Alienation in The Catcher in the Rye (Book Analysis)

The Catcher in the Rye, by J. D. Salinger is extremely popular in several high school classes across the United States since it was released in 1951. The story follows a teenager, named Holden Caulfield, who struggles severely with mental health as he runs away from his prestigious preparatory school to New York City for several days. It is evident to the reader that Holden fails to create meaningful relationships with several people throughout the book. As he is running around the city, breaking down due to his depression, he encounters several people whom he tries hard to connect with, but ultimately fails due to his cynical views on everyone. Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, Salinger uses a variety of rhetorical strategies to show Holden’s constant struggle with alienation when trying to establish relationships with others. 

At the beginning of the novel, Holden spends a lot of time with a peer who he seems to know well but, considers very lousy. Throughout Salinger’s work, it is evident how he uses diction to establish a pessimistic tone and his contradicting feelings towards Ackley. As Holden was describing Ackley to the reader, he stated “He was also kind of a nasty guy. I wasn’t too crazy about him to tell you the truth,” (). Calling Ackley “nasty” and saying how he “wasn’t too crazy about him” emphasizes the negative connotation Holden has throughout the book as he continues to meet and spend time with individuals. The specific use of the adverse words towards Ackley reveals how Holden constantly insults all those he longs to spend time with due to his cynical view towards almost everyone. Once again, Sallinger uses diction to help create a negative, yet contradicting, the tone in regards to Ackley. Holden was upset due to a remark made by his roommate, Stradlater, Ackley then walked in making holden “really glad to see him,” (2), although Holden made a positive remark about Ackley, he also said “for once in my stupid life,'' This choice of diction evokes a contradictory tone towards Ackley. When using the words chosen, it reveals Holden’s desire to believe that everyone he meets will be phony and that he must keep his distance, proving his major relationship problems and struggles with alienation. 

Later in the book, Holden meets up with an old friend named Sally Hayes. He takes her on a date in New York City which ends up going terribly wrong due to Holden’s struggles. Salinger demonstrates the alienation which takes place as Holden repeatedly states how crazy he is by saying “just to show you how crazy I am,”(3) and “I’m crazy. I swear to God I am,”(3). In the paragraph, Holden was expressing his love for Sally using repetition. Although all that Holden said was a lie, the distinct diction creates a strong feeling of negativity and failure that he faces. The repetition reveals Holden’s major issues with forming close and meaningful relationships with others. Additionally, Salinger uses dialogue, specifically slang, to describe the feelings Holden has towards other people. Holden stated, to Sally Hayes, “You give me a royal pain in the ass,”(4). As Holden saw the phoniness in Sally, he was quick to turn his back and insult her soon after confessing his fake love to her. Holden used slang in order to create distance in his relationship with Sally. The phrase “royal pain in the ass” evokes a negative image of Sally’s personality. Salinger’s choice of dialogue helps to emphasize Holden’s increasing views towards the phoniness of those he attempts to get close with. With Holden’s interactions with Sally, it is evident that the wrath of detachment from others still has a grip on Holden, which harms his relationships. 

Towards the end of the book, Salinger uses slang and syntax to expose Holden’s issues regarding alienation in his relationship with Jane. As Holden was walking in the hotel, he recalls a past experience he had with Jane. Holden thought to himself, “ I still couldn’t get her off my brain. I knew her like a book. I really did,” (85). The use of syntax is clear as Holden has very short and abrupt sentences, which then creates an emotional connotation as Holden’s feelings towards Jane truly spill out to the reader. This implies that Holden has strong positive feelings towards Jane. She has a lot of importance to him as he knows so much about who she is as a person. Holden’s deep understanding of Jane and her feelings shows how much he cares about her. After Holden had bought the record for Phoebe, he immediately felt the need to connect with yet another person. He clearly yearns to meet up with Jane and feels as if they had a deep and meaningful relationship with each other. Holden used the words “old Jane” and “buzz” when calling her, showing his immaturity and inability to create meaningful relationships with others. The use of the phrases reveals the casual and childish connotation used by Holden in the novel. The slang shows how he still acts like a child who has not yet grown up, and because of this, is unable to create stable, and healthy relationships with others. Additionally, the use of the phrase “old Jane” is a term of endearment, showing that Jane was a very important person to Holden. But it is evident that he refuses to connect with her, ultimately showing his immaturity and alienation. As Holden was still contemplating calling Jane, he stated, “I should have at least asked her if Jane was home yet, though. It wouldn’t have killed me. But I didn’t feel like it,” (?). The word “least” was italicized in the quote to create emphasis and to give it a significant meaning. The word is emphasized to show that Holden didn’t even do the bare minimum to create a relationship with Jane. He stopped almost as soon as he realized that a connection could have been made. Although he wants to connect with her, he fears rejection and therefore continues to alienate himself from interactions with others. This reveals how although Holden seems too long for connections with others, specifically Jane, he backs out quickly. It is evident throughout Holden’s interactions with Jane that he allows his doubtful views of others to drive his ongoing problem with alienation.

Alienation is far from a common theme we see in many novels. Salinger uses several rhetorical strategies to allow the reader to feel and understand the isolation and loneliness that Holden felt throughout the novel. Additionally, the use of different characters in the book proves Holden’s desire to alienate himself as soon as a worthwhile relationship is made. Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, relationships with Ackley, Sally Hayes, and Jane were all made, but in the end, broken. The abundance of rhetorical strategies when analyzing these characters shows Holden’s constant struggle with alienation when trying to establish relationships with others.