Holden Caulfield Insane Essay

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Throughout the novel, J.D. Salinger described a story about Holden in the era of post second world war. Sanity is the state of being mentally healthy and the ability to think and behave in a normal and rational manner. Insanity, the opposite of sanity, is being mentally unhealthy. Although Holden Caulfield, the protagonist, appeals to the readers that he is insane by means of his behaviors. In some extends, he may not be the case because the world surrounding him may be a factor of influence of the way he behaves. He appeals to be same as a person who usually acts different from the people around him. First of all, in readers’ first impression of Holden is a student in Pency prep who is insane by flunking almost all his subjects except for English. He uses words to insult his friends, such as Ackley, by calling him “Ackley kid”, though Ackley is older than Holden. He dislikes Ackley because he always walks in to his room and starts to look and fidget around…show more content…
On Holden’s perspective, his adventure, from Pency to New York, then goes to his sister and finally goes to present in his mental institution, may be describing the circumstances of the world in which he, the author, was living. In the novel, Holden is a cynic who detests others by calling them phony. Maybe it is the reason that the world is corrupted by things he does and things other people do. For example, when he was on the train heading New York. He meets this pretty woman who is the mother of Ernie whom Holden thinks he is a bastard. While they were talking, Holden asks her, “Would you care for a cocktail?” (P57). She merely says “yes” that she thinks Holden is underage, thus, she refused. But she smokes which was an unusual thing to do nowadays. Furthermore, New York has prostitutes who would like to satisfy their body and involve in sex trade. The incidents indicate the insanity of the post-war

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