Catcher in the Rye Analysis

Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield mentally refuses to grow up. He is at an age where he is transitioning into adulthood, but he desires to revert back to being a child. Holden fears change and all of the responsibilities that come along with being an adult. For this reason, Holden becomes particularly fond of the museum because “in that museum, everything stayed right where it was, and nobody'd move” (Salinger, pg. 121). Holden’s anxiety for change may stem
from Allie’s death. Allie was one of the few people Holden thought to be genuine and trustworthy, and it may be that Holden just wants to go back into the past when Allie was still alive. Death was a traumatic change to Holden, and he let it get the best of him. Holden is more or less always feeling depressed, flunking school, and meeting girls he does not care for. Moreover Holden does not want his relationship with Jane to change. Although Jane was the only girl Holden had true feelings for, he never ended up calling Jane because he was afraid of a serious relationship blossoming between the two. He does not want to face the hardships that come in adult relationships such as sex, lying, and fighting. Furthermore the disappearance of the ducks seem unsettling to Holden. The ducks in the lagoon were part of his childhood memories, and now that they are gone, he wants them to come back. This shows that Holden wants everything to remain as he remembers them to be; he does not want change.

Salinger, J.D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston, Little, Brown and Company: 1951