The Catcher In The Rye

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he tries to get strangers to talk to, so the conservations he has with them won't go too into depth. He does not want to face the world of reality. For example, in chapter nine, Holden asks his cab driver, who is a complete stranger to him, for a cocktail once he's done driving Holden to the Edmont Hotel: "Would you care to stop on the way and join me for a cocktail"" (pg. 60) Therefore, Holden will try to get some random stranger for a beer, as they won't criticize him.

Among other responsibilities, Holden tries to set rules up for himself like an adult, but ends up breaking them right away: "Last year I made a rule that I was going to quit horsing around with girls that, deep down, gave me a pain in the ass. I broke it though, the same week I made it- the same night, as a matter of fact." (pg. 63) Holden cannot maintain his rules, and ends up acting like a child, who needs someone else to set the rules up for ...

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the most powerful cause of Holden's depression is his feeling isolated from the rest of the world. Even though he's judged Ackley to be pimply and disgusting (and painted a portrait of him as a social outcast), he still reaches out to the guy when he feels lonely. Much of the tension in Holden's character arises from the conflict between his hating the world and his wanting to connect with the world.

Part of Holden's depression has to do with the knowledge he reveals here: that his desire to keep things "the way they are" is in fact impossible.

The Manic-Depressive Holden Cawfield in "The Catcher in the Rye"

The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, portrays Holden ...

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