Holden Caulfield is so very dear to my heart. I told him that my mother felt pretty bad and I didnt want to upset her by talking about it. Fair Use Policy or become aware of any violations, please do not hesitate to contact us via support@edubirdie.com. Very few things keep his interest and it affects multiple aspects of his life. Expulsion from Pencey Prep. I cant stand all of the phonies on their profiles with all of their pictures of themselves and all of the comments about how good they look and how they just went to these great places. I bet none of them watch a single game as soon as they graduate. All rights reserved You'll also get updates on new titles we publish and the ability to save highlights and notes. My students love how organized the handouts are and enjoy tracking the themes as a class., Requesting a new guide requires a free LitCharts account. She and I kind of have a friends with benefits thing, but I think she wants to be FBO. Im crazy. But he despises the compromises, loss of innocence, absence of integrity, and loss of authenticity in the grown-up world. The significance of this is that his brother, Allie, had red hair. At that point Vincent is a fellow soldier about to leave for the war. and any corresponding bookmarks? There is no definite answer to whether Holden Caulfield is gay or straight, but there are several pieces of evidence that can be used to make a case for either side. He read a couple pages and gave up. In second grade there was other kid who lost his game in the playground. He mocks a past roommate for wanting to make sure his suitcases were visible because it would make both of them appear rich and rolls his eyes about the headmaster of his school acting totally different on parent night than he does with the students during the school day. Nothing. Well, what do you think? Holden begs him to stay, Have just one more drink, I told him. He couldn't relate to his peers because he was so far beyond them--like an old soul. As Caulfield narrates his story from a 17-year-old perspective from a year before, he is depicted as a stable, Holden Caulfield was a seemingly unsolvable anomaly. I dont really like that.. By understanding what these clues mean and how they reflect on Holdens character, we can come to a better interpretation of one of literatures most iconic figures. After a night of drinking, Holden decides to sit out in the freezing cold with no jacket on and he almost dies, Anyway, I kept worrying that I was getting pneumonia, with all those hunks of ice in my hair, and that I was going to die (Salinger 83). After Holden drops out of school, his roommate Stradlater brags to him about what a good time he had with Jane Gallagher. His interactions with the prostitute Sunny are comic as well as touching, partly because they are both adolescents trying to be adults. Afraid to go home to his parents in New York City, he spends a few days alone in Manhattan; he relates his experiences there in vivid and insightful prose. The night he died is when the change first occurs, I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist, just for the hell of it. [W]hile I was sitting down, I saw something that drove me crazy. We were about to arrive in New York, but I wasnt tired. You could tell they didnt cost a lot of money. I don't think Holden has any sort of disorder at all, and I also don't think he is "better" than the people around him. You should have seen all of the comments on his post. It made me depressed, just thinking about old Mr. Langhorn with those shoes. The hat reminds him of Allie and he feels safe in the hat. Salinger never explicitly stated that Holden was homosexual, there are many clues throughout the book that suggest this to be true. I decided to take a look at that post on her profile. In terms of interpersonal relationships, Holden seems to do all right on the surface, being able to name friends and ex-girlfriends confidently. id="_x0000_t75" coordsize="21600,21600" o:spt="75" o:preferrelative="t" Since Aspergers syndrome is ruled out, and is within the highly functioning part of the Autistic Spectrum, anything lower such as LFA (Lowly Functioning Autism) can be ruled out. One thing I like?" The novel's narrator and protagonist, Holden is a high school junior who has flunked out of prep school several times. People scream forever like anyone cares what they are complaining about as much as they do. I don't remember anything they said about it other than that they claimed he was hallucinating a voice saying "F*** you" or something. She was a very nice, polite little kid. The book is narrated as if he is speaking directly to the reader about events in the past, so everything is in his voice. he's a PHONY, a big fat PHONY! I couldnt tell if he was looking at me or the clock behind me which had just buzzed because it was three oclock. Inability to keep attention in one place is a classic ADHD thing, and a skewed idea of importance is something relatable to ADHDers and autists alike, since we actually prioritize things in our heads based on interest. The rephrasing might be evidence that Holdens brain moves at a different speed than his mouth does, which is something some hyperverbal NDs have trouble with. That was the same day that he told me how much he cared about me. Edubirdie. He thought he had to be the catcher, the protector of all young children so that they didn't fall off the side of the cliff. An interpretation of Holden Caulfield on the cover of the 2012 book, Learn how and when to remove this template message, The Catcher in the Rye - and related matters, Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction, A Young Girl in 