What effects do the events have on a particular characters life or personality?

The author J.D Salinger shows how impactful the effects of a particular situation in a characters lives can destroy their life. The main character and protagonist Holden Caulfield is a perfect example of how the effects of situations can hurt and destroy you. Holden's younger brother Allie passed away at the age of eleven from leukemia in 1946, Holden was also only a young teenager at 13 so it was very difficult for him to handle. Holden really admired his brother for his intelligence and sense of humor, which he didn't really possess the same quality's. Evidently you can see Holden is very depressed because really his brother was everything to him and he basically gives up on everything in life including his marks at Pencey.


Additionally Holden basically closes of him social life and refuses to really talk to the outside world, the mental health aspect really takes him over and he feels very lonely. The theory of the Catcher In the Rye not happening is a possibility if Holden's brother Allie does not die from Cancer in 1946, the personality and mental health of Holden maybe actually be the total opposite of how it is at this point in the book.