APsychoanalysisofHoldeninTheCatcherintheRye

孫韻婍

【Abstract】The Catcher in the Rye， the only long novel of works written by American writer J.D. Salinger， was bestowed the title of one of classic literary works in 20th century. The novel vividly presents readers with a contradictory mental battle of the main character Holden Caulfield， as the representative of American teenagers that time， from being hatred of hypocrisy to pursuing purity，and eventually to coming back to the reality of society， thus it reveals the inner world of American teenagers featured with loneliness and hesitation after World War II. This dissertation uses Freud's psychoanalysis triple personality structure model as the theoretical framework for analysis of Holden's contradictory personalities，namely， Holden's id，ego，superego and to analyze the figure of Holden from the perspective of psychoanalysis in order for readers to have a better understanding of the structure of human personality，and finally to gain some reflection and thoughts for the growth of teenagers.

【Key words】The Catcher in the Rye； Holden Caulfield； Sigmund Freud； triple personality structure model； psychoanalysis

Introduction

J.D.Salinger are considered by many critics and readers to be one of the most significant and influential American writers after World War Two.In 1951，the publishment of his only long novel The Catcher in the Rye made him famous across the nation.

Id seeks to satisfy the needs of instincts while the superego acclaims the rules of behaving the self morally despite whatever difficulty from the id.The ego isobligatory to settle any problem arsing from between the id and superego.The ego is required to satisfy the needs of id，but not at the expense of the superego.Holden's ego failed to offer a resolution for the conflicts between the id and superego because of his long-term depression from the power of id and loss of superego.Thus，the superego and id together accounted for the imbalance of ego.

Holdens Id

The id is comprised of instincts and impulses. Freud upholds the belief that all human behaviors are originated from libido whose nature is impulse.Human beings are driven by the power of libido in their pursuit of dreams and they fight against what is getting in the way to achieve what they want because of libido.

HoldensSexual Repression

The pressure of adolescent sexuality， an important theme throughout The Catcher in the Rye， makes itself felt here for the first time： Holdens greatest worry is that Stradlater will make sexual advances toward Jane， a girl Holden seems to care for very deeply， who hangs out with Stradlater.endprint

He longs for companionship， love， and compassionate interaction to give him a hand through a difficult period in his life. Things go on， the elevator operator of the Edmont offers him a prostitute for five dollars， and Holden， for a long sexual depression， accepts. The prostitute tries to seduce him， but he is extremely nervous and finally pays her the five dollars he owes and asks her for leave.

The contradiction between Holdens ego and Holdens superego promotes him in dilemma： wants to have sex with the girls they ask for him， but also doesnt want to get sexuality from them for moral conscience. So， one of the most important ways to let off love fails.

Holdens Ego

The ego is all about reality and it exists in the area between the id and the superego in order to build up on the reality principle. Freud thinks that the ego works when it is connected with the rational part of the mind， and this part is related to the reality with the reality principle to work upon. It strikes a balance between the requirements of the id and the superego. The desire and needs of the id get satisfaction the ego in approved and appropriate manner measured by the society.

Holdens rebellion

Holden was born in a wealthy family， but he never took pride in his family nor got along with his parents. All his family could provide him was money. Therefore， it is Holdens lack of family love that caused the formation of his strange character. In reality， he didnt have a friend to call a listener， not to mention communication with his parents even though he was expelled from school. Holden dislike school trivia because they were heavy and complicated， and he had no interest in the courses. He often played hooky and did not respect the principal who seemed always to be snobbish. He cant find a real good friend because the world around him is so abnormal where everybody are living in a play. As Holden said in the novel：”the more noble of the school， the more thieves in it”. So Holdens unique character makes him never fit into the environment full of snobbish people.

Holdens kindness

However rebellious Holden was， there was kindness， consideration and passion in him. However rich his family was， he never took pride in it and did not make it a big deal. On the contrary， he was very glad to give a helping hand to those classmates in need. Holden also showed consideration for the nuns as well as his family. Holden fond his best comfort from his sister when he slunk back to his house to see her from wandering on the street a day later. Inside Holden， there existed a very particular emotion， the love for his sister， that is， when he found himself did not fit into the environment， all he would love to do was to talk with his sister. Holden could only transfer his love to his sister who he thought could give him love and comfort during time of anguish and solitudeendprint

Holdens Superego

The superego is related to moral standards which is the acquisition from parents and other social authorities. Freud views that the superego is the embodiment of the father or other social authorities. It works on the ideal principle as the conscience which helps human beings maintain sense of morality. In Holdens case， his superego developed with his growth and internalization of social standards.

Loss of Direction in Life

Generally， the authorities embody the superego in this novel. By authorities， it means the school and chiefly society and its rules. Holden has a lot of trouble in following instructions of the society and going with the trend. It can be concluded that society is one of Holden's major repressors as the superego represents the morality principle，namely， the repressing entities； he loses freedom because he thinks eventually he has to be controlled by the regulations of society regardless of whether he is willing to do it or not or how he does it.

“As it has already been said， the superego functions as a repressor of the id， and the id is part of the unconscious mind. In the unconscious mind， there is supposed to be the existence of many basic needs， feelings and desires. This definition gives a inclines to view that society along with its regulations， the superego， are the obstacle and disappointment to Holden's deepest desires， the id.”

Even though Holden is pleased about the elevator man's offer and have the prostitute to spend the night with him， he cannot make himself do it with her. He then feels sexy and his sexual desire is quite intense， however， his superego would not allow him to behave in an inappropriate way. Holden struggles between his id and superego， and Holden gets caught in a dilemma at the beginning. Holden is desperate to find who he really is who he will be in the society.

Conclusion

Holden is still meaningful today. His absent parents send him off to boarding school， his older brother is away pursuing his career， his teachers sort of try to help the poor guy， and his peers are too screwed up themselves to save their pal. Only his sister Phoebe understands Holden and， to borrow the cliché of my students， is “there for him.”Holden tells her of his plan to run away and， unlike everyone else， who advise him to consider the consequences of his actions （so teacher-like）， Phoebe's response is to pack her suitcase and go with him.

In conclusion， Holden's ego makes ways for the satisfaction of the sexual desire， however， he always meets up with setbacks in the end because he is restricted by his id. Thus， Holden's ego is relatively weak while his superego is comparatively strong.endprint

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