Blog #34: The Catcher in the Rye

I feel like the story, The Catcher in the Rye, does not really have a hero. The book is about the experiences of the story's protagonist, Holden Caulfield. I think that Holden is a very cynical character. Holden thinks that other people are motivated my selfishness. Holden tries to hide behind cynicism. He think that if he does not think about the reality of growing up, becoming an adult, and being thrown out into the real word. Or should I say "falling off" into the real adult life. I think that Holden need a close friend. I do not really have very much sympathy for Holden's lack of friends because he always seems to be pushing others away. Holden need a friend, but he criticizes others. I think that he needs to make more effort to make friends because he always seems to be making up an excuse as to why he cannot hang out with somebody. When we does hang out with somebody or goes on a date with a girl, he always seems to blow it. His age is sometimes a show stopper because he wants to be friends with the three women he met at the club, but because he was not old enough to be served alcohol he felt like they could not connect. I also see the reverse though in Holden because he becomes friends with the blonde one because she was a really good dancer. It seemed to me like Holden would get himself into a situation that he could not handle so he thought that he needed to make up some sort of way to excuse himself from the scene. Holden did not really have very good social skills. He seemed to judge people, but I think that some of the time Holden was not accurate when he judged others. Holden did not want to associate with the "phonies" that actually went to school and cared about it. This is another reason why I think that Holden has some sort of mental illness because the mentally ill people have a hard time communicating with others and making new friends on their own.

Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. New York: Back Bay, 2001. Print.