Holden

Holden Caulfield was the major character in The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Holden was an antagonist and narrator throughout the course of the novel. He was a sixteen year old who was stuck in his childhood. At the beginning of the novel, we were introduced the Holden as a junior in high school that had just been kicked of Pencey Prep.  My first impression from Holden after reading a few pages of the novel was that he was sort of a "loner". I got the idea from the quote that stated "I was way the hell up on top of Thompsen Hill, right next to this crazy cannon that was in the revolutionary war and all" (Salinger, 5). I began to wonder why he was not socializing with other students during the game. As I read on, I quickly learned that Holden had issues socializing with people because he believed that almost everyone around him was a phony. As we read on in the novel though, we were able to see him grow as a person. Even though throughout the course of the novel, Holden often fought with his depression and thoughts of suicide, he became more sociable. With the help from people like Phoebe, Holden was able to realize that people are always going to be there for him and that he is never alone. He was also able to see that not everyone in this world is the phony person that he thought. We also saw him transform from a kid stuck in his childhood to someone who realizes that he must embrace his adulthood and the adventures that lie ahead of him. Throughout the course of the novel, it was really nice, as a reader, to see Holden break the mold of society and become a sociable and unique individual.