pink shadow
New Member
Sorry, I don't agree at all. I thought the book was endlessly tedious and Holden Caulfield was a whiny jerk.
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J.D. Salinger: The Catcher In The Rye
- Thread starter hobitten
- Start date
pink shadow
New Member
I forgot to say welcome to the forum! It is really cool! And you'll be sure to find people who like C in the R, even if I don't!
novella
Active Member
Don't mean to give you homework, but there are a lot of threads on this and much has been said.
Here's one:
http://forums.thebookforum.com/showthread.php?t=4086&highlight=Salinger
Welcome to the forum.
Here's one:
http://forums.thebookforum.com/showthread.php?t=4086&highlight=Salinger
Welcome to the forum.
avidfanftw
New Member
Catcher is a life time love
I love this book. Kind of creepy thoa the way John Lennon's killer twisted the perception of this great book.
avid
I love this book. Kind of creepy thoa the way John Lennon's killer twisted the perception of this great book.
avid
veggiedog
New Member
I just wrote a nice, long review for this...and it disappeared.
I will just summarize what I had written previously.
Holden is a difficult character. He is difficult to like because he tends to get himself into situations...and complain about them. He is difficult to hate because he has that innocence and vulnerability and fear that many of us have felt, or at least understood. He is difficult to sympathize with and difficult to respect, but is someone who needs both sympathy and respect. He is immature, but knows and sees more than many adults do.
I don't think that Holden is a brat. He is lost and confused. He doesn't understand life. There have been two events in his past that have made him: the death of his brother and the suicide of a classmate. His problem is his attitude. Some people are bothered by the fact that he is pathetic, selfish, and insecure at the beginning of the novel and pathetic, selfish, and insecure at the end. But it's not as though he doesn't change. It's not as though he doesn't learn anything.
To have him have learned his lesson like a good little boy and earn a Boy Scout patch for good citizenship would be unrealistic. That's not the way the real world operates. Some things about some people will never change, or will take more than one experience and a few days to change. Holden may not have completely altered his view of the world, but he altered it at least enough to redeem something of himself. In fact, to have completely changed his vier of the phony world into a sunny, happy place would be just as bad, the opposite extreme.
But Holden does begin to see, at least somewhat, by the end, that others have emotions and complex feelings beneath their possibly 'phony' exterior, or whatever group Holden may categorize them in. For example, after leaving Mr. Antolini's Holden feels guilty because he knows he was too harsh and too hasty in his judgment. He can't dismiss Mr. Antolini as a 'flit' because he know better, he knows Mr. Antolini is a deeper person than that. When he lets Phoebe on the carosaul (sp?) reach for the gold ring because he sees that she must--all kids must--and if she falls down, then she has fallen, and nothing can be done. But she at least has to try. Everyone has to grow up. Some people will grow up twisted or screwed up, but that can't be helped. Growing up is a part of life that must be accepted.
He also changes his attitude of towards the world by at least deciding to try harder at school and being more accepting of his position in life. He knows that not everyone is phony--like the nuns, Phoebe, Jane--and has already at least tried to be more open to others. The reason many people identify with him could be because everyone has shared some of the feelings that Holden has felt, whether it be lost, confused, scared, anger, depression, pessimism or any of the wide range of other emotions he has experienced. For most people, puberty is a complicated time. It's not always a very pretty time. The transition from childhood to adulthood is difficult for some people, because it means losing their innocence and entering a world more polluted with deceit and lies.
Holden's experiences epitomize what many teens (especially of the time and era) felt as they approached adulthood. If any era was the era of phoniness, it was the Fifties, what with Marilyn Monroe, teen rebellion, a booming movie industry, and other fads that weren't 'real' they were just there to take up space and time, to entertain but not really enhance. They were, to some at least, cultural fillers, ritzy glitzy stuff that didn't really equate with great art and literature.
Holden represents, in many ways, all teens and what they have to go through to grow up and accept the adult world. That's my two cents.
I will just summarize what I had written previously.
Holden is a difficult character. He is difficult to like because he tends to get himself into situations...and complain about them. He is difficult to hate because he has that innocence and vulnerability and fear that many of us have felt, or at least understood. He is difficult to sympathize with and difficult to respect, but is someone who needs both sympathy and respect. He is immature, but knows and sees more than many adults do.
I don't think that Holden is a brat. He is lost and confused. He doesn't understand life. There have been two events in his past that have made him: the death of his brother and the suicide of a classmate. His problem is his attitude. Some people are bothered by the fact that he is pathetic, selfish, and insecure at the beginning of the novel and pathetic, selfish, and insecure at the end. But it's not as though he doesn't change. It's not as though he doesn't learn anything.
To have him have learned his lesson like a good little boy and earn a Boy Scout patch for good citizenship would be unrealistic. That's not the way the real world operates. Some things about some people will never change, or will take more than one experience and a few days to change. Holden may not have completely altered his view of the world, but he altered it at least enough to redeem something of himself. In fact, to have completely changed his vier of the phony world into a sunny, happy place would be just as bad, the opposite extreme.
