Holden Caulfield's The Catcher In The Rye

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Holden Caulfield had always felt bad about himself. He has many problems, but depression is a big part of his life. Some problems, such as Allie’s death, could’ve triggered ‘Situational’ Depression, and Major Depression. These make Holden’s life more difficult and confusing than other people’s lives. Holden has constant thoughts of killing himself, which is a sign of Major Depression. Most people don’t have to be a doctor to know that if someone thinks of killing them self often, they are depressed. Doctors online state that, “Some other symptoms you might have are: Thoughts of suicide…” (Major Depression). Holden says multiple times while feeling lonely or sad that maybe killing himself would make everything better for him. When Holden was beat up by Maurice, he felt sad and wanted the pain to stop. He told himself, “What I really felt like, though, was committing suicide. I felt like jumping out the window. I probably would’ve, too…” (Salinger 105). He wants to escape the feelings he’s going through, so he thinks maybe suicide will make it better, and he won’t have to worry about anything anymore. Holden’s depression doesn’t just end with …show more content…
With Situational Depression a person can get sad or angry when something tragic happens, “You can have a depressed mood when you’re having trouble managing a stressful event in your life, such as a death in your family…” (‘Situational’ Depression). This could also lead into why he has Major Depression, and for Holden, his situational depression is caused by Allie’s death because he’s unable to handle the stress. Holden couldn’t take the stress so he, “Slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist,” (Salinger 39). Holden might’ve thought that letting out all his anger would cure the pain he feels about Allie’s death. He can’t quite handle the pain he feels about Allie’s death; therefore, getting Situational
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