Holden Caufield as Untrustworthy Narrator in The Catcher in the Rye :: Catcher Rye Essays

Holden Caufield as Untrustworthy Narrator in The Catcher in the Rye     The problem with just intimately first someone narratives is that at that place is only one point of view. In The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caufield shares his past experiences as a distressed teenager. The entire story is told through his have got troubled mind, which often distorts the experiences. Salinger portrays the reason behind Holdens immaturity by demonstrating his untrustworthy qualities.   Most of Holdens views contradict themselves because of Holdens own confusion. This confusion blinds him from being able to realize that most of his criticism is against himself. Salinger clearly presents this after Stradlader hits Holden. All that blood and all sort of made me look tough. Id only been in about two fights in my life, and I lost both of them. Im not too tough. Im a pacifist, if you want to know the truth(46). Even though Holden enjoys to see himself be aten up, he contradicts himself by proclaiming he is a peaceful person. Salinger utilizes these contradictions to reveal how unreliable Holdens observations are.   Salinger also depicts Holdens immaturity through the judgment of his peers and elders. Holdens disillusionment of good people alters the true personality of each person he meets. Holden even criticizes his new classmates, whom he has not even meet yet. Its full of phonies/.../and you have to keep making believe you give a horseshit if the football team loses, and all you do is talk about girls and liquor and sex all day(131). Just because Holden is uncomfortable in his school, he feels the acquire to disapprove of everyone. Salinger exploits this immaturity to illustrate the reason for Holdens loneliness and confusion.   Throughout the story Salinger introduces characters that actually appeal to Holden, which give him guidance and make him feel better about himself. Mr. Antolini is one of these peop le. Holden seems hopeless in his quest for happiness, but Mr. Antolini guides him in the right direction. Even after all the help, he still finds a way to see Mr. Antolini. What he was doing was, he was sitting on the floor right next to the couch, in the dark and all, and he was sort of petting me or patting me on the beatified head(192).