As a cynical sixteen-year-old boy, Holden hesitates at the crossroads where no one can tell him what is right or wrong, or what is black or white, so he has to explore the life journey by himself。 In the lonely journey, he disgusts the social phoniness and seeks for trueness, but has to yield to social reality。 He is dispirited, coward, but virtuous。 Therefore, the personality of Holden is complicated。 And to some extend, his complicated characteristics mean he is ambivalence。

2。2 Reasons of Ambivalence

Firstly, the influencing factor on Holden’s ambivalence is the social alienation。 Money talks became the golden rule in the 1950s, so humans tried their best to make money, even in an illegal way。 Their behaviors caused disorder and social alienation。 As a teenager, Holden did not have a clear attitude towards money, so he did not understand conditions around him。 No one told him how to settle those problems for the people and conditions around him were phoniness, and he wanted to against them but without ability。 What’s more, he used unconventional and unrestrained behaviors to express his anxiety and depression。 

    In those conditions, Holden’s mental pursuits and actual behaviors were in the ambivalence。 He frowned upon all things that happened around him, even wanted to escape the reality life and pretended to be a deaf-mute in an obscure village。 But it would not happen in the real life, so he had to live in the ambivalence。 The most hated thing in his life was movie, but he had to spent time in the theater when he was boring。 He disgusted the sexual relation without love, but called a whore in a fog。 He disliked his vain girl friend Saley but infatuated with her beauty and could not stand hugging with her。 Therefore, even though frowning upon all social matters, he had to use the unrealistic imagination to comfort and lie to himself, and still could not avoid to compromise on the society。 The background of social alienation caused Holden’s ambivalence which would like dump in the phoniest society but could not be the thorough resister。 As Kong Qiumei, a professor comes from China, said that Holden is the spokesman of the social alienation, but also the sacrifice of it。来,自.优;尔:论[文|网www.chuibin.com +QQ752018766-

Secondly, Holden’s inner factors attribute to his ambivalence。 We know that external cause can function through internal cause, thus internal cause is decisive。 So it is certain that the social alienation is not the only cause of Holden’s ambivalence, his inner factors also take a great part on it。

        “Life is a game, boy。 Life is a game that one plays according to the rules” “ Yes, sir。 I know it is。 I know it。” Game, my ass。 Some game。 If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then it’s a game, all right—I’ll admit that。 But if you get on the other side, where here aren’t any hot-shots, then what’s a game about it?(Salinger 17)