“Sex is something I just don't understand. I swear to God I don't do it” (Salinger, 63). It may take Holden Caulfield nine chapters to admit it, but his sexual confusion is present from the first pages of J.D. Salinger's famous novel The Catcher in The Rye. Stemming from the dichotomy of sexual openness in America, underlined by immense sensitivity and sprinkled with adolescent confusion, Holden's relationship with his sexuality is turbulent. Holden experiences a constant array of emotions regarding sexuality, ranging from excitement to guilt. All of these emotions are difficult and represent a pressing internal struggle for Holden. Holden Caulfield's disconnection from his sexuality contributes greatly to his social difficulties. Certainly the larger cause of the sexual problems in The Catcher in The Rye is Holden's relationship with society's sexual expectations. America of this period has conflicting beliefs about sex. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay For the older generation, which includes Holden's distant parents, “most sex in America had been forced into the dark. Masturbation was also despised and considered the source of many physical and psychological ills. The only officially sanctioned sexual behavior was monogamous heterosexual marriage” (Ferguson, 2). Only private sex, without too many frills, was acceptable, and even this ultra-bland relationship was never talked about. In a predictable reaction to this rigid sexual culture, the younger generation rebelled and embraced sex, which later partially motivated the sexual revolution. We see this open sexual excitement at Holden's private school, Pencey Prep. Holden tells his reader that in Pencey “all you do is talk about girls and liquor and sex all day” (Salinger, 131). While all of Holden's friends make out with girls, and then vividly tell stories about said make-out sessions, Holden fails to fully assimilate into that culture. Part of Holden experiences sexual arousal; he goes out on dates regularly, comments on girls' appearance, and is jealous of his roommate Stradlater's sexually adventurous ways (Salinger, 43). But there's also an equally strong part of Holden that wants sex to be intimate and incredibly personal. Both perspectives are shown as Holden reflects on a familiar sexual scene observed outside his hotel room window; “I also understand that it could be a lot of fun, in a way, and if you were both drunk and all, to get some girl and splash water or something in each other's faces. The thing is, though, I don't like the idea. It stinks if you analyze it,” (Salinger, 62). On the one hand, Holden is excited, and sometimes overwhelmed, by sex. On the other hand, he is troubled and silently sensitive to sexual energy. Holden is clearly confused about where it fits between these two opposite ends of the spectrum. Society is sending mixed signals to all young adults, and Holden is a prime example of the confusion that can result. The Catcher in The Rye is commonly known for its exploration of the path to adulthood and the inevitable loss of innocence. Eero Helenius links innocence and sexuality well: "With regard to sex and sexuality, then, Holden is primarily concerned with protecting the innocence of those - girls, in particular - still untainted by his ever-pervasive influence" ( Helenius, 25). The themes of innocence and adulthood are closely related andsupported by a series of sexual examples. The clearest example of innocence lost to sex is found when Holden orders a prostitute to come to his hotel room. Immediately after confirming his room number to the elevator boy turned pimp, Holden begins to regret his decision (Salinger, 91). When the prostitute arrives, Holden is disappointed by her childish appearance, noting that she "(...) was young as hell",(Salinger, 94). The prostitute, who calls herself Sunny, enters wearing a green dress and quickly takes it off. Holden’s obsession with innocence is clear as he reflects on this dress: “I took his dress into the closet and hung it up for him. It was fun. It made me feel a little sad when I hung it [the green dress] up for her. I thought about her walking into a store and buying it, and no one in the store knew she was a prostitute and all that. The seller probably thought she was a normal girl when he bought her. It made me feel damn sad, I don't know exactly why” (Salinger, 95). Despite his lack of emotional intelligence, Holden expresses deep sorrow in reaction to this innocent dress being used for prostitution. Holden may not know why he is so sad about this dress, but the readers do; witnessing a seemingly regular young girl turn to the impersonal world of sex work is heartbreaking for our innocence-obsessed narrator. Holden's