The characterization of maslow s hierarchy of

Catcher inside the Rye, Holden Caulfield, Maslow’S Hierarchy of Needs

In Abraham Maslow’s ground-breaking paper that was released in 1943, he mentioned that there were an climbing hierarchy of needs for any person to attain which was key to our comprehension of human motivation. Studying simply individuals of a high brains and figure, Maslow noticed that they all shared a common structure of requires that would have to be fulfilled to be able to attain the greatest level of humankind, also known as home actualization. The levels are Physical Needs (food, water, refuge, etc), Safety needs (protection), Love Demands (sense of belonging), Respect Needs (self love), as well as the highest level of Home Actualization. A person are unable to advance by a certain level to another with out fulfilling the prior level. For example , one could stay away from to Personal Actualization from Love Requirements without gratifying their Respect Needs. In the later years Maslow realized that there exists an even higher level than the prior ceiling of Self Actualization and this is called Transcendence. Transcendence is the ability to explain the way of Self Actualization to others and help these people attain that. Maslow as well categorized these kinds of needs into Deficiency requirements and Development needs. Deficit needs will be characterized by none whatsoever, such as the need for food and water. Development needs are essential to emotional growth and need to be attained to get emotional maturity. These requires can be interrupted by distressing events just like death, lack of a loved one, and so forth (McLeod). This interesting look into the human psyche is not only very prevalent in the real world in literature too. In J. D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye, the main character, Holden Caulfield, fluctuates between the numbers of Maslow’s Hierarchy, however , at the conclusion of the novel, he offers finally come to transcendence.

In the beginning in the novel, Holden Caulfield, the protagonist, is in quite a despairing situation. Whenever we first fulfill Holden he’s “standing way up on Thomsen Hill” in which “practically the full school was there but [him]” (Salinger 3). Holden is completely isolated from contemporary society and is not able to integrate. The reason for this despairing outlook on life is the fact Holden skilled a upsetting death of his buddy, Allie, which ended with Holden sleeping in the car port and “breaking all of the goddam windows with [his] closed fist, just for the hell of it” (Salinger 39). Holden is really traumatized this individual cannot follow anything else and he is nonetheless not over the death of his buddy which is learned when he says that his “hand nonetheless hurts [him] once in awhile in order to rains and all” (Salinger 39). This really is a very evident example of how deep the scars of Allie’s fatality are to Holden’s psyche. As a result of childhood trauma of his life, Holden arguably is at the very bottom level of the pecking order because he can only satisfy his basic demands of food and drinking water. He does not have any sense of love or belonging at all because he cannot contact others. Consequently he does not have sense of safety either because he dropped his buddy at a young age and fears the points he enjoys being shed and removed from him. This individual gets kicked out of boarding university because he cannot focus on nearly anything higher than his basic human needs of food and water, a great example of Maslow’s Hierarchy at the office. Holden actually describes him self as feeling “miserable [he] felt so depressed you can’t even imagine”(Salinger 98).

As the novel progresses, Holden has the capacity to see a a higher level00 emotional brains as he seems safe the moment alone in New York. Consequently , Holden can be gaining a level on the pyramid of requires yet he could be constantly knocked down although trying to attain a higher level. A first-rate example of this would be his make an effort to reach the amount of love and belonging by hiring a prostitute, which just ends bitterly as he is usually beat up and brought back to where he was before. Holden is so emotionally wrecked at this time experience that he “thought [he] was dying. I thought I was too much water or a thing. The trouble can be I could scarcely breathe”(Salinger 103). Our protagonist is effectively reduced to square among the hierarchy and he also struggles to breathe which is an obvious human being necessity.

This theme of Holden successfully taking two steps back before he takes a leap forward is quite repeating throughout the story. Salinger is attempting to show someone that to get emotional intelligence one need to struggle significantly. Holden eventually regains his footing upon the attach of psychological intelligence, which is able to defeat the point he previously shed by obtaining a sense of love with Sally and noticing he doesn’t have it. He even grows to the level of self esteem needs and is also able to experience slightly self-confident in himself. However when he is thus close to staying emotionally mature, perhaps inside the wrong method, the rug is efficiently pulled out via under him when he seems to lose his emotional and physical security whilst staying at Mr. Antolini’s apartment. When Holden awakes coming from a relaxing slumber, to in his phrases, Mr. Antolini “petting or perhaps patting myself on the goddam headBoy, I will bet I jumped of a thousand feet” (Salinger 192). Holden is disturbed and reduced considerably in his emotional level.

All of these big gains and losses aren’t at all for free. Holden at some point regains his footing another time and will be able to finally include his epiphany that he cannot save children via adulthood. He sees that “All the children kept aiming to grab to get the rare metal ring, so was outdated Phoebe, and I was sort of afraid she’d fall off the goddam horse¦” and this individual realizes that in life the “thing with kids is definitely, if they wish to grab to get the gold ring, you will need to let them get it done, and not say anything. “( Salinger 211), which brings him for the high point of home actualization. Even so then the query arises, “But how is Holden personal actualized in the event that he is within an insane asylum? ” Eventually when Maslow realized that the highest level of his pyramid can be transcendence or helping others reach home actualization, this individual added it to his hierarchy. Effectively, Salinger’s placement of Holden within an asylum and having him write the book puts Holden on the maximum level of transcendence. He is completely, by producing the publication, by sharing with his history to others, helping others reach self actualization.

Through the illustrations of J. M. Salinger inside the life of his persona, Holden Caulfield, the picture of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Demands is quite visible through a psychological lens in The Catcher inside the Rye. Holden endures a large number of stages of Maslow’s Pecking order but ultimately ends up on the highest level of transcendence after his virtual journey through New york city. It is this way that Holden Caulfield signifies something that everyone can correspond with which is the struggle to discover meaning in life which he ultimately truly does after a paranoid time. This individual rises coming from despair and grief to a higher point and helps others achieve that. If one were to venture a suppose as to what happens to Holden after it is highly possible that he has signed up with the world he had abhorred and helps other folks realize all their purposes anytime thus being ultimately transcendent.