1
Schlegel
Melissa Schlegel
LIT 420 Dr. Marck
Seminar Report
11 May 2011
Catcher Coming Out of the Closet: A Gay Criticism
Of J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye
Homosexuality has been throughout history one of the most controversial topics in America. Until 1974 this sexual orientation was considered a mental disorder and listed with the American Psychiatric Association (Tyson 319). Even though scientists have proved that this lifestyle is not a disease, many people still think that gay men and lesbians have something wrong with them. They are treated differently and often with discrimination which is known as homophobia. Homophobia has lead to the “privileging of heterosexuality,” or in other words, the assumption that heterosexuality is the normal way of life and those who do not engage in this lifestyle are somehow inferior (Tyson 320). Often because of this assumption, literature which contains gay men and women are read in a way which ignores gay characters and their struggles. One example of this occurs in J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. It is often assumed that this novel highlights the life of a heterosexual adolescent boy who is struggling to accept that he is becoming an adult. But, throughout the novel there is significant evidence that Holden Caulfield is a gay man and is restricted from expressing this because of the homophobic environment in which he lives. Sarah Graham asserts that “Holden is fascinated by homosexuality” but because he is growing up in the 1950’s he is also repressed in his feelings (56). The homophobic society in which he is growing up forces Holden to accept “his society’s conventional prejudices against homosexuality” (Takeuchi 31). Holden is portrayed as having homosexual tendencies but is forced to try to hide these sensations because of his social upbringing; in other words “Holden is a product of his time” (Graham 2).
The most significant attributes of this text which portray Holden as a gay man are gay signs. According to Lois Tyson, gay signs are either “characteristics that heterosexist culture stereotypically associates with gay men or lesbians… [or] are coded signs created by the gay or lesbian subculture itself” (340). The most predominant gay sign which Holden displays throughout the novel is his attraction to males. Stereotypically, heterosexuals assume that gay men judge each male they encounter, gay or straight, based upon his appearance. Holden does this numerous times throughout the text and his comments help paint a picture of what he looks for in a partner. Holden pays excessive attention to each male he encounters and describes them either positively or negatively. This excessive attention is first noticed in his encounter with Mr. Spencer. When Holden sees him he admits that he hates seeing old men’s bodies and then goes on to describes what he was seeing: “ I don’t much like to see old guys in their pajamas and bathrobes anyway. Their bumpy old chests are always showing” (Salinger 11). When reading this from a heterosexual point of view, it would seem that Holden is simply expressing his disgust at the male form. But, a few scenes later, Holden begins to express what he likes to see in males. When Holden describes Stradlater, both his classmate and roommate, he uses a much more positive description and implies that he finds him attractive: “He always walked around in his bare torso because he thought he had a damn good build. He did, too. I have to admit it” (Salinger 34). This depiction, when taken in contrast to the one about Mr. Spencer, begins to show how Holden assess the males he meets based on how sexually attractive they are to him. When Holden describes Ackley, another classmate, it is obvious that Holden is not attracted to him:
He was one of those very, very tall, round-shouldered guys…with lousy teeth…They always looked mossy and awful, and he damn near made you sick…Besides that, he had a lot of pimples. Not just on his forehead or chin, but all over his whole face. And not only that, he had a terrible personality. He was also sort of a nasty guy. I wasn’t too crazy about him, to tell you the truth. (Salinger 26)
It is clear from theses descriptions that Holden is paying close attention to the physical features of males and their personalities. He likes Stradlater’s form but is sickened by Ackley’s features. He hates Ackley’s teeth and pimples but admits that Stradlater “was pretty handsome” (Salinger 36). Holden also takes the time to study Stradlater’s grooming habits and admires him because of them: “He always shaved himself twice, to look gorgeous” (Salinger 40). Although Holden admits that he knew “a lot of guys at Pencey [that] were a lot handsomer than Stradlater,” he still appears to have a one-sided crush on him (Salinger 36).
Holden’s attraction for males is not only evident in his desire for Stradlater, but also in his encounter with a transvestite. While Holden is staying at a hotel in New York City, he notices two peculiar scenes going on in other rooms. One scene involves a male and female couple engaged in a possible form of foreplay. In the other room, there is a man who is cross-dressing. Holden pays little attention to the couple but is intrigued by the cross-dresser. Pia Livia Hekanaho expresses that even though Holden is surprised by this man’s actions, he still likes what he sees: “As much as the transvestite’s solitary pleasure shocks Holden, his description nonetheless conveys strong feelings of hidden but intense enjoyment” (93). This is apparent because, although he cannot say what the couple had in their glasses, he is able to give a complete description of the cross-dressing man:
I saw one guy, a gray-haired, very distinguished-looking guy with only his shorts on, do something you wouldn’t believe me if I told you. First he put his suitcase on the bed. Then he took out all these women’s clothes, and put them on. Real women’s clothes—silk stockings, high-heeled shoes, brassiere, and one of those corsets with the straps hanging down and all. Then he put on this very tight black evening dress…Then he started walking up and down the room, taking these very small steps, the way a woman does, and smoking a cigarette and looking at himself in the mirror. (Salinger 80).
