... relate the passage from his youth into maturity. Though his innocence has already been lost, he still hopes to protect others children from knowing about adult subjects. Throughout the book, he will change and will become much more mature, although his perception of the world as a corrupt and "phony ... they leave the lack every winter, they return every spring; therefore, some vanishing are temporary. It is a direct result of his inability to come to adult world. These had made him suicidal: "What I really felt like, though, was committing suicide" (Salinger,104). He is extremely immatu...

• Word Count: 1843
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... artificial and this theme relates to his attitude towards children and the preserving of their innocence. If these children might succumb to the ways of the adult world, they will become "phonies", untrue to themselves. This is a dominating theme in the book, which is characterized by two literary elements: characterization ... envisions himself a catcher in a field of rye. Holden would rather treat his fantasy of an idealistic childhood than deal with the complexities of the adult world. He knows his idea is "crazy", but his desire to protect children from this corrupted youth is what di...

• Word Count: 1143
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... Rye chronicles the growth from childhood to adulthood. Holden, the narrator, is a 16-year old adolescent that has the desire to be in the adult world, which is full of choices and responsibilities that he wishes to encounter. Holden thinks being a child is comfortable and is protected from all the ... impurities in the world, therefor he wants to become an adult too quickly. Throughout the novel there are several instances that show the struggle inside Holden to make the switch from a boy to a man. Holden ... constantly battles the two different sides. This directly affects him mentally...

• Word Count: 786
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... is exasperated by the fact of how fake adulthood is; he does want to fall into conformity and loose his childhood individuality and creativeness and not worry about adult-stuff. We remarking about the boys at his school, he says, "It's full of phonies, and all you do is study so that you ... is allotted complete autonomy over his fate and can essentially do what he pleases. In a similar fashion, Kathy also dislikes the "phoniness" of the adult world, but in a more literal sense; she too also loves the memories that she has from her childhood when she didn't have to worry about the ... "...

• Word Count: 3123
• Approx Pages: 12
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

... Holden can look at adults and pick out their flaws that they are trying to cover up. He sees this and decides he wants no part of being an adult. However, when Holden is around older men and women, he tries to act like he is older. When he is talking to Mrs. Morrow on the train, ... he says, "Would you care for a cocktail? We can go in the club car. All right?" Holden knows that drinking an alcoholic beverage is an adult thing to do. He then goes on to sate with pride about his older looks. "and I have quite a bit of grey hair." Holden seems to be caught up ... the disciples. An atheist...

• Word Count: 1608
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... childhood to adulthood throughout the story. He adequately portrays the way many teenagers feel during adolescence and his actions prove his fear of becoming an adult. The most prevalent characteristic about Holden is his desire to be independent. All teenagers yearn to be independent from their parents and free from responsibility ... by himself. Holden needs to be independent in order to feel in control of his life. His fear is being molded into society and becoming an adult. If he lets go of his independence and becomes dependent, then he will feel as though he is becoming a "phony" hi...

• Word Count: 1127
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... hospital as a result of his belief in preserving the innocence of children. Holden is preoccupied with saving children before they are corrupted by the phony adult world where people are not true to themselves; he wants to save children from being exposed to sex, deceit, and the phoniness of being fake ... of ways. He never got mad at anybody." (p.50) He died at a very young age and Holden never saw Allie grow up into the "phony" adult world. To Holden, Allie is a symbol of innocence that can never be destroyed. In contrast, Phoebe is the more sophisticated child; her childish innocence i...

• Word Count: 925
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... , authenticity and integrity compared to the pure and innocent children. Holden, a 17-year-old narrator of Catcher In The Rye is entering into the adult world. He knows that it's time to change; but his mind despises the characteristics of the grown-up world. He hates the fact that he ... hat, Holden is probably hunting for something. The thing he's hunting for is probably the meaning of his life. As Holden struggles to become an adult, he slowly matures from being a teenager. Another thing he likes and wants to be is from the title, Catcher In The Rye. The catcher in ... and "catch ev...

