The Catcher In The Rye: A Bridge From Innocence To Adulthood

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act in itself sets the stage for his trial
and error attitude about adulthood in the sense he failed out of school,
which was a childish act. He tries to rectify his failing out of school by
leaving, which he views as an adult act. Holden's leaving school
represents his need for independence and he achieves this by leaving.
Another of Holden's failed attempts at adulthood is when he goes
down to he hotels club where he orders an alcoholic drink, but he is
refused because the waiter will not serve him because he is underage.
Holden tries to give the illusion that he is older because when he orders
the drink, he “Orders it fast as possible, because if you hem and haw they
think you are under 21 and won't sell you intoxicating liquor”. This is
the classic example of adolescence when one attempts to act older than his
or her age when attempting to obtain alcohol. Up until the age of 21, all
young adults want to give the illusion they are older than they are in
hopes of obtaining ...

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been thwarted. His failure is due in part to the fact
that Holden does not really know the rules, which he is guessing at, and
also in part because his loneliness is not a substitute for experience.
Although this act is not childlike alone, but rather it is a stepping stone
into the adult world of sex, where an individual will try new “techniques”,
such as pickup lines and such, to obtain and reach his or her “goal”. Thus
Holden has learned his first valuable “lesson” of what not to do in the
future.
However Holden is over his head when he agrees to have a prostitute,
who is propositioned to him by the bellhop. He is apparently nervous and
he confesses that he is a virgin. His ...

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