Chapter 26

In Chapter 26 of The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, we find out that Holden is in a mental hospital after having a nervous breakdown. Holden has finally reached the adulthood he longed to avoid and it was too much of a shock for him. He has just become an adult and he already misses his childhood. His last message to us is: "Don't ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody." (pg.277) Holden misses Stradlater, Ackley, and Maurice because as unpleasant as they were, they were still a part of his life before he became an adult. He says that no matter how much you dislike someone or something, you cannot help but miss them of they were from a time that you treasured dearly. Holden Caulfield's experience in New York taught him that it is impossible to hide from the inevitable.