Catcher Catches Me

When the news announced that J.D. Salinger died of natural causes earlier last week, I began to contemplate his famous character, Holden Caulfield from Catcher in the Rye. Holden is one of the most notorious teenage figures in literary history. His intellect is dark and brooding, yet thoughtful, and he is a quiet rebel. With these unpopular characteristics, Holden becomes the unlikely hero for millions of teenagers.

Typically, one would think Holden is not a character one should admire because he ends up in a mental institution, but what makes him fascinating is his honesty despite his mental instability. While Holden’s peers are upper-middle class snobs who play hypocritical games and lives in denial, Holden doesn’t. Holden is aware of the lying and hypocrisy in the world, but there is nothing he can do but witness it. However, this hypocrisy causes him to become so depressed he becomes a brooding, condescending man.

These qualities do not make for the typical hero of a literary work. Normally, protagonists are happy individuals who must overcome a particular obstacle and everything is resolved in the end. I like Holden’s character because he is not a waif-like person waiting for people to help him. He realizes what is wrong around him and doesn’t deny reality, though there is nothing he can do about it. Ultimately, Holden realizes people can’t change the “phoniness” of the world. Unlike people around him, Holden doesn’t be something he isn’t.

If you think about it, would Holden be a person you would want to be friends with in real life? I would say no. Though he has a leg up on most people when it comes to reality, he is pessimistic and sulks. Instead of accepting the way the world works, Holden whines and broods over the world’s and people’s shortcoming. I don’t think he yet realizes there is nothing he can do; he is both pessimistic and hopefully optimistic at the same time.

Still, despite Holden’s numerous shortcomings, I still feel he is a real character. He is imperfect and doesn’t have a happy ending, and this characteristic makes Holden real and tangible, a figure to which people can relate.