But Holden does begin to see, at least somewhat, by the end, that others have emotions and complex feelings beneath their possibly 'phony' exterior, or whatever group Holden may categorize them in. For example, after leaving Mr. Antolini's Holden feels guilty because he knows he was too harsh and too hasty in his judgment. He can't dismiss Mr. Antolini as a 'flit' because he know better, he knows Mr. Antolini is a deeper person than that. When he lets Phoebe on the carosaul (sp?) reach for the gold ring because he sees that she must--all kids must--and if she falls down, then she has fallen, and nothing can be done. But she at least has to try. Everyone has to grow up. Some people will grow up twisted or screwed up, but that can't be helped. Growing up is a part of life that must be accepted.
He also changes his attitude of towards the world by at least deciding to try harder at school and being more accepting of his position in life. He knows that not everyone is phony--like the nuns, Phoebe, Jane--and has already at least tried to be more open to others. The reason many people identify with him could be because everyone has shared some of the feelings that Holden has felt, whether it be lost, confused, scared, anger, depression, pessimism or any of the wide range of other emotions he has experienced. For most people, puberty is a complicated time. It's not always a very pretty time. The transition from childhood to adulthood is difficult for some people, because it means losing their innocence and entering a world more polluted with deceit and lies.
Holden's experiences epitomize what many teens (especially of the time and era) felt as they approached adulthood. If any era was the era of phoniness, it was the Fifties, what with Marilyn Monroe, teen rebellion, a booming movie industry, and other fads that weren't 'real' they were just there to take up space and time, to entertain but not really enhance. They were, to some at least, cultural fillers, ritzy glitzy stuff that didn't really equate with great art and literature.
Holden represents, in many ways, all teens and what they have to go through to grow up and accept the adult world. That's my two cents.
Doug Johnson
kickbox
veggiedog said:
You, obviously, never spent a large portion of your youth watching music videos.
The catcher and the rye. I have a few questions for you.
Hey,
Great read. I've read the book, and I'm now compiling an essay based on these following questions:
-How does death affect the main character?
-To what extent does death affect the stroy? and
-How do characters view death in the text?
I'm scouting around and want your opinion.
Cheers
Hey,
Great read. I've read the book, and I'm now compiling an essay based on these following questions:
-How does death affect the main character?
-To what extent does death affect the stroy? and
-How do characters view death in the text?
I'm scouting around and want your opinion.
Cheers
Are you doing this for homework? If so, click here and you may very well get some good suggestions.
I haven't read that book in ages. I'll definitely have to pick it up again, that is of course, if I don't feel put upon.
Nope. Not homework at all. I'm 28 years old; I finished school yeeeears ago. This is purely because I loved the book so much. I'm wanting to compile an essay up about it. I've done this for a few books also; Lord of the flies, harry potter, the list goes on.
Haha
you're a cheeky one, thinkin' ol' thorpe's a cheater. Haha darn you
novella
Active Member
http://www.bookandreader.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4086&highlight=Salinger
There's a huge thread on Catcher in the Rye. You may or may not want to read iit; I only point it out because I posted to it quite a bit and I don't feel like reiterating whatever.
There's a huge thread on Catcher in the Rye. You may or may not want to read iit; I only point it out because I posted to it quite a bit and I don't feel like reiterating whatever.
SFG75
Well-Known Member
Nope. Not homework at all. I'm 28 years old; I finished school yeeeears ago. This is purely because I loved the book so much. I'm wanting to compile an essay up about it. I've done this for a few books also; Lord of the flies, harry potter, the list goes on.
Haha
LOL-my sincere apologies.
Start a thread and see if folks will do a book discussion with you. I'll participate, just give me about a week.
Dr Blockbuster
kickbox
I'm schorry to schay that Dr Blockbuster did not like Catcher in the Rye when he was at school and has not changed his mind 500 years on.
Sorry.
Sorry.
D
Deleted member 6550
Guest
I'm a little different. On a scale of 1 - 5, I'd place it square in the middle at 3... good read, but vastly overrated.
Discussion about Catcher in the Rye
Hello there!
Well, I'm not quite sure if this is the right forum to post this question, but if it's wrong, please tell me!
So, I've read a book called Catcher in the Rye and I'm going to write something about it. I'm going to tell about Holden's relationship to the other members of his family, about his parents, D.B., Allie and Phoebe.
Since it's been quite some time since I read this book, I can't remember much about it, so I would be very thankful for your help!
EDIT: Another thing I would like to know is, what is Holden's problem? What is he running away from?
Hello there!
Well, I'm not quite sure if this is the right forum to post this question, but if it's wrong, please tell me!
So, I've read a book called Catcher in the Rye and I'm going to write something about it. I'm going to tell about Holden's relationship to the other members of his family, about his parents, D.B., Allie and Phoebe.
Since it's been quite some time since I read this book, I can't remember much about it, so I would be very thankful for your help!
EDIT: Another thing I would like to know is, what is Holden's problem? What is he running away from?
Of course that would have been the best, but I got this task today and it needs to be done by tomorrow.Why not just read it again? That way you'll feel all the better for doing your own homework.