Holden is clearly fascinated by this activity. He could not describe what the couple looked like but could give very distinct details about the solitary man. It would have taken him some time to get dressed the way he did and strut around his hotel room, and Holden apparently watched it all. In comparison to the brief description of the heterosexual couple, it is obvious that Holden was much more attracted to the cross-dressing male.
Holden’s attraction to gay men can also be detected in the scenes with Carl Luce and Mr. Antolini. Hekanaho points out that “Holden is attracted to—and attracts—gay men” and is also the one who actively seeks them out (93). According to Holden, Luce would often act very “flitty” and engage in activities like goosing or leaving the door open while he went to the bathroom. Holden mentions that these activities are indications of someone being gay: “That stuff’s sort of flitty” (Salinger 186). Holden also mentions that Luce has an extensive knowledge of “every flit and Lesbian in the United States” (Salinger 186). He opines, “All you had to do was mention somebody—anybody—and old Luce’d tell you if he was a flit or not” (Salinger 186). Graham suggests that Luce’s knowledge may indicate that he is a member of the gay community and thus Holden looks to him as a role model (63-64). Holden has drinks and dinner with Luce and was the one who made the arrangements; he actively sought out a gay person to speak to. Holden is also the one to make the arrangements with Mr. Antolini, who later makes a homosexual pass at him. In both instances, Holden seeks out the people whom he knows may possibly be gay. This is a telling scenario because although Holden cannot bring himself to contact women, he has no problem contacting “sexually ambivalent men” (Graham 86).
Also, in both of these encounters, Holden and the men engage in the use of coded language. Hekanaho relays that flit is a slang word for a gay male (91). In his conversation with Luce, this term is used extensively and Holden often tries to get Luce to tell him which men at the bar are flits. Also, Mr. Antolini addresses Holden as “handsome” and as a “very, very strange boy” which indicates that he recognizes Holden “as a fellow queer” (Salinger 248-250; Hekanaho 95). Hekanaho suggests that the speech that Mr. Antolini gives to Holden about “scholarly fellowship…is reminiscent of the concept of a gay community that ensures that novices learn the coded language and behavior of the closeted era” (95). Mr. Antolini tells Holden in his speech that he is not alone in being confused and troubled, but over time, he will be able to learn from others and then eventually teach someone else. This, as Hekanaho relays, may suggest that Holden is currently confused about what he is feeling, but that he will learn gay code and other information that will help him, and later he will do the same for another confused, young, gay male.
Another gay sign found throughout this novel that would easily be overlooked through a heterosexual reading, is Holden’s anger at Jane for dating Stradlater. When Holden discovers that Stradlater has a date with Jane Gallagher, Holden becomes vividly upset. From a heterosexual reading, it would be argued that Holden’s anger stems from an attraction to Jane. But, the context clues hint that this anger actually stems from his desire for Stradlater. This is evidence of what Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, in Between Men: English Literature and Male Homosocial Desire, refers to as an “erotic triangle” (21). But rather than the two males being rivals, because Holden is gay, he becomes Jane’s rival. Holden feels like he is competing against her for Stradlater’s affection. It is apparent that Holden is not attracted to Jane because the way in which he describes her is drastically different from the way in which he describes Stradlater. He expresses that he thought Jane was pretty, but just before this compliment, he states that he “wouldn’t exactly describe her as strictly beautiful…She was sort of muckle-mouthed” (Salinger 100). There is little physical description of her and only rarely does he call her pretty or beautiful. This is in direct contrast to the elaborate description of Stradlater and the numerous times Holden calls him handsome and sexy. Holden also admits that he and Jane have never had any sexual advances in their relationship. When she was upset about her stepfather, Holden kissed her to make her feel better, but he only kissed her face: “I was kissing her all over…her whole face except her mouth and all” (Salinger 102). Kissing her lips is a heterosexual action and Holden cannot do this. He is clearly not attracted to Jane, and thus the only reason he is upset about the date is because of his attraction for Stradlater. As he is trying to express his anger about the date, he once again mentions Stradlater’s features: “The reason she did that, she probably just didn’t know what a handsome, charming bastard you are” (Salinger 44). Holden seems to be trying to express his desire to Stradlater but he is not interested. Holden is not upset about Stradlater taking advantage of Jane, but rather he is upset that Stradlater is going out with someone else. Holden is therefore, caught in a triangle where he is competing for Stradlater’s attention but fails to obtain it because Stradlater is attracted to Jane.