painful relationship with sexual innocence is also present, and in an even more personal way, in his childhood friend and love interest Jane Gallagher. To Holden, Jane represents fond childhood memories and youthful beauty. Holden tells a story about when he and Jane play checkers, making special note of how Jane keeps all of her kings in the back row during the game. This is obviously a terrible strategy, but she "(...) liked the way they looked (...)" (Salinger, 32). In the same way that Holden has unrealistic but comforting tendencies, Jane puts innocent aesthetic desire above the adult goal of winning the game. Jane has a history of sexual adulteration, namely her "drunkard" father-in-law walking around the house naked. Jane's father-in-law, a clear symbol of harsh adult life, interrupts their game of checkers to ask if they have any cigarettes, but Jane can't meet his gaze and begins to cry silently. (Salinger, 78). This exchange serves as evidence that Jane was sexually abused by her father-in-law. Holden tries to comfort her, but doesn't have the proper communication skills. This tragic example of sexual adulteration sets the stage for more Jane-related heartbreak for Holden. Stradlater, Holden's super-sexual roommate, is dating Jane. Holden and the readers deduce that Stradlater and Jane have sex, which is heartbreaking for Holden. Holden desperately tries to bring innocence back into the situation by asking Stradlater about Jane's delicate back row of checkers, to no avail. As Eero Helenius says "Stradlater doesn't 'even care if a girl keeps all her kings in the back row' (Salinger, 43), a detail about Jane's character that means everything to Holden but nothing to Stradlater," (Helenius, 24 ). This loss of sexual innocence is experienced as death for Holden: death of childhood, death of beauty, death of general innocence. Peter Shaw elaborates on this abstract death, writing that there are two parts to adolescent psychological development (Shaw, 101). The former mourns the death of innocence and the latter experiences love. According to Shaw, “If Holden is unable to overcome mourning [the death of innocence], he is equally unable to begin the falling in love part of his maturation process.It suffers (...) “the main danger of this age”: an overly prolonged “moratorium” on growth”. Jane Gallagher is a beacon of youthful innocence in The Catcher in The Rye, and the combination of her father-in-law and Stradlater's reckless treatment of her are incredibly painful to Holden, holding him back from a more adult mindset. Holden Caulfield is famous for his hypocrisy. And when it comes to sexuality, Holden's hypocritical ways do not waver. Holden tells us, “In my mind I'm probably the biggest sex maniac you've ever seen” (Salinger, 62). However, just a few lines later, Holden also tells us that he feels guilty and dirty when he has sexual fantasies. Despite being interested and excited by sex, Holden takes no legitimate action toward having sex. And in the end, it's revealed that Holden hasn't had sex yet. “I'm a virgin. I really am. I've had plenty of opportunities to lose my virginity and all that, but I've never succeeded. Something is always happening” (Salinger, 92). He certainly doesn't seem like the "sexual maniac" Holden had just described himself as. Holden's sexual hypocrisy extends to others as well. While Holden dances with some girls at a club, he comments on how stupid and naive they are. However, also known as a "(...) when she turned around, her cute little ass moved so beautifully" (Salinger, 73). Although he criticizes the girl for not being smart enough, he also finds her attractive and tries to convince the three girls to go out with him. Holden experiences sexual arousal, but hypocritically fails to take the actions that would lead to intercourse. Holden Caulfield's hypocrisy extends to the world of sexual fetishes, in which he has a moderate interest. Although Holden once again takes no action to explore his fetishes, he clearly has an interest in certain socially divergent sexual practices. The first of these is a sexual interest in older women. This fetish is born when Holden runs away from Pencey Prep in New York City. On his train to New York, Holden meets Mrs. Morrow, the mother of Holden's classmate Ernest Morrow. Holden tells us, “She was about forty or forty-five, I guess, but she was very beautiful” (Salinger, 54). Holden is approximately sixteen years old during this interaction, placing Mrs. Morrow at nearly three times his age. There are some social constraints in his language: Holden says "but she is very beautiful". She is old but good looking; the word "but" characterizes its unexpected, unusual attractiveness. We can assume