... the main character is Holden Caulfield. He is a teen- age boy who goes through some major changes. His life is taken over by isolation and depression. This is all caused by his attitude towards others, his failure to accept the world around him and his various obsessions with sex and alcohol. Holden is not able to ... of going to New England or Colorado, to go anywhere, just so he doesn't have to face the people or situations around him. Holden also has an obsession with sex. Holden is a virgin, but he is very interested in sex, and in fact he spends much of the novel trying to lose his ...

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

... through his troubled times. Holden, subconsciously, mentioned death frequently in his everyday language. His verbal expressions of death symbolized his constant thoughts about suicide. Despite his suicidal mentality, he had a fear of death and disappearance from the world. From the book, one could infer that Holden despised violence greatly because of its deadly repercussions. Allie Caulfield was Holden's deceased younger brother. ... He died of leukemia when Holden was thirteen. Allie was " the most intelligent member in the family. He was also the nicest, in lots of ways. ... He never...

• Word Count: 1167
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... look into the life of Conrad Jarret, a teenage boy who lives with his mother and father. The Catcher in the Rye deals with Holden Caulfield, a seventeen-year-old boy who is returning home from school to his parents and younger sister. These two characters have some differences yet ... lost a brother to death. Their brothers, however, affected them differently. Conrad's brother, Jordan, died in the same boating accident, which Conrad survived. Holden's brother Alie died of leukemia. Conrad feels guilty about Jordan's death because Conrad survived the accident. He feels that Jordan shoul...

• Word Count: 917
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... helping the reader to know and understand the main character, Holden Caulfield. Holden, in his narration, relates a flashback of a significant period of his life, three days and nights on his own in New York City. Through his narration, Holden discloses to the reader his innermost thoughts and feelings. He ... a foolproof plan, even though the extent of his plans are to "take a room in a hotel.., and just take it easy till Wednesday." Holden's excessive thoughts on death are not typical of most adolescents. His near obsession with death might come from having experienced two deaths in h...

• Word Count: 791
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... Holden Caulfield From the beginning of the story, it J.D. Salinger made it clear that the problems that were troubling Holden were deeper that issues of typical teen angst. Holden was self-destructive and emotionally unstable. The death of his younger brother Allie seemed to have a profound affect on Holden. It appears that Holden, ... 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 ha...

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