• Word Count: 575
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... preoccupied in preserving the innocence of children. He does not want to lose that innocence because that would mean that he would have to enter the adult world and become "phony." He believes that all adults are phony, but that they cannot seem to see their phoniness. He wants to remain a ... . Antolini. He trusted Mr. Antolini, yet that same person betrayed that trust by his seemingly homosexual pettings. Mr. Antolini was Holden's only "non-phony" adult that he could turn to. Although Mr. Antolini may have given Holden some good advice, the effects of the advice would be canceled as a ...

• Word Count: 1033
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... for Holden are innocence and experience. Holden believes he has to protect a child's innocence to prevent them from becoming experienced and exposed to the adult world. As Holden faces these conflicts he is also trying to find himself as he tried to solve his confusion with sex and death. Along ... gray and half brown, symbolizes the struggle he faces between childhood and adulthood. Adulthood is what Holden strives to stay away from. He resents the adult world and resists entry into it, but he has little choice. Holden also believes that adulthood crosses the line that separates innoce...

• Word Count: 2258
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

... sees that every time he goes to the museum it has not changed but he has. Holden is afraid of growing up and becoming a "phony" adult. He thinks that almost every adult is a sell out and constantly criticizes them throughout the entire novel. His Older brother D.B. was a nice guy, a great writer, but once he ... got older he transformed into a "phony" adult. Holden's visit to the museum made him see that there is no way you can prevent yourself from change. Another point in Holden's journey from adolescence into adulthood ... someone would come and carry him away as well. Knowing the du...

• Word Count: 663
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... an individuals maturing period? In J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, Holden's "phony phobia" restricts him from becoming a fully matured adult. In Holden's attempted journey in becoming a fully matured adult, he encounters many scenarios involving friendships, personal opinions, and his love of children. His journey is an unpleasant and difficult one with ... with his younger siblings. His comments of innocence help establish this connection. Someone who is trying to learn the stages of developing into a mature adult would not develop as soon, or as fully when spending their time sol...

• Word Count: 1393
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... That's why he only saw children and his younger sister Phoebe as innocent. Holden doesn't want his sister to grow up and change, and have the adult world affect her the way it does him. In Holden's mind, children are nave, and that was the way he wants to preserve it. He ... on the street and ask for a dime for coffee- (103). Maurice is a bully, having fallen of a cliff at an early age with many other phony adult symptoms. When discussing Stradlater, his roommate, he makes sure to include that he is secretly a slob because his toilets are kept dirty, even though most people ... not loo...

• Word Count: 1770
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... up on and she had all these curlers in her hair. All that matters is she looks good to society so that she can be accepted into the adult world. Children remember people by something unique they did in the past, but adults only remember people by sexual experiences. Holden remembers the way that Jane would ... he"d have something to read when he was in the field and nobody was up at bat" (Salinger 38). When Holden was trying to act like an adult and told Maurice to send up a prostitute he did not score with her but instead he tried to talk to her and get to know her better. He ... old ...

• Word Count: 914
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... he express how Holden Caulfield is stuck in the middle of his childhood and adulthood. He just doesn't seem like he wants to grow up and become the adult he can be, but he also hates his life as a teenager. The role of Jane's kings in the back row represents Holden being afraid of undergoing maturation ... good friend to Holden. This also symbolizes how Holden is being held back by his child like mind and him not letting himself grow up to an adult. There are many symbols in the novel, the game of checkers is like the game of life and each move you make will help you in the ... and in th...

• Word Count: 565
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... - (183). As a result of the mounting societal pressure to grow up and the death of Allie, Holden "digresses- by escaping to New York City and trying to act like a mature adult. In the city, Holden begins acting in the way he perceives is demanded by American society: as a "phony."" Holden willingly ignores moral responsibility in order to satisfy this illusion of ... falsely acts superficial and pretentious, lies to people in order to gain favor with them, drinks at bars, and orders hookers. Holden acts like the American adult in this fictional fantasy world that he has created. Ultimate...

• Word Count: 3026
• Approx Pages: 12
• Grade Level: High School

... of his problem is that he was deeply affected by the death of his brother Allie. He really misses him and this leads him to not want to face the adult world, but to go back to the innocence of his childhood. His problems begin at school. He was sent away to school and then he flunks out of school ... how he cannot deal with the world around him and maybe he would be better of is he committed suicide and then he would not have to live in this adult world. Holden is a boy who becomes increasingly paranoid and delusional, which leads to him being put in an institution because he has attempt...

