Caulfield and his Rebellion

Written by J.D Salinger, The Catcher in The Rye (Blog doesn't allow me to underline) is told through the perspective of Holden Caulfield, a private school student from Pencey Prep. Recounting numerous flashbacks throughout the book, this main character gives me the impression that he is both rebellious and impatient. At the same time, he is actually very selfless and witty deep within.

From the novel's very beginning, Caulfield is noted as a sincere but rebellious student. For example, after receiving an expulsion letter from his headmaster, Caulfield visits his ill history teacher, Mr. Spencer, to say one last farewell in a weather as “cold as a witch’s teat” (p. 4). Despite his hands frozen, nose red, and ear hurting, Caulfield is determined to reach Mr. Spencer’s house. After surviving and reaching Mr. Spencer's house, Caulfield talks to his teacher about future plans and life lessons. Although the student has good intentions, he randomly complains about the smell of medicine in his teacher’s room after their conversation: “I just couldn’t hang around there any longer... [with] that grippy smell of Vicks Nose Drops all over the place” (p. 15). I would imagine that if Caulfield could withstand the harsh weather, he could have also tolerated the smell. Not only does this quote show impatience, it also demonstrates Caulfield's lack of respect for adults: he can't pay attention to Mr. Spencer's lecture. Perhaps Caulfield never focused on their chat! Maybe he was thinking about how he could escape from the nose drop smell as soon as possible.

In addition to impatience, Caulfield also displays a sign of mental rebellion. When he leaves the school after being expelled, he rides a train back to town; he meets one of his classmates’ moms along the way. The mother asks for Caulfield’s name to tell her son about their encounter afterwards. Caulfield replies “‘Rudolph Schmidt’... [He] didn’t feel like giving her [his] whole life history. Rudolph Schmidt was the name of the janitor of [his] dorm” (p. 55). While Caulfield may not want to ‘give her [his] whole history’, he also has another reason why he lied (p. 55). He was expelled. As a teenager, Caulfield has great pride in himself. If the mother told her son that she met Holden Caulfield, her son would laugh and explain to her that Caulfield has been kicked out. The mother would then spread this message to the entire private school mothers and Caulfield would therefore be very embarrassed.

With such rebellion and pride in him, Caulfield is a very relatable character, especially to teenagers. If someone tells him to study, he will intentionally not study to anger that person. For example, when his roommate tells him not to smoke in the room, Caulfield purposefully “ignored him. [He] really did. [He] went right on smoking like a madman” (p. 42). This quote shows how Caulfield continuously goes against tradition and other people’s will. He believes that adults are all “phonies” and that adults constantly patronize teenagers (p. 142).

This is especially true when Caulfield tries to order alcohol: waiters and bartenders refuse to serve him Scotch because he’s a minor. As a result, he stands up when he orders Scotch so adults can see how tall he is and “not think [he] was a goddam minor” (p. 142). Caulfield is always challenging tradition: why must students study, why do people like sophisticated plays...He doesn’t want to follow ‘the trend’ of going to university, get a job, and start a family. As stated above, he thinks adults, having been brainwashed in society, are “phonies” (p. 142). Caulfield simply wants to stay young and innocent. He admits his innocence by saying “my sex life is lousy” (p. 147). While many of his classmates have had multiple relationships and affairs, Caulfield has remained pure. Ironic as it may sound, Caulfield is rebelling against the norm by staying innocent. Nowadays, teenagers rebel by breaking the law. Some people drink. Some do drugs. Some shoplift. Whichever their method, teenagers are rejecting society’s expectations, much like Caulfield. Therefore, the main character in the novel connects well with teenagers: both sides want to rebel.

My prediction of this novel is that Caulfield, after getting kicked out of Pencey Prep, goes home to his parents. He then has a profound conversation with them. Disappointed, Caulfield’s parents send him off to another private school. On the way there, Caulfield realizes his stubbornness, accepts his responsibility and role as a student, studies hard, and enters the mainstream of society.