Catcher in the Rye Essay

In society, adolescents with rebellious attitudes tend to isolate themselves from those around them. The reason why teenagers are rebellious is because they want to try new things in their quest for self establishment. The consequence of rebellious behavior is typically isolation. This cause and effect relationship is displayed throughout the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger. Holden Caulfield, the main character of the novel, rebels against society's rules and as a result, becomes isolated from the people in his life.

Holden Caulfield displays his rebellious attitude throughout the novel and as a result, he is isolated from the people around him. An example of his isolation would be when Holden enters the cab from Penn Station. He asks the cab driver if he "happens to know where they go, the ducks, when the pond gets all frozen over" (78). The ducks in the Central Park Lagoon are a symbol of Holden's isolation from society. Holden left Pencey Prep, a place he called home for a period of time, and does not know where to go. Since he isolated himself from society, he is lost and on his own. Another example of Holden's isolation is his red hunting hat. Holden wears his hat with "the old peak around the back" (59) which symbolizes his isolation by going against the normal fashion that society followed. Regardless of what people say to him, Holden will not conform to society's rules. Another example of Holden's isolation would be when he is on Thomsen Hill. When Holden was attending his school, Pencey Prep, he left himself out of a major school event which was the football game against Saxon Hall. Instead of enjoying the game with the rest of the students, Holden stood on top of Thomsen Hill by himself. The setting of Holden standing by himself on Thomsen Hill shows his isolation from the students of Pency Prep.

Holden's physical appearance is very unique and unusual. His characterization isolates himself from the rest of the students at Prencey Prep because he is six feet tall and half of his hair is gray which is strange for a sixteen year old boy. Another example of Holden's isolation is the fact that Holden doesn't care if he dies. When he was writing the composition about Allie, Holden was having flashbacks of the times he spent with his younger brother. Holden states that Allie's "teachers were always writing letters to my mother, telling her a pleasure it was having a boy like Allie in their class" (50). Since Allie died, Holden feels that he is the one that should have died instead of Allie because Allie had much more to live for than he does. When Holden is punched in the face by Stradlater, Holden says "he was probably scared he'd fractured my skull... Too bad I didn't" (58). By Holden saying that shows that he is not afraid to die and does not care how he dies. Another example of Holden's isolation by rebellion