Catcher In The Rye Holden's Depression

Holden is unable to accept realities of life because of his negative personality. He claims that many people are phony and that they try to do things to make them look better than they are. Holden also thinks of many things as depressing. “It was really nice sightseeing, if you know what I mean. In a way, it was sort of depressing, too, because you kept wondering what the hell would happen to all of them” (p. 123). Holden always finds a down side to a situation. He fails to recognize the good sides of life, and this prevents him from seeing advantages in adulthood that are not present in his life.

Even Though he can't make that connection with his parents throughout the book he presents us with other outlets like Jane Gallagher as way for Holden to have someone to talk to saying“Jane Gallagher. Jesus” I couldn't get her off my mind I really couldn’t. “I oughta go down and say hello to her, at least.” When this opportunity is presented for Holden to have a connection with a childhood friend when asked “Why the hell don’tcha, instead of keep saying it?”..he replies.”I’m not in the mood right now.”(37)) this perfectly showing how not only does not have opportunities to connect with someone but in the case of Jane Gallagher he refuses to connect with someone. And as critic Mollie Sandock perfectly states in The Catcher in the Rye: Overview Holden's story is “ full of failed attempts to communicate, messages never delivered, uncompleted phone calls, overtures not taken up, appeals repulsed,” this much leading him into the isolated lonely child or teenager (it depends which way you look at it ) that he is.

Holden never understands how such an innocent child could be cursed with cancer, and this makes him extremely critical of people and of life, which he views as unfair. Holden’s underlying depression throughout the novel directly relates back to his brother’s death and ultimately stops him from enjoying the simple things in life. For instance, once his mom sends him skates in the mail as a present. Even though they were not the racing skates that he wants, he made a general statement saying: “Almost every time somebody gives me a present, it ends up making me sad” (58). He feels like he is not worthy enough to be given a gift to, as if he did nothing to be rewarded for. Nothing eases his pain from the death of his innocent brother and gifts

Love also becomes an important aspect, each thrive for passion and affection from others and have someone they confide in. Holden places deep care into his younger sister Phoebe because they connect on many levels, both as childlike mind and in interest. He also longs for closure towards his deceased brother Allie. Holden worries about his parents thoughts, he respects them. He is concerned about his mother’s reaction to getting kicked out of yet another school. The only two people he feels he has truly connected with are his sister and Allie, often in times of need they are the first he contacts. Throughout his cycle of depression he talks aloud to Allie. (Quote: Holden: “I felt so depressed, you can't even imagine. What I did, I started talking, sort of out loud to Allie. I do that sometimes when I get very depressed.”) He shows he cares about Phoebe by constantly wanting to call and chat with her; he often talks about her. On the contrary he contradicts himself by finding an excuse to not call, or to not visit. By isolating himself he also goes against himself because he

Holden seems to struggle with depression. In many places throughout the novel, Holden describes to us his deep sadness. A lot of times his depression is unpredictable and triggered by tense situations. In one situation while he was explaining his feelings about the Elkton Hills headmaster’s phony and rather boring conversations with well-built and

Nineteen million American adults suffer from a major case of depression (Web MD). That is a staggering one in every fifteen people (2 in our classroom alone). Holden Caulfield is clearly one of those people. Depression is a disease that leads to death but is also preventable. Psychology, stressful events, and prescription drugs are causes of depression. Stressful events brought on Holden’s depression. Holden has been trying to withstand losing a brother, living with careless parents, and not having many friends. The Catcher in the Rye is a book that takes us through the frazzled life of Holden Caulfield, who appears to be just a regular teen. But by hearing his thoughts and through heart-wrenching events in the book, the reader learns that

The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, portrays Holden Caulfield as a manic-depressive. Holden uses three techniques throughout the novel to cope with his depression. He smokes, drinks, and talks to Allie. Although they may not be positive, Holden finds comfort in these three things.

Everybody feels depressed at some time or another in their lives.  However, it becomes a problem when depression is so much a part of a person's life that he or she can no longer experience happiness.  This happens to the young boy, Holden Caulfield in J.D Salinger's novel, The Catcher in the Rye.  Mr. Antolini accurately views the cause of Holden's depression as his lack of personal motivation, his inability to self-reflect and his stubbornness to overlook the obvious which collectively results in him giving up on life before he ever really has a chance to get it started.

