Holden has unrealistic standards that make him hate almost everyone
Over the course of our reading J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye, I have attempted to come up with a clear and simple thesis to Holden Caulfield's worldview. It is not that his view of the world is complicated. It is something that is immediately familiar without being completely explicable or tangible from the first paragraph of his narration. His hatred of movies, of people doing things to make money or because they experience societal pressure to do so, and Holden's disdain for this exemplified through his own refusal to "participate in society" are all reminiscent of so many angsty boy pop-cultural classics. Of course, his positions themselves stem more from his place in society than any removal from it. However, regardless of his perspective's familiarity I still could not really explain exactly what it is that he believes or what drives it. There is no central problem or battle that he is fighting, no underclass that he represents, and no one, essential position or belief that rises above or leads to the rest.
I have not found one simple belief that explains everything that Holden says he thinks over the course of this book. This is at least partially because Holden contradicts himself frequently, or more generously his views are subject to change. But the anecdote that he tells when describing why exactly he likes Mr. Antolini so much came about as close as I believe you can to explaining his central problem with the world. Holden tells us at the beginning of Chapter 23 that what he admires so much about Mr. Antolini (before he gets all creepy at least) is that he picked up the boy who had jumped out of the window of Holden's old school after being bullied intensely. The story about this boy, James Castle, happened just a few pages earlier and seemed to me to be saying something about standing your ground and James's nobility for not submitting to the bullies, which is a little bit disturbing and quite different from what this story about Mr. Antolini is saying. One of the details that Holden focuses on is the way that Mr. Antolini "took off his coat and put it over James Castle and carried him all the way over to the infirmary. He didn't even give a damn if his coat got all bloody" (Salinger 226-227).
This focus on doing what Holden views as the noble thing over caring about materialistic things or symbols of wealth and status seems to reflect a lot of Holden's actions. He refuses to give money to Maurice when he feels like he is being scammed, but gives it willingly to the nuns even though they are not actually collecting for charity. It's something we talked about a little in class, but I think that it drives a lot of what Holden does. This does not mean that Holden is necessarily a good person, or that he does a lot of good in the world. In fact, I would suggest that his disdain for working-class people doing what they must to survive and simultaneous respect for well-off people who reject the trappings of wealth and superiority while still maintaining all of the actual tangible benefits results in misplaced anger and action that will not directly result in bettering the world. The form of social critique that he respects is one that is only accessible to wealthy people and so he is always dissatisfied. But Holden clearly feels these things very passionately, and I think that there is some small merit to that even if his actions are often ignorant and misguided.
Source:
Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. New York, Little, Brown and Company,
1945.
I like the point you make about how his "noble beliefs" often present themselves as a kind of classism. It's something I've noticed throughout the book - some of the actions Holden critiques are things that are kind of necessary to, you know, make a living and stay afloat. He doesn't truly understand what it's like to have to worry or even really think about money, which I honestly think is a big part of why he's able to reject adult society as phony so much. He doesn't get that these so-called "phony" actions stem from the importance of money for many adults, not because they're vain or materialistic, but because they have to somehow support themselves, and maybe even their families - it's something they actually have to worry about and think about, they don't have the luxury of just not caring.
ReplyDelete"In fact, I would suggest that his disdain for working-class people doing what they must to survive and simultaneous respect for well-off people who reject the trappings of wealth and superiority while still maintaining all of the actual tangible benefits results in misplaced anger and action that will not directly result in bettering the world."
ReplyDeleteI found this quote of yours really interesting - it almost seems backwards that Holden would have respect for certain well-off people and disdain for other working-class individuals, considering who he generally thinks is phony. Adding onto your other great points, I also think that Holden's privilege allows him to feel this way. He is allowed to reject fitting into society because he doesn't have to worry about putting food on the table. He can have disdain for the working class because he doesn't understand how difficult it actually is to make money. I think we've brought up Holden's privilege in class, but it was cool to think about what we discussed through the lens of your points.
I never thought about Holden's standards but that's such a good point. His view on what people should be is so unrealistic that its no wonder that he hates almost everyone. His hypocrisy also doesn't help him at all when it comes to liking people. I really like the point you make about Holden's privilege playing a huge role in his feelings. Good job!
ReplyDeleteGreat post! You were able to efficiently boil down the important things that Holden cares about into something a bit more clear, I think accomplishing some of the goals posed in your first paragraph. This is a pretty generous look at Holden, I'd say. A view of his "cause" that I more closely align with is that of a contrarian. He doesn't want to be associated with anyone else or share any of their views because he thinks so highly of himself.
ReplyDeleteI really like your post and agree with what you said! Holden's standards are really unrealistic and high and I agree with what you said about his distain for working class people. Holden really doesn't have a realistic view of what the world is like at all. He hasn't really ever had to rely solely on himself for anything and has come to expect everyone to act exactly how he wants. Your post was really thought provoking and I really enjoyed reading it.
ReplyDeleteHolden is fortunate enough to not have to experience what people in the working class experience. Yes, he shows that he cares about people genuinely caring for others, but he has that luxury to think that way. Most people have to work hard to make money and support their families, so their number one priority wouldn't be about how they do their job with care, it's that they just want to get the job done.
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