1941 with No Waist at All, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Holden_Caulfield&oldid=1142721913, Fictional characters with psychiatric disorders, Characters in American novels of the 20th century, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles needing additional references from October 2016, All articles needing additional references, Articles needing additional references from March 2018, Articles with unsourced statements from May 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, In Japan, most of the short stories are already translated into Japanese (compiled in two volumes) and still commercially available with the approval of Salinger's agents (, This page was last edited on 4 March 2023, at 00:58. This was the 1940s, when ADHD was unheard of and autism was new, so adults in Holdens life assumed he was a bad kid and punished him. He was a handsome kid and all. So they gave up looking. For instance, many have speculated that Holdens brother, D.B., is actually Vincent. I was only thirteen, and they were going to have me psychoanalyzed and all, because I broke all the windows in the garage. WebHolden Caulfield is the main character of J.D. Ever. Our, "Sooo much more helpful thanSparkNotes. I want you to be happy. Some people see him as a whiny proto-emo, some see him as just a stupid teenage boy, and some see him as a misunderstood anti-hero. Those suffering from depression tend to avoid admitting that they have a problem, Many people who have depression do not get help (Suicide and Depression). Hopefully I can explore this intersection more in the future. This indicates that he does not share their lifestyle or views on sexuality. It made me feel not so depressed any more. Yes I do. She wasnt very good at conversation. Instead, he goes to speak to Phoebe. I probably wouldve done it, too, if Id been sure somebodyd cover me up as soon as I landed. So, Holdens main problem is he cant let his image of innocence he sees in children be shattered because he is nostalgic and uncertain about his own future. In New York City, he calls Sally Hayes, a friend of his, and schedules a date with her. But you know he loved hearing it. The fact that he lies about his age specifically might also mean he feels disconnected from his chronological age, which is another ND trait. He was beyond his years and astute in his observations of people and their motivations. His life was complicated by the death of his younger brother, and the negative reaction that it invoked from his parents. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Design a site like this with WordPress.com, Open Letter to a Recently Diagnosed AutisticAdult, Why School and Holden Caulfield Failed EachOther. I thought how Phoebe and all the other little kids would see it, and how theyd wonder what the hell it meant, and then finally some dirty kid would tell themI hardly even had the guts to rub it off the wall with my hand, if you want to know the truth. He also favors certain words, including preceding almost every name he mentions with old and saying goddamn an eyebrow-raising two hundred thirty-seven times. Except Carl really needed them to focus his parents told him. Get the help you need from a therapist near youa FREE service from Psychology Today. He bought a red hat at the beginning of the novel. Salinger s novel The Catcher in Holden also says things like where do the ducks go in the winter? which seems completely obvious to me and I didnt understand until the 8th time I read this book that it is symbolic. But if you get on the other side, where there arent any hot-shots, then whats a game about it? Joined: 20 Feb 2008Age: 47Gender: MalePosts: 1,919, Joined: 14 Apr 2007Gender: MalePosts: 10,752Location: Turkey, "I dont think he's autistic because he doesnt seem to have trouble partaking in social banter" When I read Holdens point of view, I felt that I had some things in common with him. After meandering silently through the zoo. In the meantime, do not be a phony, and stay gold. WebHe is consumed with pointing out hypocrisy and phonies because he sees it and thinks about it. Kenneth decides to go swimming and is knocked out by a wave. Press J to jump to the feed. But there was something about the way his face looked, like he never had a goddam pimple in his life or something that looked off. From here on out, Holden was never the same. Itd be entirely different. Many people with depression, dont get professional help. Contact In David Finchers The Social Network and J. D. Salingers The Catcher in the Rye, an account of two youngsters, Holden Caulfield and Mark Zuckerberg face numerous challenges and at last are entirely defenseless spirits. I really dont. "You dont like anything thats happening.". He was very eccentric in many ways and Holden is, most likely, parts of him. Ill send you an email right away. Then, just to show you how crazy I am, when we were coming out of this big clinch, I told her I loved her and all. Well, we do. equinn, Joined: 2 Dec 2006Age: 36Gender: FemalePosts: 408Location: somewhere else. And who can forget phony? One time the weather app on his phone jammed and he was screaming and yelling for about a hundred hours. into the living room to fetch a cigarette from a small box on the table. It affects the ability to make decisions as it clouds judgment, Another symptom attributed to depression is a diminished ability to think or concentrate, or indecisiveness, nearly every day (Depression Symptoms). Somebodyd written "Fuck you" on the wall. By any chance, do you happen to know where they go, the ducks, when it gets all frozen over? He was pushed around from school to school, failing