Lies, failure, depression, and loneliness are only some of the aspects that Holden Caulfield goes through in the novel The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger. Salinger reflects Holden’s character through his own childhood experiences. Salinger admitted in a 1953 interview that "My boyhood was very much the same as that of the boy in the book.… [I]t was a great relief telling people about it” (Wikipedia). Thus, the book is somewhat the life story of J.D. Salinger as a reckless seventeen-year-old who lives in New York City and goes through awful hardships after his expulsion and departure from an elite prep school. Holden, the protagonist in this novel, is created as a depressed, cynical, and isolated character and he

Throughout the novel Holden is rejected and exploited by the society around him. As he is conflicted with himself to find a purpose in life he constantly tries to connect with a superficial society. The ongoing failure and fake personas he meets adds to his depression and cynicism. But instead of facing the problems by growing up and to move on Holden uses this negativity and isolation to protect him. Holden tries show that he is better than everybody else as this is the little stability he has left. When in reality Holden is just scared of the interaction of people because they just submerge him with complications he doesn 't know not yet how to deal with. Holden not being be able to cope with the idea of growing up adds to his loneliness which is the core of his pain. When his encounters first interaction in the novel, Holden Caulfield is an uncaring outcast who sees no motivation in life. As he says to Mr. Spencer, he feels trapped on “the other side of life” (Salinger). Holden constant attempt to fit into society is hidden because of his detachment to people. His only stability right now is to search for his own individuality and to face adulthood himself. That is why

Holden recognizes and perceives to be alienated from the adult world thus causing himself to believe he is depressed. Holden believes he is depressed from viewing the adult world and thinking that it is phony. He believes that the world is phony, superficial, hypocritical, and shallow. He views this world everyday and realizes that one day he will have to step into it, but every time he thinks about the world surrounding him it causes him to become depressed. Holden becomes depressed because he desires to remain a child were innocence is preserved and not drastically taken away. In Holden?s scenario, he feels that his innocence was taken away by witnessing the suicide of his close friend and the death of dear brother. Holden sees the world that he has to become a part of and desires more to not be a part of it. This hatred of stepping into the adult world causes Holden believe he is depressed and

14.8 million Americans are affected by depression each year (ADAA/Depression) . Depression can affect people of any age, but it affects teenagers at a higher rate than any other age group. In the Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield goes through life changing events that make him develop depression. Throughout the novel, Holden displays clear symptoms of depression as he loses interest in everything he used to enjoy, has trouble at school and, has thoughts of suicide.

The most oftenly swept-under-the-rug aspect of society that even Holden sometimes struggles to realize is the unhappiness of it all; Holden realizes later on how depressed he is, but it is a long journey to his enlightenment because he is conditioned to ignore his own unhappiness with his life, no matter how discontent with the rest of the world he may be. It takes Phoebe, his kid sister, to open his eyes to his depression as a serious problem instead of a passing phase. She demands him to name something that he actually likes, and he responds by saying ‘One thing? One thing I like?’ I said.

“Maybe we all have darkness inside of us and some of us are better at dealing with it than others,” said Jasmine Warga who is an author. In the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger explores the topic of mental health and depression. He implies that life-changing events can affect a person emotionally, physically, and cognitively. Salinger addresses these topics to bring to light the type of treatment that people gave those with mental health problems in the 1950s. It was hard for Holden Caulfield to express himself and let others know how he was feeling when he felt that world was out to get him. Similar to the quote above, Holden has a “darkness” inside him, but he does not know how to deal with it or get help. In the book, Holden

After Holden arrives in New York and takes a cab to his hotel, he "damn near gave my kid sister Phoebe a buzz, though. I certainly felt like talking to her on the phone. Somebody with sense and all," (66). Holden wants to talk to Phoebe as he has been isolated from her and feels because she is someone who he has a strong connection with, that she will make him less depressed shown by him saying that she had sense. Also while Holden is in his hotel room in New York, after his prostitute leaves, he "felt depressed," then he began "talking, sort of out loud, to Allie," (98). Allie's death made Holden isolated form someone who was close to him. Him attempting to talk to Allie shows how his loneliness and depression was caused by his isolation because he wants to try to reconnect with Allie to end his loneliness. While on his way to a bar from the hotel, Holden describes New York as making him feel "lonesome and depressed" and how he wished "[he] could go home and shoot the bull with old Phoebe," (81). Holden feels lonely and depressed in New York because of his isolation from Phoebe, someone he loves. This is proved by how he describes that he wishes he could go home and talk with her for a while. After getting to New York, Holden's feelings still follow him as he feels lonely and depressed thinking about Phoebe and wanting to see