Warning: Use of undefined constant referer - assumed 'referer' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 102

Warning: Use of undefined constant host - assumed 'host' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 105

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays:102) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 106

Warning: Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays:102) in /usr/home/essaywo/public_html/essays on line 109
Understanding Holden Caulfield - Research Papers

Understanding Holden Caulfield


in J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye
J. D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye (Salinger 1953), is a novel told in an autobiographical manner which tracks Holden Caulfield on his two day sojourn through 1950’s New York City. This short twentieth century novel delves into the underlying problems that mire Caulfield to the point where it seems he will never enter the adult world. Holden's misguided morality brings about a dysfunctional personality that begs to be psychoanalyzed, not only in his interactions with the outside world, but also his internal motivation and language. However, his inability to relate to the rest of the world in any manner will leave the boy forever ...

Want to read the rest of this paper?
Join Essayworld today to view this entire essay
and over 50,000 other term papers

Holden who can be willful, contrary, often impossible, yet in a manner insistently of his own making and at odds with whatever he deems dull or conformist” (Lee 102). “Ambivalence is, in fact, characteristic of Holden, the surest evidence of his mental instability" (Furst 76). He is not what he and many readers assume he is: "an anti-establish figure whose
Kennedy 2
disgust is directed at other people” (Edwards 557). “Holden does not turn his face into the sunrise … expressing his determination to overthrow the bourgeois capitalistic society in favor of socialist utopia. Indeed, the whole thrust of the novel seems to suggest there is no social or political or economic structure that could … relieve Holden … of the tragic implications of his physical, sexual, or emotional nature” (Miller 134). Nay, Holden is more than this. He expresses this through his true self (Lee 103) which allows him to “editorialize gloriously, fire off opinions" (Costello 96), and even, as it appears, ...

Get instant access to over 50,000 essays.
Write better papers. Get better grades.


Already a member? Login

the novel], he no longer has any real need of therapy. He would appear to be as healthy, as whole, as sane as
Kennedy 3

anyone might ever be” (Mellard 225). Thus it appears that the novel is trying to describe certain passing phases of adolescent behavior (Baumbach 467).

But, whether Caulfield is cured at the end of the novel or not, it is obvious that he struggles with sexual problems throughout. “Holden’s problem … is reflected in his inability to relate sexually to females. But he … fools himself. He believes he cannot ‘get really sexy’ with girls he doesn’t like a lot, whereas … he cannot get sexy with a girl he does like" (Edwards 563). In fact, “what he likes ...

Succeed in your coursework without stepping into a library.
Get access to a growing library of notes, book reports,
and research papers in 2 minutes or less.


CITE THIS PAGE:

Understanding Holden Caulfield. (2004, August 19). Retrieved March 28, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Understanding-Holden-Caulfield/12930
"Understanding Holden Caulfield." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 19 Aug. 2004. Web. 28 Mar. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Understanding-Holden-Caulfield/12930>
"Understanding Holden Caulfield." Essayworld.com. August 19, 2004. Accessed March 28, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Understanding-Holden-Caulfield/12930.
"Understanding Holden Caulfield." Essayworld.com. August 19, 2004. Accessed March 28, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Understanding-Holden-Caulfield/12930.
JOIN NOW
Join today and get instant access to this and 50,000+ other essays


PAPER DETAILS
Added: 8/19/2004 07:15:38 PM
Category: Book Reports
Type: Free Paper
Words: 1720
Pages: 7

Save | Report

SHARE THIS PAPER

SAVED ESSAYS
Save and find your favorite essays easier

SIMILAR ESSAYS
» The Catcher In The Rye: Holden'...
» The Catcher In The Rye: Holden
» The Catcher In The Rye: Holden
» Catcher In The Rye: Caulfield's...
» Huckleberry Finn And Holden Cau...
» Catcher In The Rye 4
» Catcher In The Rye - Character
» The Catcher In The Rye
» Catcher In The Rye 2
» The Catcher In The Rye- A Stud
Copyright | Cancel | Contact Us

Copyright © 2024 Essayworld. All rights reserved