This Crazy Life

everything is “sore”. He talks about how he doesn’t like people because of how they are all phonies, and fakes, saying things they don’t really mean. There is where some reader might get the idea that Holden is “weird,” “whiny”, and “immature”, but this attitude is justified because of how Holden is still not over a traumatic experience of the death of his younger brother, Allie. The death of his younger brother, Allie, has left Holden to feel indifferent about the world. Holden, comparing…

The novel Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger describes a two-day journey through the eyes of Holden Caulfield. This journey includes escapades in alcohol, sex, and other controversial topics. There are groups of people who believe that these topics are too “taboo” to talk about in school. On the other hand there are others that do not feel that these topics are enough to have the book removed from schools. In fact, they believe that the topics covered can be beneficial to teenagers which gives…

Many interpretations have been assigned to this symbol. For instance, this hat can be seen as a symbol of individuality. Holden states, “… you could see that hat about ten miles away” (Salinger 205). This quote portrays Holden’s hat as a very bright and vibrant red, which just happens to be the same color hair as his favorite siblings’ hair. Those siblings being Allie, who…

Holden in a psychiatric home. Holden is somewhat of an outsider and has built a wall to protect him from the complexities of life. He constantly wears his red hunting hat, which symbolizes…

The National Institute of Mental Health states that in some cases depression is unreasonable and can triggered by trivial events and situations. This often happens to Holden in the novel, for instance when he describes the headmaster of his old school and how “phony” he was he says, “It makes me so depressed I go crazy” (Salinger 19). His feelings towards the headmaster help show that he is prone to emotional overreaction and depressive thoughts which aren’t present in the average…

is the scene he imagined after he is robbed by the pimp, Maurice. “Then I’d crawl back to my room and call up Jane and have her come over and bandage up my guts. I pictured her holding a cigarette for me to smoke while I was bleeding and all”(104). This shows Holden reaching a peak of insanity and beginning to realize Jane’s fanatical importance to him. By having Holden think about Jane idealistically throughout the novel, Salinger demonstrates that Jane is more important to Holden as a fantasy…

The innocence of childhood is eventually lost and cannot be protected forever. In life, everyone has a fall from innocence, after which no one remains the same. In J.D Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of the novel wants to desperately hold on to the innocence in children. Because Holden is often faced with the harsh realities of adulthood and the world, he is compelled to preserve innocence. These feelings come from the loss of his younger brother Allie who died…

Author J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye features Holden Caulfield, a young man who struggles through getting kicked out of multiple private boys schools, society’s expectations, and depression. The lense this book is being analyzed under is psychoanalytic theory. Psychoanalytic theory is the concept of the unconscious part of the human brain contains biological motivators and conditioning from past experiences. The specific part of psychoanalytic theory that is being used is the idea of…

day in this world where individuality and identity came from the acceptance of belonging. Society deems the idea that it is wellfully astonishing for someone to uphold a different “character” than everyone else. However, society does not guarantee that that “someone” would be accepted considering their difference. One specific fictional society backs up these beliefs. This fictional society is the community that takes place in The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger. J.D. Salinger spawns this…

his train ride after he gets kicked out of Pencey.A mother of his peer recognizes the Pencey marking and asked him about her son and if he knows him.holden for no apparent reason lies and says his name is Rufus and that her son is very well liked. This however is not true because he describes her son is being as sensitive as a toilet seat.he lives in order to protect her ego. Where he lies while at the club to two older women.as he regularly states his faults through the book stating that he is…