Catcher in the Rye

Chili Davis once said, "Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional" This quote means that over time everyone will grow old on the outside, but on the inside the may not be growing up. This quote is proven valid in the novel The Cather in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. Holden Caufield, the main character in the novel loathes older people and always criticizes them, yet he rarely ever mentions anything that he doesn't like about himself. Holden wishes he could be a child forever and thinks that whenever he gets put in different situations that he can act as if he is younger than he really is.

In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caufield, the main character in the book refuses to grow up because he is infatuated with childhood and being a child and having the freedom children have and wish he was younger than he really is. Throughout the novel, Holden struggles with different things because he cant accept the responsibilities that come with growing up. Holden is obsessed with childhood because he chooses to live in the past of his two younger siblings, Allie and Phoebe whom he thinks are perfect and everyone should be like them. Allie is his brother whom had died of cancer. The main reason why Holden acts the way he does is so he could hold on to the memories he had as a child and with his brother. One of the main themes in this book is the fear of growing up. An example of this would be when Holden gets kicked out of Pencey Prep, his high school, and refuses to go home and tell his parents because he's afraid of the consequences. In the beginning of chapter nine Holden says "...She wouldn't've been the one to answer the phone. My parents would be the ones. So that was out." In this part of the book he's talking about getting off at Penn Station to make a call to his younger, sister but he thinks his parents will pick up and he doesn't want to tell them whats going on.

In chapters nine and ten, Holden mainly focuses on his fascination with the ducks in the lagoon while he's in a cab coming from Penn Station. Holden's fascination with the ducks in the lagoon is symbolic to his life. He is constantly questioning where the ducks will go when the lake freezes. On page 13 he says, "I was wondering where the ducks went when the lagoon got all icy and frozen over. I wondered if some guy came in a truck and took them away to a zoo or something. Or if they just flew away." Similar to the ducks, Holden is wondering where he will end up going in life. He constantly wonders if someone will show him where he needs to go or if he will do it himself. Holden wants to live in a world where everything would stay frozen and nothing change so he would never have to grow up. Instead of Holden accepting the challenges that come with adulthood, he points out what everyone else is doing wrong. Something a child does. He never points out his own insecurities