In most stories, the character changes in a somewhat positive way, whether it's becoming a stronger person, changing the way the look at the world, the decisions they may make, or who they want to be. Though, in "Catcher in the Rye", Holden gets weaker, instead of getting stronger. I feel like he regresses back to a child-like state of mind. He tries to avoid his parents and he feels like the only person he can talk to is his 10 year-old sister.Although Holden doesn't change too much (in a positive way) throughout the story, I can understand why. He definitely goes through a lot. He's a teenager in the midst of (trying) to become an adult and cope with life. One thing that definitely has some impact on the way Holden lives is the fact that he is always feeling betrayed.Holden constantly feels betrayed, and that is a possible cause of his problems. Stradlater betrays Holden by dating his best friend, Jane, who Holden also had a crush on. When Holden returns home to see Phoebe, she is disappointed that he failed out of Pency. He thinks that she should accept him unconditionally, so he feels betrayed. All of this betrayal led Holden to think that everyone was a phony. And it's probably why he's iffy when it comes to relationships. He's afraid of betrayal and he doesn't want to have to tolerate anymore of it. The way Holden looks at the people around him, basically society, isn't really healthy. He doesn't learn to build relationships with anyone, because he is too caught up with the idea of everyone being a phony, when Holden is really the only phony. He feels that no one understands him and that everyone is a "phony". He thinks that no one is honest, and everybody wants to be something else. He feels that the only person who understands him is Phoebe. He does not have relationships with girls, or anyone because he feels that he is the only non-"phony" person in the world. Throughout the whole novel, differs from society which results in his rebellious nature. Holden does not have any friends and cannot keep relationships. This is because he finds and exaggerates any negative aspect of all the people he knows or meets. This can be seen when Holden cannot keep his relationship with his girlfriend Sally. Holden also rebels because he feels that all adults are phonies. Holden believes that these phonies are people who try to be something that they are not. Usually the mark of a phony is the desire for material goods. This is because people usually want these possessions in order to impress others and become something they are not. This is why Holden can only connect with his younger sister Phoebe. On the other hand his older brother D.B. is a living example of a phony. This is because D.B. was a writer, who became a playwright in order to become more common with the public.
Although Holden doesn't change too much (in a positive way) throughout the story, I can understand why. He definitely goes through a lot. He's a teenager in the midst of (trying) to become an adult and cope with life. One thing that definitely has some impact on the way Holden lives is the fact that he is always feeling betrayed. Holden constantly feels betrayed, and that is a possible cause of his problems. Early in the novel, Mr. Spencer betrays him. He was one of the few teachers at Pency that Holden liked. Spencer broke the news of Holden's expulsion, and Holden felt betrayed. Stradlater betrays Holden by dating his best friend, Jane, whom Holden also had a crush on. When Holden returns home to see Phoebe, she is disappointed in him that he failed out of Pency. He thinks that she should accept him unconditionally, so he feels betrayed. All of this betrayal led Holden to think that everyone was a phony. And it's probably why he's iffy when it comes to relationships. He's afraid of betrayal and he doesn't want to have to tolerate anymore of it.
When I thought about what J.D. SAlinger was trying to say about childhood and adulthood, I really couldn't think of one strong, well thought-out answer. I guess my answer to this question would be the ways of society are set, and no one can change them. In the end of the book, when Holden hears the "Catcher in the Rye" song being sung by a little boy, he decides that he wants to be the person that keeps children from falling off a cliff. That cliff symbolizes the transition from childhood to adulthood, and he wants to keep them as innocent children, not phony adults. In some ways, I feel like this is good, everyone should be allowed to possess innocence, but on the other hand, everyone must grow up. The world wouldn't function the same if everyone was all about innocence. It may make the world more forgiving and relaxing, yeah it would, but things wouldn't get done, and it would be unhealthy for society. Another thing that J.D. Salinger is trying to say is that we must deal with the ways of our society in order not to exclude ourselves from it. Holden can't/has a hard time dealing with the ways of his society, and it makes him exclude himself from society. *****SPOILER ALERT*****
As we all know, Holden ends up in a mental hospital at the end of the story. He was retelling a flashback that led up to him in this mental hospital. This only proves that he has a hard time dealing with society. *****SPOILER ALERT ENDS***** People are sent to mental hospitals when society thinks that they cannot handle being around other people and/or functioning normally.
Although I will admit, I didn't jump for joy to read this book each day, but I really did enjoy reading it. It changed the way I look at the word phonies for sure. Everything about this book fell together so well, it was just a really great experience. (:
- Keiame Lee Chong