and being expelled from the majority of them due to his poor behavior. Thats the whole trouble. He shows that he is suffering, even though, to everyone else he may seem fine. CliffsNotes study guides are written by real teachers and professors, so no matter what you're studying, CliffsNotes can ease your homework headaches and help you score high on exams. I felt like jumping out the window. equinn, Joined: 11 Apr 2008Gender: MalePosts: 117. to paraphrase family guy.. The novel slowly details Holden's realization that you can't "protect the innocent" and they don't want to be protected in the first place. They're like having in-class notes for every discussion!, This is absolutely THE best teacher resource I have ever purchased. But no matter what I said, he asked me to say it again. Please. I thought he was the typical moody middle-classer that we now call emo. Salinger's various stories (and one novel) featuring a character named Holden Caulfield do not share a cohesive timeline, and details about "Holden Caulfield" and his family are often inconsistent or completely contradictory from one story to another. The experiences and thoughts of Holden Caulfield accurately represent those of real-world depression patients. I really am. Dont say that. Holden also exhibits this behavior. However, it can stem from trauma and other bad experiences from the past, Early childhood trauma can cause depression. Then he started asking me about Allie. He memorizes what to say. Holden Caulfied looks at things in such a negative tone throughout the novel, Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield has a very negative view on everything besides his little sister, Phoebe, he loves her and cares so much for her. I said no, there wouldnt be marvelous places to go to after I went to college and all. I just finished reading the book, Catcher in the Rye. I think he's definitely on the spectrum! 2023 EduBirdie.com. WebHolden Caulfield is a typical anti-hero from the 20th century who features as the main character from the novel, Catcher In The Rye by J.D Salinger. He begins to see the world as unfair, after Allies death. He even has a memory of getting frustrated in class because he kept changing topics during a speech and his classmates kept shouting digression at him. After being beaten up by Maurice, Holden lies on the floor and thinks, What it did feel like, though, was committing suicide. He is very untrustworthy of people. When I was all set to go, when I had my bags and all, I stood for a while next to the stairs and took a last look down the goddam corridor. -Graham S. The timeline below shows where the character Holden Caulfield appears in, It is several months into 1950, and 16-year-old, that he and his date decided to leave the football game early. Salingers little window into the life of a certain adolescent, is an untapped well, brimming with educational merit beyond what those ignorant institutions are capable of appreciating. He carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. Experiences like Allie dying and D.B going to Hollywood [164] to become what he hated most (phonies) could have severely impacted and changed Holdens personality early on in his life. He is out of shape because he smokes too much. Holdens story communicates an important perspective on idealistic world EduBirdie considers academic integrity to be the essential part of the learning process and does not support any violation of the academic standards. He has trouble being very intimate unless he knows the girl well and likes her a lot. God, I love it when a kids nice and polite when you tighten their skate for them or something. The Catcher in the Rye is a 1951 novel written by J.D. I also told him about Alis glove with the writing on it. He tells her when he leaves Pencey that he would like to sleep with her in the same bed. There can be high functioning on the autism spectrum though. Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. I think its a parallel showing the otherside of sociopath. Salinger never explicitly stated that Holden was That makes sense. It makes me depressed to think about it. I didnt want her to get the wrong idea. But I dont think you are callous and unemotional. I couldnt wait to get out of Pencey. When they stop at a red light, Ernie starts caressing the steering wheel lovingly. In fact, he seems to be disgusted by the idea of having a relationship with a woman. I said. If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then its a game, all rightIll admit that. This retarded his mental health devolpment. The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. Yes! Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Download. Thats where youre wrongthats exactly where youre wrong! He is consumed with pointing out hypocrisy and phonies because he sees it and thinks about it. Ive been thinking about it, and he does show some symptoms (special interests he likes talking a lot about, inability to read social cues, and general social unawareness). 2023 EduBirdie.com. He was suffering the sins of the people and he couldn't move forward. Salingers Catcher in the Rye. He even takes notes while he reads it so he can copy what it says. He is from New York The only thing that would be different would be you. WebHolden Caulfield is a troubled character who shows clear signs of clinical depression. to the brutally forced suicide of James Castle at Elkton Hills. He mainly shows signs attributed to depression. However, his ability to function in social situations such as parties and other highly social areas [71] contradicts what most people refer to as an Aspie trait, so it cant be AS.