He instead of facing of fears of adult hood creates a fantasy world in which he sees adults living in a world of superficiality and false pretenses.
Holden is often refused from the world he has created. For example when he is at the night club “the Lavender Room” he is refused alcohol.
This alienation from society is a constant cause of pain for Holden. He feels rejected and continually victimised by the world he lives in which despite his efforts he will never belong.
When Holden reveals to his sister phoebe that he has left school she is disappointed and cannot fathom why he is so self-destructive or why he doesn’t just succeed in school the way she does. When he bares his soul to tell her of his dream of being “the catcher in the rye,” she is quiet for a long time but then simply states, in reference to his expulsion, “Daddy’s going to kill you,” illustrating that despite their great friendship and connection, Phoebe is still only 10 years old and cannot be expected to understand the true meaning of Holden’s words. Holden is angry at her reaction. He feels betrayed by her and feels as his sister she should accept him unconditionally.
Constant rejection has created a cynical sense of superiority in Holden that consequently serves as a type of self preservation.
In his mind his isolation is confirmation to him that he is above everybody else, therefore he feels no need to interact with them. However the truth is that these interactions overwhelm and confuse him. For example when his loneliness becomes overwhelming he turns to asking Sally Hayes on a date. He however constantly compares this relationship to his relationship with Jane Gallagher, who he secretly desires, however because of his constant fear of rejection he won’t contact her. His need for isolation and his constant comparisons of his feelings of Jane with Sally end up driving Sally away.
Stevenson commented that the novel was written about a “boys attempt to recapture his identity”. Holden’s warped understanding of childhood and adulthood spiral out of control in his mind and allows him to feel justified in pulling himself away from the world by creating a protective layer of cynicism.
The title of the novel is first introduced in chapter 16.
Holden admires a liberated child, who walks in the road, not on the sidewalk. The child is singing “coming thro’ The Rye” The significance of this image is explained in chapter 22. Phoebe asks her brother what he might do with his life. Holden says that he imagines a field of rye on a cliff filled with children playing. He wants to stand at the edge of the cliff and catch the children when they come too close to falling off—to be “the catcher in the rye.” Phoebe points out that Holden has misheard the words—the actual lyric, from the Robert Burns poem, “Coming Thro’ the Rye,” is “If a body meets a body coming through the rye.” The correct lyrics raise the question of whether it is moral for two people to have a romantic encounter in private even though they have no plans of commitment. The word the Holden replaces in the song is ironically “meet, and also refers to a couple having sex, which he substitutes for a word that has a totally different meaning to him. Because of his own fears of sexuality, he feels if he can “catch” the children before they gain the knowledge of sex attained in adulthood, he can save them from falling into adulthood.
Holden’s identity crisis is often compared to Huckleberry Finn. Similar in many ways they both represent naive adolescents. They comment on the problems of the society in which they live in. they both seek independence, while ensuring they can grow and exist with some form of stability.
The core theme of the novels also mirrors each other in that they both comment on the suffering that young people endure on their transition from a child to an adult.
Relationships, intimacy, and sexuality are all recurring motifs that relate to the larger theme of alienation, Though, Holden is a virgin himself. Both physical and emotional relationships offer Holden opportunity to break out of his isolated shell. However he often displays a very immature attitude when talking about such issues. They also signify what he fears most about the adult world: complexity, impulsiveness, and potential for conflict and change. Because people are unpredictable, they Holden feels confronted by them, consequently he is forced to constantly question his self-confidence and self-worth. One reason he may find these human complexities hard to deal with is Allies death. At times throughout the novel Holden encounters opportunities for both physical and emotional intimacy, although he fails to follow this through. Holden desperately continues searching for new relationships, always undoing himself only at the last moment. For example when he invites Sunny the prostitute to his room for a “throw” but when it comes to actually having sex and making the transition into maturity. He claims “I didn’t want to do it, I felt more depressed than sexy. And when Maurice confronts him and asks him for more money for a service he didn’t even use his childlike vulnerability exposed again.
Another key theme of the Catcher in the Rye is “Phoniness,” which is probably the most famous phrase from The Catcher in the Rye, and is one of Holden’s favorite concepts. Holden uses this label for describing the superficiality, hypocrisy, pretension, and shallowness that he encounters in the world around him. Salinger argues that there is nothing wrong with growing up rather he argues that there is a problem being a “phony” adult. Holden believes that adults are inevitably phonies, and, what’s worse, they can’t see their own phoniness. Phoniness, for Holden, are excuse for him to continue living in his cynical isolation. Holden continually searches for phoniness in others, and he fails to directly observe his own phoniness. Holden is his own counterevidence; he actually possesses many of the qualities of the middle class which he tries to reject. For example his criticism of sex without permission. This element of Holden’s character is often compared to Hamlet, both characters struggle to find honesty and sincerity in others; therefore, they try to uphold these qualities in themselves.
