Throughout the novel The Catcher in the Rye, Holden shows symptoms of Post- Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, many times during his journey. This has a large impact on his life and personality. Holden showing these symptoms added the effect of realism throughout the novel. The fact that Holden has PTSD is never formally announced, but it can be inferred from many of his actions. The possible cause of this disorder might be the death of Holden’s trusted brother, Allie. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder occurs when you encounter a traumatic event. The body releases adrenaline in reaction to the event. After the event is over the body starts shutting down stress response, for this to happen cortisol is released. The problem occurs if your body
…show more content…
In the United States alone, 60% of men and 50% of women experience a traumatic event. Of those people, 8% of men and 20% of women will develop PTSD (WebMd). A common speculation of this disorder is that only war veterans can develop it. This is completely false. Events that cause PTSD can range from childbirth to rape to the death of a loved one. A common question that is asked is, “Do PTSD victims react different around society”? The answer is yes. One might notice that they have a hard time communicating their thoughts and feelings to others. We see Holden display this with the unmade phone calls. They symbolize his struggle to communicate with the outside world. It seems almost as if communication is an internal fear that he is afraid to admit to. In the end of the book Holden finally tells his story and you get a sense that PTSD is finally starting to leave him. After much evidence, it is obvious that Holden is victimized by the mental disorder PTSD. For the reader this is a good thing. His disorder gives him his personality and allows him to go through his journey. If Holden’s personality was any different the plot would not have been the way it was. The fact that Holden suffered from PTSD made his journey interesting and unexpected. You never knew what he was going to do
In the United States alone, 60% of men and 50% of women experience a traumatic event. Of those people, 8% of men and 20% of women will develop PTSD (WebMd). A common speculation of this disorder is that only war veterans can develop it. This is completely false. Events that cause PTSD can range from childbirth to rape to the death of a loved one. A common question that is asked is, “Do PTSD victims react different around society”? The answer is yes. One might notice that they have a hard time communicating their thoughts and feelings to others. We see Holden display this with the unmade phone calls. They symbolize his struggle to communicate with the outside world. It seems almost as if communication is an internal fear that he is afraid to admit to. In the end of the book Holden finally tells his story and you get a sense that PTSD is finally starting to leave him. After much evidence, it is obvious that Holden is victimized by the mental disorder PTSD. For the reader this is a good thing. His disorder gives him his personality and allows him to go through his journey. If Holden’s personality was any different the plot would not have been the way it was. The fact that Holden suffered from PTSD made his journey interesting and unexpected. You never knew what he was going to do