The Metamorphosis of Holden in The Catcher in the RyeJ. The Catcher in the Rye by D. Salinger is the chronicle of a young man's metamorphosis from immaturity to uncertain manhood. Holden Caulfield, the protagonist, is a sixteen-year-old boy who drops out of the elementary school he was expelled from to escape the frightening reality of dealing with his parents. However, during his visit to New York City, he is faced with the harsh reality that he cannot continue to hold on to his childhood. Holden is an extremely complex character and it is only by examining each layer that the reader is able to understand his painful metamorphosis. There has been much debate about Holden's morality. At the time of publication many critics viewed Holden as a poor specimen of American youth. As the story begins, he has failed elementary school for the third time and decides to run away to New York without the knowledge of his parents or the school authorities. Holden uses obscenities and profanities multiple times within sentences; he tries to solicit a prostitute and even calls himself a coward. It is true that Holden does not fare well when he abides by the conventional moral codes of a young man of the 1950s. However, the reader must keep in mind that as complex as Holden is, he is still just a boy trying to understand and be accepted by the world around him. Holden hides behind the swear words he uses. He doesn't use them in reference to a person, but rather as a vague intensifier of his thoughts. Holden uses them to appear tough and to hide his teenage insecurities. He also contracts the services of a prostitute on his first night in town. However, Holden does not have sex with her after becoming sad talking to her. He does… in the middle of the paper… he says of Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye. Joel Salzberg. Boston, Massachusetts: G. K. Hall & Co., 1990. 23-24.3. Jacobs, Robert G. "The Young Friend: The Damned Autobiography of Holden Caulfield." If you wanted to know. Marsden, Malcolm M. Chicago, Illinois: Scott, Foresman and Company, 1963. 55-62.4. Kaplan, Carlo. "Holden and Huck: The Odysseys of Youth." If you wanted to know. Marsden, Malcolm M. Chicago, Illinois: Scott, Foresman and Company, 1963. 127-130.5. Read, Riccardo. The Catcher in the Rye. Great Neck, New York: Barron's Educational Series, Inc., 1964. 1-18.6. Maclean, Hugh. “Conservatism in Modern American Fiction.” If you wanted to know. Marsden, Malcolm M. Chicago, Illinois: Scott, Foresman and Company, 1963. 14-157. Salinger, J.D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston, Massachusetts: Little, Brown and Company, 1951. 1-277.