Thorough out the novel it is evident that Holden fears the uncertainties that come with change. At times he is incapable of understanding therefore in order for him to live things should be eternally fixed. In effect it wants the world to be frozen. When at the museum Holden feels safe. The museum is predictable and static; it represents the world in which Holden would like to live in, the world of the “Catcher in the Rye” where everything is simple and infinite. In a world where he is frustrated by conflict and incidents such as Allie’s death, Holden’s fear perpetually according to Hamilton represents a hunger for “stability and performance.” Allies death is important in the novel. Allie is dead therefore she in Holden’s mind will always remain innocent. She died as a child therefore she can never enter the “phoney” adult world. Her death reflects the underlying theme of death of innocence, and her death is obviously a significant factor why Holden is so obstinate when it comes to the maturation process.
The true fears of the adult world are exposed when he announces his intention to become a deaf mute. He loathes the adult “phoniness” that he is surrounded by so much that he would rather become a social recluse, not communicating with anybody. He states “if anybody wanted to tell me something, they have to write it down on a piece of paper and shove it over to me. They’d get so bored as hell doing that after a while, and then id be through having conversations for the rest of my life.”
This idea of living echoes the American Dream presented in John Steinbeck’s Of mice and men an reiterates the idea that the American Dream is still as present as it was in the 1930’s.
Holden is very fond of his two sisters Allie and Phoebe. He admires them because they are innocent and tries to protect and nurture their naivety. Phoebe is especially important as she represents the charming world of childhood innocence. Holden craves to be part of her world instead of having to enter into the adult world in which innocence is stifled.
However phoebe complicates Holden’s narrative and instead of sympathising with her brother she becomes irritated by his constant, extreme judgments of everything. Saying “you don’t like anything that’s happening!”
Despite their age gap phoebe understands that growing up is an essential part of life, recognising that Holden’s refusal to mature represents more his personality than the outside world. She realises that her brothers resentment towards the world, is more resentment of himself than anything else. When we hear her side of the story next to her brothers Holden’s stunted emotional maturity and stubborn outlook seems less charming and more thoughtless and foolish.
One character who appears to make a connection with Holden is his teacher Mr. Antolini. Unlike many other symbols of authority portrayed in the novel such as Mr. Spencer, Antolini manages to avoid forming any sense of alienation with Holden.
Holden believes that Mr Antolini is not a “phoney,” as he expresses his true self at all times. Mr Antolini differs from other teachers as he doesn’t act in the conventional way, this gains Holden’s respect. He doesn’t have one personality in a school and another out, as Holden believes to be true of his other teachers.
Rather than seeing school as way force children into adult conformity, Antolini sees school as a place in which he can allow children to develop their own voices.
The symbol of the red hunting hat is a significant symbol in “The Cather in the Rye.”
The hat is a way for Holden to express his individuality and desire to be unique. It is also a way in which he can stand out from the other “phoneys.” He never wears it around people he doesn’t know. The hat acts as a symbol of weakness and insecurity in Holden. He sees the hat as a instrument with which he can use to protect himself, “my hunting hat really give me a lot of protection.” His hunter’s hat mirrors one of the key themes in the novel, Holden’s desire for isolation yet his craving of companionship. He boats that the hat is a shooting people hat, with witch he can shoot people, yet to Holden it is not literally at hat with which he kills people, it is principally a way of criticising people.
The fact that the hat is red allows for many interpretations. His sisters both have red hair and by wearing the hat it enables Holden to feel more connected to the two sisters that represent the innocence he so clearly longs for. The colour, and the fact that hold the hat in such high esteem could be an early indication of his downfall as the colour red suggests danger and passion. At the end of the novel Holden gives the hat to Phoebe this not only confirms he decision that he wont separate himself from others, but also as a way of protecting phoebe.
Holden’s curiosity of where the ducks go in winter is also another important consideration in Holden’s hate of change. For almost the entire novel he demonstrates a very cynical and mature point of view on the world. However, his interest in the ducks reflects signs of the curiosity of youth, as it involves him opening up to his desire to interact with the mysteries in the world. Holden admires the determination of the ducks that have faced such a harsh environment. The pond is partly frozen and partly unfrozen this image is said to mirror Holden, since, as the pond is in a transition between stages, so is Holden in a transition from childhood to adulthood.
Holden’s transition into adulthood develops along with the story. Holden regrets his hasty judgment of Mr. Antolini, but this mistake is very important to him, because he finally starts to question the way in which he makes snap judgments about people. Holden realises that even if Mr. Antolini is gay, he can’t simply be dismissed as a “flit,” since he has also been kind and generous. Holden begins to accept that Mr. Antolini is complex and that he has feelings. However many critics argue that Holden does not mature at all through out the novel is in reality the only person he really connects with is his ten year old sister, therefore he merely reverts back into an immature state of mind. Nevertheless Holden does come to realise that in order to continue to exist in the adult world you must except that lies are necessary in order to maintain the “phoniness” in which adults rely on.
Holden’s break down reaches its climax towards the end of the novel, when he watches Phoebe go around and around on the carousel. When he watches Phoebe, he finds himself the happiest he has ever been “I was damn near bawling, I was so damn happy.” He participates in a scene of childhood happiness and innocence. With Phoebe, he seems to have found the human contact has been searching for. His illusion of protecting children is symbolically shattered. Many critics argue that this is the moment when Holden finally makes the transition into adulthood. Even though Holden does not technically admit defeat, he has undoubtedly gained a mature attitude of acceptance and tolerance.
Miss locket I am stuck on my conclusion any ideas would be useful thanks Ashleigh xxxx
