Catcher in the Rye: Secondary Characters

Phoebe Caulfield:  Phoebe is Holden's younger sister. Phoebe is very wise for her age.  She loves her brother Holden and worries about him a lot.  Holden often seeks advice from Phoebe and enjoys talking to her because she is very smart for her age.   She is very caring and she wants Holden to get back on track.  She keeps his secrets, but does not exactly like to. She is not in the novel that much until the end, but she is a very important person to Holden.

Jane Gallagher: Jane is never directly in the novel, but Holden thinks about her very much.  Holden really likes Jane and they were friends when they were younger.  Jane is the one Holden wants to go out with, but he never has the nerve to call her.  She is a symbol of Holden's longing for human relations, but he never is mature enough to take it to the next level.  Although Jane was not in the novel, she was a very important character and symbol.

Sally Hayes;  Sally Hayes is one of Holden's beautiful former dates.  He only likes her because she is pretty and tried to make a move on her.  She did not want to because Holden was not treating her right and they did not really have anything in common.  She was in the novel to show how much Holden wanted to be with a girl.  He was tired of being lonley and tried to be with her.  She is basically a symbol of Holden's lonliness.

Allie Caulfield:  Allie was Holden's brother who died of an illness.  Holden loved him very much and thought about him often.  Allie's death was very hard on Holden.  Allie was always cheerful and really smart.  Allie's death might be a reason that Holden is scared to grow older.  Holden speaks to Allie when he is sad or confused.  Allie is a symbol of the innocence of childhood that Holden values.

Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston: Little, Brown, 2001. Print.