Often in life, teenagers and young adults find themselves stuck in between childhood and adulthood, as they are often immature and childish, but also have a substantial amount of responsibility in their hands. These young adults can’t return to childhood due to their age, even though they may possess an abundance of childish qualities. On the other hand, these young adults are just children stuck in a grown up body, often apprehensive of their future, as their childish qualities portend failure in their future. In the novel, The Catcher In The Rye, by J.D. Salinger, this is generally portrayed as the main idea, as Holden, a troubled teenager, “is poised between two worlds, one he cannot return to and one he fears to enter.” Holden often acts like an adolescent, filled with immaturity, erratic behavior, and a lack of seriousness, even in important situations. However, in other situations, Holden acts like a mature adult, acting with respect, controlling his behavior, and showing some seriousness. Throughout The Catcher In The Rye, Holden’s actions and behavior often seem to contradict itself, as he tries to shift from childhood to adulthood.
    Although Holden attempts to make the shift from childhood to adulthood, he often exhibits immaturity and erratic behavior, which are childish qualities. An illustration of this would be on pages 90-98, where Holden goes to a nightclub and starts to dance with a group girls, especially one that he likes. Holden’s sophomoric behavior started immediately, as he tried to cajole a young waiter into bringing him a Scotch and soda, even though Holden was only 16 years old, and the legal drinking age is 21. The waiter questions Holden age, and then Holden proceeded onto lying about his age, and started to intimidate the waiter, trying to get him to bring his drink. After that, Holden spotted a blonde girl that he is sort of in to, and asked her if she cared to dance. Holden then continued on to dance with her, before she and her friends had to leave to catch a Radio City Music Hall show early in the morning. After the ladies left, Holden was pretty ticked off, as they didn’t even offer to pay. Holden pretty much threw a fit, even though he would have paid, as well as ranting on about their ignorance. This scene showcases Holden’s immature and childish behavior, showing that even though he is no longer in childhood, he still acts like he is through his actions and behavior.
    Although Holden often acts like a child during his “shift” for childhood to adulthood, he sometimes exhibits maturity and respect, which are adult-like qualities. A paradigm of this would be on pages 266-275, where Holden pulls Phoebe out of school, and returns her Christmas dough to her before telling her that he was going to leave. Phoebe wanted to come with him on his trip, and responsibly, like an adult, he didn’t give into Phoebe, not allowing her to come on the trip with him. Phoebe argued relentlessly, and eventually started crying because she was very upset at Holden. Holden tried to calm her down, but Phoebe wouldn’t budge, until Holden allowed her to skip school and go to the zoo with her. Eventually, at the zoo, Phoebe forgave him, after being enraged at Holden. This scene really depicts Holden entering adulthood, as throughout the entire scene, Holden shows great maturity and respect. This scene is a polar-opposite of the one with the girls in the nightclub, as Holden displayed that he is an adult in this scene, compared to a child in the other one.
    In the last two paragraphs of the book, Holden starts to exhibit that he really departed childhood and developed into an adult. In the last chapters, Holden really displays adult qualities, as he acts maturely and logically, not allowing Phoebe to come on the trip with him. Continuing on with her typical immature behavior, Phoebe becomes upset that she can’t travel with Holden, and throws a fit. Surprisingly enough, Holden shows a soft side, and becomes comforting and kind to Phoebe, trying to calm her down. Holden really acts like an adult in this scene, taking Phoebe to the zoo, and bonding with her, while she went on the carousel and Holden was sitting on the bench. After that, the most controversial event in the book occurred; Phoebe reached into Holden’s pocket, and put his red hunting hat on his head. Even though Holden really displayed many adult-like qualities during this scene, he doesn’t become an adult. As long as Holden has the red hunting hat, he can never really grow up or move on from Allie’s death. He can never stop grieving and become an adult until the hat is out of his life. So, Holden is still stuck between childhood and adulthood, and can’t enter adulthood until the hat disappears.
    Holden’s actions and behavior often seems to contradict itself throughout The Catcher In The Rye, as Holden is trying to make the transition from childhood to adulthood. In the book, Holden is often immature and has erratic behavior, such qualities that a child would have. However, Holden also shows maturity and respect later on in the book, which shows that he also has qualities of an adult. Throughout the book, J.D. Salinger depicts Holden’s struggle to shift from childhood to adulthood, as he is neither an adult or child, but retains qualities of both a kid and an adult.