that if Holden admired a girl his age, he would say "She's 16 and very beautiful", since a girl's attractiveness is much more accepted. Holden's decision to write "but she is very beautiful" shows that he knows that she should not be considered attractive to him. As Holden settles into his hotel room, he reveals more of his atypical sexual interests. Just outside the window, Holden silently observes two scenes taking place in a hotel next to his. The first is a gray-haired businessman who adds a full ensemble of women's clothing, including silk stockings, heels, a bra and even a corset. In the adjacent window, Holden observes a male-female couple spitting water in each other's faces. Holden finds special interest in this pair, writing, “The problem was that that kind of rubbish is fascinating to look at, even if you don't want it to be” (Salinger, 61). There is shame in Holden's fetishistic interest; Holden describes his passion as a "problem" and openly declares that he doesn't want to care about it. Once again we see hypocritical behavior, this time in a more explicit sexual way. An interesting aspect of Holden's sexual disconnect is the possibility of homosexuality. The nodshomosexuals in The Catcher in The Rye are more subtle than heterosexuals, but still relevant. The possibility of homosexuality would certainly contribute to Holden's immense sexual confusion and disparity. The first, and most subtle, suggestion of homosexuality in Holden emerges as he watches Stradlater go to the bathroom: “He walked out of the room with his toilet kit and towel under his arm. No shirt or anything. He always walked around shirtless because he thought he had a damn good build. He did it too. I have to admit it” (Salinger, 26). Once again, there is a certain shame in his voice; he must admit that in his opinion Stradlater is well built. The next nod to homosexuality is Holden's use of the word “flit.” The term was used as a derogatory term for queer and strange-looking men during the mid-20th century and has since lost popularity. Holden uses the term with a tone of hatred to describe two men he sees at the end of a bar. Despite providing the basis for their homosexuality, Holden aggressively assumes their sexuality (Salinger, 142). During his meeting with Carl Luce, an old classmate known for his sexual knowledge, Holden observes that Luce knows "who all the dykes and dykes in the United States were." All you had to do was mention someone - anyone - and old Luce would tell you. whether it was a flit or not,” (Salinger, 143) Holden then expresses an irrational fear that he himself “would turn into a flit or something.” A secret interest in the alternative lifestyle of homosexuality was normal for the American culture of the time, but Holden's language shows a reaction that is more emotionally charged than interested. His fear of waking up one day as gay reveals a deeper connection to homosexuality, or at least to bisexuality Holden's disconnection from his clearly homosexual interests creates a discouraging judgment towards queer people, especially other men. The fear of homosexuality arises, even more accentuated, when Holden stays with his old teacher, Mr. Antolini Il Mr. Antolini welcomes Holden, offering him a place to sleep in his apartment when Holden is in need. Holden falls asleep on Mr. Antolini's couch and wakes up to Mr. Antolini stroking his head. Mr. Antolini had been drinking heavily, dulling his sense of what is socially appropriate. The move isn't entirely homoerotic; he could also be described as paternal, worried, or just plain drunk. But, keeping in mind that Holden is only wearing underwear, and that Mr. Antolini had just told Holden “Goodnight, handsome,” the interaction is undeniably homosexual to some extent (Salinger, 192). Holden flees the apartment, surprised and shocked by the move. Holden's immense fear of a homosexual encounter with Mr. Antolini prevents him from seeing any of the paternal and caring motivations that Mr. Antolini probably had. The act is certainly inappropriate according to American social norms. However, if Holden had been more in touch with his homosexual interests and desires, his reaction would not have been so intensely negative. He would still have been surprised, but perhaps later he would have at least considered the kind and concerned motives that Mr. Antolini certainly had. Here Holden's judgment of queerness kills any possibility of an advantageous relationship with Mr. Antolini. All these sexual tensions, misunderstandings and disconnections lead to Holden Caulfield being very sexually confused. Its confusion and disconnection lead to a number of socially inhibitive tendencies. The most clearly noted would be its infamous.