I chose to write about blog option two.
Holden is a very complex character, and this can be seen throughout chapter 10 in Catcher in the Rye. At some points throughout the chapter, Holden seems very caring and compassionate, especially towards his younger sister Phoebe. In contrast, at other points in the chapter, Holden seems very materialistic and stereotypical in regard to how he treats the women at the bar. In just this one chapter, we are able to see two very different sides of Holden.
The chapter opens with Holden talking about how he wants to call his younger sister, Phoebe. When describing her, he says, “You should see her. You never saw a little kid so pretty and smart in your whole life” (Salinger 87). This line is followed by a lengthy and generous description of Phoebe. Holden is showing his compassion and his sentiments towards Phoebe. He believes that she is very pretty and she is one of the smartest kids ever. This shows that Holden really loves her and he is proud of her. He thinks that Phoebe is special and he cares about her, and wants the audience to realize that. He wants the audience to know how great Phoebe is. This makes Holden seem like a more sensitive character because we see how much he cares about his sister.
Later on in the chapter, Holden goes down to the hotel bar and sees three women. In describing these women, Holden comes off as very materialistic. He says, “…there were these three girls around thirty or so. The whole three of them were pretty ugly… she was sort of cute, the blonde one…” (Salinger 90). Holden is talking about the three women at the bar and says that they’re ugly. However, a sentence later, Holden says that one of them is “sort of cute.” The way this is written makes it seem like Holden is settling for the prettiest of the three, who isn’t very pretty. He comes off as materialistic because he is just judging these women off of their looks and settling for the prettiest one. Because it makes his seem materialistic, it takes away from the compassion we saw when he was talking about his sister. He doesn’t seem to care for the feelings of everyone; he only cares about a few people who are close to him. Other than those close to him, he disregards people’s feelings and is very judgmental.
This shows how complex Holden is because he has these contrasting characteristics. Because he’s so complex, we can see that Holden truly is an individual. If Holden was a simple character with only a few distinguished traits, he wouldn’t stand out and he could easily be compared to any other character or person. However, because he’s so complex, he is a distinct individual. He doesn’t just follow what everyone expects him to do. His contrasting characteristics make him unpredictable, allowing him to be an individual. This is supported by the Romantics’ idea of individualism. Each person is allowed to be their own person and they don’t have to conform. Additionally, individualism means prioritizing a youthful experience. Holden shows this by the way he acts towards the women in the hotel. A youthful experience essentially means that you’re doing what you want, which is exactly what Holden does. Holden’s characterization supports the ideals of individualism both in that it shows how he is a complex, distinct individual, and how he is ‘youthful.’
Holden is a very complex character, and this can be seen throughout chapter 10 in Catcher in the Rye. At some points throughout the chapter, Holden seems very caring and compassionate, especially towards his younger sister Phoebe. In contrast, at other points in the chapter, Holden seems very materialistic and stereotypical in regard to how he treats the women at the bar. In just this one chapter, we are able to see two very different sides of Holden.
The chapter opens with Holden talking about how he wants to call his younger sister, Phoebe. When describing her, he says, “You should see her. You never saw a little kid so pretty and smart in your whole life” (Salinger 87). This line is followed by a lengthy and generous description of Phoebe. Holden is showing his compassion and his sentiments towards Phoebe. He believes that she is very pretty and she is one of the smartest kids ever. This shows that Holden really loves her and he is proud of her. He thinks that Phoebe is special and he cares about her, and wants the audience to realize that. He wants the audience to know how great Phoebe is. This makes Holden seem like a more sensitive character because we see how much he cares about his sister.
Later on in the chapter, Holden goes down to the hotel bar and sees three women. In describing these women, Holden comes off as very materialistic. He says, “…there were these three girls around thirty or so. The whole three of them were pretty ugly… she was sort of cute, the blonde one…” (Salinger 90). Holden is talking about the three women at the bar and says that they’re ugly. However, a sentence later, Holden says that one of them is “sort of cute.” The way this is written makes it seem like Holden is settling for the prettiest of the three, who isn’t very pretty. He comes off as materialistic because he is just judging these women off of their looks and settling for the prettiest one. Because it makes his seem materialistic, it takes away from the compassion we saw when he was talking about his sister. He doesn’t seem to care for the feelings of everyone; he only cares about a few people who are close to him. Other than those close to him, he disregards people’s feelings and is very judgmental.
This shows how complex Holden is because he has these contrasting characteristics. Because he’s so complex, we can see that Holden truly is an individual. If Holden was a simple character with only a few distinguished traits, he wouldn’t stand out and he could easily be compared to any other character or person. However, because he’s so complex, he is a distinct individual. He doesn’t just follow what everyone expects him to do. His contrasting characteristics make him unpredictable, allowing him to be an individual. This is supported by the Romantics’ idea of individualism. Each person is allowed to be their own person and they don’t have to conform. Additionally, individualism means prioritizing a youthful experience. Holden shows this by the way he acts towards the women in the hotel. A youthful experience essentially means that you’re doing what you want, which is exactly what Holden does. Holden’s characterization supports the ideals of individualism both in that it shows how he is a complex, distinct individual, and how he is ‘youthful.’
I think it's really interesting how you talked about how Holden was a youthful individual which is one of the Romantics' ideals. Normally I would look at his youthful qualities as being immature but using the mindset of the Romantics, he youthfulness makes him seem pure and innocent. For example when Holden talks about Allie's death and how he broke all the windows he says, "It was a stupid thing to do, I'll admit...but you didn't know Allie" (39). I think this quote shows how he is immature because he made some thoughtless decisions but at the same time it shows the depth of his emotion and the connection he made with Allie. Do you think Salinger used the Romantic perspective to help highlight some of Holden's qualities that may otherwise be perceived negatively?
ReplyDeleteI think that Salinger did use a Romantic perspective in his writing to make some of Holden's negative qualities seem positive. Throughout the book, I think Holden can be perceived as very immature. For example, one might think that he's immature when he is horsing around while Stradlater gets ready for his date. However, using Romantic ideals, Holden just seems youthful and innocent, like he is just enjoying the 'experience' of life. Without this Romantic perspective, we would just think of Holden as immature, but Salinger's use of Romanticism helps us to see the good in Holden's qualities.
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