• Word Count: 811
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... the angst of the adolescent and demands that voice be heard. It speaks to the anxiety of the adolescent caught in the current of becoming an adult and having difficulty coping with all that the adult world means. It gives insight into the psyche of a troubled Holden. Holden' s growing pains. This paper aims to show all kinds troubles that Holden faced during ... healthily. It' s very important. Because adolescent' s growing trouble is very common in nowadays and let them grow up healthily is very important to the future of human. Key words: adolescence, adult world, trouble, growing pai...

• Word Count: 678
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... the ducks all help Holden learn and mature throughout this novel. Although the hunting hat allows Holden to be more courageous, it also makes him feel more self-conscious in adult situations. When Holden opens a window it is symbolic of the clarity needed in his life along with him maturing. During Holden's visit in New York his curiosity about where the ... the cab, just for the hell of it, but I took it off before I checked in. I didn't want to look like a screwball or something." (61, Salinger) When Holden gets into adult situations he is embarrassed of his hat, so he does not wear i...

• Word Count: 897
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... infuriated when he sees "fuck you" carved into his little sisters school. He feels that way because he doesn't want these young children to get exposed to the adult world and lose their innocence. This thought isn't processed by normal people which portrays how mad Holden really is in the world he is taking part in. He believes that ... once you become an adult, you are washed away in a world chock-full of a hypocrisy and contradiction. This madness has been deeply engraved in Caulfield's mind. His thought process really takes a toll on his mental ... back into the realization that he ...

• Word Count: 817
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... acts conventional into a prejudice of "phonies ". His creation of phony prejudices were also caused by his refusal to move on from a child-like state of mind and mature into a "conventional " adult. As a result of all these issues, Holden defines the people around him according to how he views them and not according to how society views them. Thus, he alienates himself ... , whom are the adults. Obviously, to him adulthood means becoming a phony and a giant hypocrite. Clearly, that's not the case in the real world. But to Holden, that's what being an adult means, therefore he has a very ...

• Word Count: 982
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... realization of his surroundings from which he successfully crosses over. Focusing on the rebellious and confused truth of adolescents stuck between the innocence of childhood and the crookedness of the adult world, this novel strikes a cord, which most adolescents can relate. The essence of the story The Catcher in the Rye follows the forty-eight hour experience of sixteen-year-old ... days hiding out to rest before confronting his parents with the news. During his adventures in the city he tries to renew some old acquaintances, find his significance in the adult world, and come to grip...

• Word Count: 1050
• Approx Pages: 4

... , an individual may experience loss, grief, failure, numerous responsibilities, and being characterized into a social class of society. Holden Caulfield, the antagonist of J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, lives in an adult society when he moves into New York City yet he is only a teenager. As a result, he faces a self-identity struggle and is uncertain of his beliefs. Salinger portrays the difficulties ... the adulthood when he finds himself sleeping in a subway packed with people (pg 194, Salinger). He feels a lack of self-worthiness and self-pity, as well, and turns to the adult aut...

• Word Count: 930
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... 's death. Holden's views on life were dismal and cynical and he considered most people to be "phony." He could not seem to cope with the responsibilities and pressures of the adult-world, and he preferred the simplicity and honesty of childhood. Although Holden grew up physically after his brother passed, his emotional growth was somewhat stunted. He did seem to have ... they committed suicide. In fact, he also said mentioned that he wanted to sit on top of the A- bomb, or jump out of the window. What Holden saw of the adult world left him deeply distressed and disturbed. He associated m...

• Word Count: 930
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... as well, but with no avail. This is showing his extreme hurt and anger from his brother's tragic death by leukemia. To Holden, losing your innocence is becoming an adult, "a corrupt adult", which Holden very much is not partial to, so he continues to fail out of prep schools so that he can wait as long as he possibly can to enter ... the adult world that he despises with such intensity. As Holden evolves through numerous revelations, he continues to year for the permanence in his life that he has no immediate control over ... ...

• Word Count: 772
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School