Holden Caulfield

Character in The Catcher in the Rye From: The Catcher in the Rye

Protagonist and narrator; a cynical teenage boy navigating post-war America

417 quotes

"The thing is, it's really hard to be roommates with people if your suitcases are much better than theirs."
Relationships
"I really am. I'm quite a sexy bastard, when you come right down to it."
Humor
"What really knocks me out is a book that, when you're all done reading it, you wish the author that wrote it was a terrific friend."
Literature
"I'm standing right here on the edge of some crazy cliff."
Fear
"That's the thing I like least about having to leave somewhere."
Change
"I really shouldn't have done that, but I did."
"It really does kill me sometimes, it really does."
"I don't know why, but it is."
Philosophy
"That killed me. It really did."
Humor
"I think even if I ever do go back to school, I'll do it different."
Hope
"It's funny. Don't ask me why, but it is."
Humor
"I'm the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life, it really is."
Truth
"That's the thing about me. I'm very modest."
Humor
"I like it when somebody gets excited about something."
Inspiration
"All I do is give myself a lot of trouble, that's all I do."
"I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth."
"I really mean it. I'm not just saying that."
"That's something that really gets me."
"I know it's crazy, but that's the way I am."
"That's the whole trouble. You can't ever find a place that's nice and peaceful."
Peace
"I felt like committing suicide, I really did."
"It kills me, it always does."
Humor
"That's the thing I hate about it."
"I don't know what the hell's going on, I really don't."
"That's something that really depresses me."
"I really do. That's the thing about me. I'm the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life."
Truth
"It kills me, it really does."
Humor
"I'm quite illiterate, but I read a lot."
Education
"Mothers are all slightly insane."
Family
"I have a feeling that if you leave me here, I'll die."
Fear