Catcher In the Rye Task
In J.D. Salinger's book Catcher in the Rye, the main character, Holden Caulfield has quite the adventurous downfall. The story takes place in New York City during the 1950’s, though in actual fact it is hinted that Holden is recalling the story in a mental institution. Holden is a troubled young man that is sent to his 4th prep school, Pency Prep, which he is then later kicked out of. This is not the only instance of him having a hard childhood, another occurrence is when he breaks all the windows in his garage due to the death of his brother Allie. Holden is responsible for his downfall in numerous ways because of his risky behaviour, his mental strength, and his internal conflicts.
Initially, Holden’s risky behaviour …show more content…
Holden does not portray a strong mental strength and critical thinking, however, this is not to say he is intellectually challenged, quite on the contrary. Holden is a smart young man, though in times his nerves can get to him. Solving this issue would be quite easy if by him taking a minute to think out his next moves in a clear and logical fashion. An example of Holden lacking mental strength is when “All of a sudden I started to cry. I’d give anything if I hadn’t, but I did.” P.92. Had holden actually taken the time to think of his situation, he may not have been put into his current one. From a third person’s view, it seems like a lot of Holden’s crummy situations are caused by him not thinking before his actions. Mental strength, stability and resilience will all play a part in Holden’s downfall sooner or …show more content…
Holden himself feels helpless and inadequate, also quite possibly inferior compared to Allie. While it's not crystal clear that Holden thinks these things, it can be inferred by the indirect characterization, and can be implied through these quotes: “I felt so depressed, you can’t imagine... I started talking, sort of out loud, to Allie.” “I do that sometimes when I get very depressed.” “I keep thinking about it anyway, when I get very depressed.” P.89. Holden may also have an inferiority complex with Allie, stating things such as “He was two years younger than I was, but he was about fifty times as intelligent. He was terrifically intelligent...He was the most intelligent member in the family.” P.33. The feelings of helplessness, depression inferiority etc. all eventually lead to a more conflicted Holden, which in the end will have the same consequences as the previous points, an almost certain negative one.
Ultimately, Holden is majorly responsible for his downfall, Though, he was not the only contributor. The management of Allie’s death by Holden’s parents was fatally flawed and lacking for Holden, which is seen by the broken garage windows etc. This fatal flaw snowballed into Holden’s internal struggles, which is in turn assisting in his downfall. There are plenty of factors in Holden’s downfall, nevertheless we can be almost certain that his downfall is
In J.D. Salinger's book Catcher in the Rye, the main character, Holden Caulfield has quite the adventurous downfall. The story takes place in New York City during the 1950’s, though in actual fact it is hinted that Holden is recalling the story in a mental institution. Holden is a troubled young man that is sent to his 4th prep school, Pency Prep, which he is then later kicked out of. This is not the only instance of him having a hard childhood, another occurrence is when he breaks all the windows in his garage due to the death of his brother Allie. Holden is responsible for his downfall in numerous ways because of his risky behaviour, his mental strength, and his internal conflicts.
Initially, Holden’s risky behaviour …show more content…
Holden does not portray a strong mental strength and critical thinking, however, this is not to say he is intellectually challenged, quite on the contrary. Holden is a smart young man, though in times his nerves can get to him. Solving this issue would be quite easy if by him taking a minute to think out his next moves in a clear and logical fashion. An example of Holden lacking mental strength is when “All of a sudden I started to cry. I’d give anything if I hadn’t, but I did.” P.92. Had holden actually taken the time to think of his situation, he may not have been put into his current one. From a third person’s view, it seems like a lot of Holden’s crummy situations are caused by him not thinking before his actions. Mental strength, stability and resilience will all play a part in Holden’s downfall sooner or …show more content…
Holden himself feels helpless and inadequate, also quite possibly inferior compared to Allie. While it's not crystal clear that Holden thinks these things, it can be inferred by the indirect characterization, and can be implied through these quotes: “I felt so depressed, you can’t imagine... I started talking, sort of out loud, to Allie.” “I do that sometimes when I get very depressed.” “I keep thinking about it anyway, when I get very depressed.” P.89. Holden may also have an inferiority complex with Allie, stating things such as “He was two years younger than I was, but he was about fifty times as intelligent. He was terrifically intelligent...He was the most intelligent member in the family.” P.33. The feelings of helplessness, depression inferiority etc. all eventually lead to a more conflicted Holden, which in the end will have the same consequences as the previous points, an almost certain negative one.
Ultimately, Holden is majorly responsible for his downfall, Though, he was not the only contributor. The management of Allie’s death by Holden’s parents was fatally flawed and lacking for Holden, which is seen by the broken garage windows etc. This fatal flaw snowballed into Holden’s internal struggles, which is in turn assisting in his downfall. There are plenty of factors in Holden’s downfall, nevertheless we can be almost certain that his downfall is