Holden’s attraction to males is not the only gay sign in this novel. Another sign which would again be easily overlooked by a heterosexual reading is his lack of attention to female characteristics. As mentioned previously, Holden gives little description of Jane Gallagher, a girl whom he has known for a very long time. After mentioning Stradlater’s “gorgeous locks,” Holden tries to describe Jane but gets sidetracked by talking about her stepfather (Salinger 42). Holden once again focuses on a male and describes how the man liked to walk around naked: “[He was a] skinny guy with hairy legs…He wore shorts all the time…And [he ran] around the goddamn house, naked” (Salinger 42). Even though Holden began the conversation talking about Jane, he once again went into detail about a male. In fact, the only female that he describes in any great detail is his younger sister Phoebe. He describes her with the same amount of detail that he dedicates to Ackley and Stradlater. He describes how intelligent she is and describes her as having “red hair…she sticks…behind her ears” (Salinger 87-88). He talks about how she roller skates, her favorite movies, her conversation habits and how she likes to write (Salinger 88-89). According to Robert Bennett, “instead of developing sexual or… intimate relationships with women, Holden seems to focus most of his emotional energy on his younger sister, Phoebe.” Holden is able to talk about her in this fashion and connect to her emotionally because it is safe to pay this much attention to her. The attention cannot be misconstrued as sexual because she is his sister. If he did this with other females, it would seem as though he were interested in them. But, because his desire is for males, he holds this type of attention for them and his sister, and pays little attention to other women.
Another gay sign found throughout The Catcher in the Rye is Holden’s femininity. Holden knows that he is supposed to have a masculine demeanor but is unable to display one. For example, when he discusses the fact the he wishes he knew who took his gloves, he expresses how he would like to confront that person. He would like to approach him and say something “cutting and snotty” and threaten him (Salinger 116). But in reality, Holden realizes he would not be able to do such a thing: “I wouldn’t have the guts to do it…I’m partly yellow” (Salinger 116-117). Holden is just too effeminate to do such a thing.
Holden’s femininity is also present when he gets into a fight with Maurice, the pimp. Instead of being concerned with how to defend himself, Holden is overly concerned about being seen in his pajamas: “It wouldn’t have been so bad, I don’t think, if I hadn’t had just my goddamn pajamas on” (Salinger 133). Rather than trying to think of ways to overcome Maurice, Holden is focused on his appearance. Also during this scene, instead of fighting, Holden tells Maurice that he will yell and wake everyone up. After this statement, he simply starts to cry: “All of a sudden I started to cry” (Salinger 134). At no point in this confrontation does Holden do anything masculine; he does not even think about trying to protect himself. Instead, he focuses on his appearance and starts to cry.
A final example of Holden’s femininity is evident when he is out with Sally Hayes. While they are spending time in New York City, he relays to her how cars are used as status symbols. Traditionally, cars are a masculine symbol, and in this scene, Holden rejects them: “I don’t even like old cars. I mean they don’t even interest me. I’d rather had a goddamn horse” (Salinger 170). Horses are animals and animals are usually a female interest. But in this case, they are more appealing to Holden. This can be seen as a rejection of the masculine lifestyle and all things associated with it as well as his embracement of the feminine. According to Sarah Graham, “Holden recognizes and rejects…passive acceptance of the social norms in women and men” (10). In other words, Holden knows as a man, what he is supposed to like and be interested in, but realizes that he is not like everybody else. This not only helps to portray Holden’s femininity but also is an example of Holden’s gay sensibility.
Tyson relays that gay sensibility is an acute feeling that one is different from other people in society: “[G]ay sensibility includes an awareness of being different, at least in certain ways, from the members of the mainstream dominant culture and the complex feelings that result from an implicit, ongoing social oppression” (330). James Lunquist points out that throughout the novel, Holden “realizes how different he is from other people” (38). This is evident early on in the text when he is seen watching the football game from afar. All of the other boys at the school are completely intrigued and fascinated by the game, but Holden cannot get interested and so, according to Thomas Reed Whissen, he alienates himself. Whissen expresses that Holden’s reason for doing this is because he “cannot stand the company of others” simply because he cannot relate (55). Holden knows that he is different from the majority of the boys at the game and chooses to alienate himself because of this.