Intoxication with InnocenceAdolescence is a period of life in which a child develops from a child to an adult. It is the developmental stage in which psychological changes occur and efforts toward creating an identity begin. Clearly, it is an emotionally taxing and stressful time. In The Catcher in the Rye, by JD Salinger, we are introduced to a teenage boy. From first impressions you might believe that Holden Caulfield is just another teenager going through a phase of rebellion. The truth is that Holden's anguish arises from a deeper problem. He holds back from accepting adulthood and clings to a perfection that results from childhood innocence. Clinging to the idea of ​​maintaining permanent innocence, Holden becomes more than a rebellious teenager, he becomes lost and more problems emerge. According to Jonathan Baumbach, Holden hungers for a wise and benevolent authority (467). He seeks direction from the adults around him but finds only disillusionment. The relationship between Holden and his parents is not very defined throughout the book. Holden speaks of his father only with criticism and judgment towards his profession as a lawyer. Since he does not accept this father's conformity with society, Holden is left without a father figure he can truly call ideal. Baumbach states that Holden seeks Mr. Antolini as a replacement for his father. He sees Mr. Antolin as his last resort after all the other adults in his life, including his father, have failed him. He hopes that a substitute father can raise him up before he falls (463). Holden also searches for a mother figure who can serve as a possible savior. According to Baumbach, “His attraction to older women suggests that… middle of paper… drove him to madness. When you don't stand up for something, you are bound to fall for anything. Since Holden had no father figures in his life or greater influence, he took the idea of ​​innocence as his mantra. His need to find an identity led him to find role models in children, which led him to believe that permanent innocence would mean happiness and sanity. He remained true to his idea and tried to find innocence in the darkest places. His intoxication with this idea and his disappointing encounters with adults assure him that once a child grows up there is nothing but corruption to be found. He rejected the idea of ​​adulthood and created further problems for himself. In the course of this well-intentioned plan, Holden loses what little of himself he had. It stands only with the hunger for innocence. Because for him innocence is everything and love is innocence.