Catcher in the Rye- ‘Holden’s Hatred of Everything’ Essay

H oldens hatred of everything is change and indicates his ingest chimerical and confused attitude. Discuss. J.D. Salingers novel Catcher in the Rye depicts a teen struggling through an identity crisis during the 1950s. Salinger promotes the themes of growing up and adolescence through the protagonist, Holden Caulfield. Holdens attitude towards life is blistering and contemptuous which prevents him from successfully interacting with other people. His transition from childhood to adulthood is blurry and unclear as he lacks the skills needed to shift from one to the other. Furthermore, he is unable to overcome the obstacle, as he sees it, of growing up as he is finding it difficult to accept the responsibility that comes with it.Holden exposes his idea of the shallowness and hypocrisy in the initiation by describing them as phony. Holden recognizes that phoniness is all throughout society. Whether it be in reference to his old school principal at Elkton Hills only conversing wit h the upper class families, or to his hatred of movies as it involves actors sham to be something theyre not. Although Holden holds this pessimistic attitude, it seems to be evident that this outlook appears only to be evoked by sympathy, either for the families that looked down upon at Elkton Hills or for his own dysfunctional family. Holden also sees the insincerity in the number of Stradlater, his roommate who is able to hide his secret slobbery behind his sexy appearance and fake charm.In this sense, Holden whitethorn also be jealous of how easily Stradlater can shield his insecurities as he has a knock-down(prenominal) sense of self-imposed ego. Holden describes his older brother D.B. as a phony because Holden perceives him as a sellout for creation a prostitute in Hollywood. Though Holden used to look up to his older brother, his direct believes D.B. is compromising his talents for an audience. Similarly, with Ernie who plays piano at the nightclub, Holden is frustrated w hen the audience claps for him, claiming that people always clap for the wrong things. Holden is practically found disapproving of particular elements in society, however is able to justify to himself the reasons of his actions based on his own experiences and perceptions, which may clash with the expectations of society and it is this that confuses Holden.Holdens idea of reality is found to be altered due to hurtful experiences and therefore he has difficulty with interactions, forming connections and approval of society. At the beginning of the text, the commentator is informed that Holden is narrating from a mental institution, which enables the reader to conclude that Holdens views of reality are somewhat unstable. Moreover, Holden is unable to let go of the past, as he believes childhood is the only place he leave alone find happiness. Holdens perception of childhood consists of unconditional love, simplicity and safety from the corruption of the outer serviceman.To Holde n, this genuineness existed only when Allie was alive. It is here that the reader is led to believe that the reasons behind Holdens inability to deal with complexity and intimacy stem from the goal of Allie which he has worked to properly grieve for, resulting in confusion and lack of the closure he needs to fly the coop forward. In regards to his sexuality and lack of knowledge or experience in the matter, Holden notes that it doesnt really support as in his mind, hes probably the biggest sex maniac you ever saw which implies that Holden has already created his own world in which he has keep apartd himself to. Holdens fantasy is to be the catcher in the rye, catching kids from move off a cliff into the pretentious world of adulthood.This metaphor indicates that Holden wants to be the person to save the children in the beginning they fall out of their innocent knowledge into the repulsive world of adults. His desire to remain in of childhood is implied when he explains that th e best things most the museum is everything stayed where it was which shows that he longs for a world that remains frozen and unchanged, as he tutelages the unknown. Also, when watching Phoebe on the carousel, Holden mentions that the nice things about carousels were that they always played the same songs. The reality of the world cannot be accepted if the meaning is unknown, and this applies to Holden as his ignorance to explore this unknown prevents his from being the man he rattling wants to be.Furthermore, Holden finds difficulty in accepting the concerns and responsibilities that are required in the adult world. His childishness and immaturity, whether deliberate or not, is evident when Holden left all the foils and equipment and stuff on the goddam subway and instead of accepting that he made a mistake, he blames it on that he had to keep getting up to look at this map so theyd know where to get off.Holdens responsibility as an adolescent teenager was to finish school with good grades however unable to do that, he transfers to different schools repeatedly, only to fail again. Holdens inability to accept responsibility may also be due to a fear of success. Holdens childishness is also noticed throughout the novel when Holden refuses to go home and confront his parents about flunking out of Pencey Prep in fear of the criticism and consequences that will result. Holden dislikes responsibility, as he believes that with it comes expectations, and if he doesnt live up to those expectations, then the unconditional love he received through childhood will subside.Catcher in the Rye explores the tension and confusion between Holdens aspiration to observe and isolate with his need to converse and connect. Holden displays characteristics of a secluded mentality and is victim of his own isolation, which in turn prevents him from conformist to societys expectations. Through Holden, the contrast between childhood and adulthood and the process of transitioning from o ne to another(prenominal) are examined closely. As the novel progresses, the reader is able to understand what events Holden has experienced that have lead to his unrealistic and confused attitude about fearing change, resenting adulthood and growing up.