is quite lonely and not open about his feelings, so I would suggest that he go to a counselor, or private clinic to attempt to reveal his feelings and make a solution to his depression. Additionally, I suggest he see a hospital psychiatric department to obtain the opinion of a medical professional on his issues. Support groups may also help Holden's situation because they could help him understand that he is not the only person experiencing his