The Catcher in the Rye

A detailed Summary of The Catcher in the Rye


In "The Catcher in the Rye," J.D. Salinger, the first person narration is critical in helping the reader to know and understand the main character, Holden Caulfield. Holden, in his narration, relates a flashback of a significant period of his life, three days and nights on his own in New York City. Through his narration, Holden discloses to the reader his innermost thoughts and feelings. He thus provides the reader not only with information of what occurred, but also how he felt about what happened.

Holden's thoughts and ideas reveal many of his character traits. One late Saturday night, four days before the beginning of school vacation, Holden is alone, bored and restless, wondering what to do. He decides to leave Pencey, his school, at once and travels to New York by train. He decides that, once in New York, he will stay in a cheap motel until Wednesday, when he is to return home. His plan show


Holden's feelings about people reveal more of his positive traits. He constantly calls people phonies, even his brother, D.B., who " has sold out to Hollywood." Although insulting, his seemingly negative feelings show that Holden is a thinking and analyzing, outspoken individual who values honesty and sincerity. He is unimpressed with people who try to look good in other's eyes. Therefore, since it is obvious that Holden is bright, the reason for his flunking out of school would seem to be from a lack of interest.

Holden's excessive thoughts on death are not typical of most adolescents. His near obsession with death might come from having experienced two deaths in his early life. He constantly dwells on Allie, his brother's, death. From Holden's thoughts, it is obvious that he loves and misses Allie. In order to hold on to his brother and to minimize the pain of his loss, Holden brings Allie's baseball mitt along with

Some common words found in the essay are:
York City, James Castle, Holden Allie, Caulfield Holden, JD Salinger, Robert Burns, edge cliff, Catcher Rye, catcher rye, baseball mitt,

Approximate Word count = 640
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Novels

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