Pencey Prep In Catcher In The Rye

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“If you want to know the truth… I’m sorry I told so many people about it… Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody”( 234). The Catcher and the Rye by J.D. Salinger is a coming-of-age story about the 16-year-old protagonist, Holden Caulfield. The story is told a year after everything occurred while he is talking to someone in California. It takes place in December before he goes on break at New York City after he gets expelled from Pencey Prep, a prestigious rich school. While Holden attempts to belong, he isolates himself in the process and that is displayed through his time at Pencey Prep as well as the beginning and end og his New York journey.
While at Pencey Prep, Holden isolates himself. Once he comes back from the fencing meet, on the night of the football game with Saxon Hall, Holden decides not to join his classmates. Holden states, “I remember around three o'clock that afternoon I was standing way the hell up on top of Thomsen Hill… You could see the whole field from there and you could see the two teams bashing each other all over the place… you could hear them all yelling” (4-5). This quote shows that Holden stares at them all while they are watching the game and enjoying themselves. He decides to isolate himself rather than connecting with all of them even though he has the opportunity. Another example of Holden’s isolation occurs when he explains why he gets kicked out of school. He says, “They kicked me out. I wasn’t suppose to come back …show more content…
Holden has a hard time belong somewhere or with someone so he acts the part of not caring which can lead to his isolation. Holden isolates himself thinking he will protect himself from the harsh feeling of rejection or others judgment. Throughout the book concrete evidence is shown of Holden struggling to belong and Holden isolating himself from the reality that is in front of

Persuasive Essay On Catcher In The Rye

to meet him. The Catcher in The Rye captures just a glimpse of the struggles and mistakes in Holden Caulfield's life. Holden is always criticizing his school and everyone in it, also just people in general. In The Catcher in The Rye, Holden constantly critiques society. In The Catcher in The Rye Holden always is saying cruel and unnecessary things everyone that goes to Pencey Prep. He even calls his friends mean names (and he also swears at them). When holden was at Pencey prep, he would always say…

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Theme Of Nonconformity

many similarities between the Dead Poets’ Society and The Catcher in the Rye. Similarities were in the characters, setting, and theme. Similarities in the characters were between Mr. Keating and Holden Caulfield. These characters were similar because of their common belief of nonconformity. Mr. Keating went against the guidelines of Welton Academy and taught his students to follow their dreams no matter the cost. In The Catcher in the Rye, Holden flunked all of his subjects in school and didn’t…

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Essay about The Catcher in the Rye and Public High School

mature? This would not make it all that memorable and fun would it? This is case of sixteen year old Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger, and fifteen year old Charlie in Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. Holden is a 16 year old boy growing up in out of private school. His last straw is when he is expelled from Pencey Prep and decides to travel to New York in his own. Charlie on the other hand is growing up in loving family and goes to the public high…

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How Does Holden Lose The Innocence Of Children

The Catcher in the rye is about a boy named Holden Caulfield who believed in the innocence of children and would do anything to protect it. Holden has a younger sister(Phoebe), a younger brother(Allie) who died of leukemia, and an older brother(DB) who is a writer in Hollywood. Holden has a unique and different personality; he finds himself lonely and depressed most of the time. Holden is always moving from school to school and the last school he is at in the novel is Pencey Prep. At Pencey Prep…

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Pencey Prep And Elkton Hills Symbol Analysis

emblematic of the values of the characters. A symbol for the catcher in the rye is Pencey Prep and Elkton Hills. They are both institutions that serve as symbols in the book. The schools represent the phony, cruel world of those who are in charge of running them. The advertisements for Pencey Prep are deceptive. They feature “some hot guy on a horse” performing equestrian feats. Holden states that he has never seen a horse at Pency Prep. The school motto is revolting to Holden: “Since 1888 we have…

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Book report #2 Essay

Holden Caulfield starts off with his explanation of how he lost the fencing team’s equipment after he had missed the annual football game at Prencey Prep. The fencing match gets cancelled and decides to visit his teacher Mr. Spencer. Holden had been expelled form Prencey Prep because of his poor academic grades and he wanted to say bye to his teacher. Holden goes back to his dorm while everyone else is still at the game. He decides to re-read a book, but gets interrupted by his dorm neighbor Ackly…

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Loss Of Innocence In Catcher In The Rye

Holden Caulfield wants to protect that innocence, he wants to be the Catcher in the Rye. Just as Holden wanting to protect the innocence from society corruption he tries to rebel it as well. In the Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger symbolism is used to represent a struggling young adult not wanting to grow up and rebelled causing him to spiral out of control. Pencey Prep and New York, is the setting for the story Catcher in the Rye. In the late 1940’s in the post World War II era, Holden ,the main…

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Catcher In The Rye Quote Analysis

statement as he narrates in J.D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye." Holden is seventeen and is at that point in his life where he needs to grow up and become an adult, but Holden would rather stay a child than follow the "template" or traditions of society. This "template" would be to go to school as a young child up into adolescence, and then to go to work with a suit and tie everyday. Holden does not want to follow this routine so he stands in the rye which symbolizes the stage of childhood, and…

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Holden Caulfield Anti Hero Analysis

In J.D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield demonstrates the characteristics of an anti-hero. The death of Holden’s younger brother, Allie, greatly affects his perspective on life. Holden is failing almost every subject at Pencey Prep, so he leaves school. Considering he does not want to face his parents with the news of him getting kicked out of school again, Holden wanders the streets of New York alone until he is expected to be home. Holden is an anti-hero because of his…

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The Catcher in the Rye Essay

Ms. Im The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye, follows the story of Holden Caulfield, who serves the role of protagonist and narrator. Holden tells the story of his younger sixteen year old self, whilst under treatment in a sanatorium. As a teenager, Holden was a rebel feeling the need to not care, or try hard in anything he does, thus “getting the ax” out of three schools, and soon to be his fourth. His latest school is a prep school, titled Pencey, is located…

Words 847 - Pages 4