Holden's Journey to Adulthood in The Catcher in the Rye Essay

his intent. Behrman classifies Holden’s interactions with others as a result of his innocent mindset. He brings into focus that Holden becomes attached to things that make him feel safe, such as the red cap, Allie’s mitt, and the record he bought for Phoebe. This parallels how Holden refuses to let go of his childhood innocence even though he is quickly approaching adulthood. Behrman also highlights Holden’s trip to the Museum of Natural History and his soliloquy about how the museum never changes, but the visitor does. This is interpreted as a revelation of Holden’s inability to adapt to these changes. The museum reveals…

Adolescence is quite possibly the most awkward moment in one’s life. It is a transition from youth to adulthood, in which a person experiences puberty, gains insight to their true identity, and has to figure out plans for the rest of their life whilst balancing all the crazy mishaps life has to offer. It is a troubling, yet rewarding period of time, and in the novel “The Catcher in the Rye”, by J.D. Salinger, the main character Holden Caulfield experiences all of this within a span of five days.…

Symbolism in Catcher in the Rye In Catcher in the Rye author J. D. Salinger offers the reader a glimpse into the mind of a young teen protagonist, Holden Caulfield, as he seeks to establish his identity. Catcher in the Rye is laced with clues of Holden’s struggle with the rite of passage. Throughout Catcher in the Rye, symbolism illustrates Holden’s struggle with transitioning from adolescence to adulthood. One of the first and most important examples of symbolism found in the novel is the…

transition from innocent childhood and adolescence to adulthood. The Catcher in the Rye outlines a troubled adolescent named Holden Caulfield as he makes this painful transition. The Catcher in the Rye is considered J. D. Salinger’s most successful novel. In the novel, the main character Holden Caulfield takes a two and a half day journey through New York City after he gets kicked out of his third private school, Pencey Prep. “He (Holden) represents as a spokesman for the alienated American…

Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye has the same mentality: he does not want to grow up. His bias towards innocence and fear of adulthood leaves him with one purpose in life: to save those from enduring the pain of maturing. Due to a mishearing of Robert Burn’s poem “Comin Thro’ the Rye,” Holden envisions himself as the hero at the end of the cliff, catching innocent kids coming through the rye. He wants to become a catcher in the rye. In J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye, Holden’s…

Teenagers lie in a gaping abyss between the innocence of childhood and the responsibilities of adulthood. What defines a certain teenager is often how they cope with this intermediate phase. What choices do they make? Are they responsible? How do they respond to adversity? The life of Holden–the impulsive protagonist of J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye–offers a clear example of how uncertain, and frightening, this period can be. Holden ricochets between childhood and adulthood, a result of his…

Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye continues to engage audiences through it relatable narrative treatment of alienation. Through his narrative treatment Salinger portrays the then first look of the teenage years and what it is like transitioning into adulthood. Holden continues to resonate with modern audiences due to his feelings of alienation towards his culture and the everyday life in which Holden struggles to relate too. Holden’s disillusionment to adulthood and growing up is what feeds his…

In the novel The Catcher in the Rye authored by J.D. Salinger, Salinger includes many symbols that mean something to Holden as well as the reader. Each has a different meaning and amount of significance to Holden, and each is vital for the progression of Holden as a character. Three of the most important being the mummies in the museum, the ducks in the Central Park lagoon, and the the carousel and its golden ring Phoebe reaches for at the end of the novel. These symbols are crucial to Holden…

The Phoney in the Catcher in the Rye The Catcher in the Rye is a novel where the protagonist, Holden Caulfield, tells his story about being a normal sixteen-year-old boy struggling to move into adulthood due to being afraid of growing up. This even inspires him to want to save all the children from growing up, desiring to be the Catcher in the Rye. Holden appears to be normal, but exhibits an abundance of signs of depression throughout the story. In this book consisting of 26 chapters is Holden…

hurt.” Although, for many, it is difficult to find this strength making growing up seem frightening. This process and struggle reaching adulthood is shown in both Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll and The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Alice in Wonderland is a story of a little girl named Alice whose fantasies take her a made up, crazy land called Wonderland, in which she meets many different curious creatures. The Catcher in the Rye is about a sixteen year old boy named Holden who…