Catcher in the Rye

            
             Salinger, Holden Caulfield is a lonely and lost seventeen-year-old boy who lives in New York. He does not care much about school or what others think of him. He just wants to stay young forever. Holden Caulfield struggles with age and his identity because he believes that childhood is the only time humans are true to themselves.
             Holden never cares what people think of him as long as he is happy and feels good. For instance the way he wore his red hunting had " I swung the old peak way around to the back-very corny. but I liked it that way. I looked good in it that way" (Salinger 18). Holden also has a crew cut, which is usually considered a child's haircut. Ackley is the perfect example of not caring about appearance yet he also has bad hygiene. He does not take care of his teeth " I never even once saw him brush his teeth. They always looked mossy and awful- (Salinger 19). But as for adults, they like to hide their blemishes to make themselves look good but in Holden's mind they were really " secret slobs" (Salinger 27). Stradlater is a great example of this, "He always looked all right, Stradlater, but for instance, you should've seen the razor he shaved himself with. It was always rusty as hell and full of lather and hairs and crap," (Salinger 27) yet he takes hours making sure that his hair and clothes look perfect. Also Mrs. Antolini has the need to impress the public and look her best even though she is happily married. The night that Holden stays at their house for a few hours she did not look too incredibly good looking, she did not have any make up on and she had all these curlers in her hair. All that matters is she looks good to society so that she can be accepted into the adult world.
             Children remember people by something unique they did in the past, but adults only remember people by sexual experiences. Holden remembers the way that Jane would play checkers with him " She wouldn't move any of her kings.