Catcher in the Rye

I think that, in general, Holden disrespects women. Throughout the book, Holden has consistently looked at women as objects. He dehumanizes them, and doesn’t see them as a person. He devalues their personality, only judging them on their looks. This is all a generalization because Holden does value, respect and humanize certain women such as: Jane, his mother and his sister. He loves these three women more than he loves any other man. I don’t think Holden is sexist, he is just judgmental. He dislikes more males than females, but he has a lower opinion of women in general. Holden doesn’t treat anyone very well, not matter what the gender is, but I think he has less negativity toward women. I think that he dislikes men a lot more and he treats them with less respect. He would fight a man, but wouldn’t hit a woman. He cares about women more than man and empathizes for them. When Holden was faced with the choice to have sex with a prostitute he felt bad for her, and refused. He isn’t a bad person, just a fake person. He has a heart. Although he tries to hide it, it comes out once in a while.

Holden respects his little sister, his mother and girls that he has real, intimate feelings toward. I think that he has the most respect towards his little sister, and he shows it through his words. He describes her with words that express genuine love and care. He thinks more of her than he probably does of himself. He cares about her very much and he values her more that most women, if not all women. The way that he talks about her allows the reader to actually feel the strong emotions Holden feels for his sister. Holden loves his mother because she is his mother. We all have a very strong connection with our mother, because we all came from them. We love them very much because they are the person that gave us life; the person that took care of us and loved us unconditionally, no matter what the circumstance.

I think that Holden devalues everyone, so his opinion of women fits his personality perfectly. I personally think that he has a better chance of respecting women more than men. His still has a negative paradigm towards everyone, but it becomes slightly more positive when he is faced with women. I think that girls bring out the best in him and they allow him the opportunity to show his good heart. Holden has good intentions, but he his ego gets in the way of his true self revealing itself.