The Catcher in the Rye

You should read the book instead of asking this.

But if you really need to know, Holden Caulfield, the main character, decides he does not have any dreams or aspirations to be a classic adult, that is, settle down and have some pups and work a factory job. The only way he feels he can make a difference in the world and help humanity is to play bodyguard on a rye-field he made up in his own head. In this dream-place, there is a rye field atop a cliff, and there are children playing in the rye-field. Because of the innocence and obliviousness of the children, Holden fears they would just run right off the cliff whilst playing, and his dream job would to be The Catcher in the Rye(field) so no children would get hurt.

Seriously, just read it, it's a very short book.

The author of Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger, refused multiple offers to make a film adaptation of the book. Since his death, Salinger's agent has continued to honor his wishes that the book not be adapted for film.

Chapter 22 page 170 is where Holden discusses James Castle.

As Holden shares his experiences, it becomes evident that he is talking from a mental facility where he is being psychoanalyzed. He is mentally insane, or at least considered so. This can be seen by his frequent use of the word 'madman" when he criticizes himself: "I was smoking like a madman"

Holden Caulfield

D.B. Caulfield

Mr. Spenser

Mr. and Mrs. Caulfield

Robert Ackley

Walt Stradlater

Jane Gallagher

Allie Caulfield

Mrs. Morrow

Phoebe Caulfield

Faith Cavendish

Bernice, Marty, Laverne

Horwitz

Lillian Simmons

Maurice

Sunny

Sally Hayes

Mr. Antolini

yellow means cowardly

it symbolizes his need to distance himself from society.

if you notice he wears it when he is not around people he knows

showing his conflict between isolation and companionship In addition it serves to protect him from unpleasant thoughts, such as the ones that occur to him in Chapter 16 after thinking about the museum, then classmates missing trips to the museum because of scarlet fever, about parents fighting, about changing and growing, and being different.

He was jelous of him dating Jane Gallagher. Well, that's what I thought.

Holden decides if a book is outstanding based on his like or dislike of the author. Holden states that there are some authors that he would just like to ring up and talk to. If he has this kind of friendly connection with an author then he feels justified in the fact that this book is outstanding. If not, he deems the book boring and that the author is just another "phony".

Not well at all.

Holden's brief journey through a series of totally unrelated events ends in a nonevent. I saw little point in Holden's so called rebellious nature: it wasn't inspirational, it led nowhere, and Holden was so immersed in himself he failed to see, or even look for, one positive glimmer during his sad experience. He (or was it Salinger?) even confuses the words to Robbie Burns' "Comin' through the rye" from which the title is taken.

As I read the book, I hoped, right to the last word, for some sort of meaning or moral ....and found none.

Negative, nihilistic and self-indulgent to a fault, it could well have made an impression on me in my youth, but the whole story has almost no identity with anyone with a vestige of self-esteem.

A must-read for anyone trying to pluck up the courage to commit suicide: if Holden can do it, anyone can.

Mac Fletcher: Nov 2010

Holden met the group of nuns, one of whom, was an old English teacher, and they spent some time talking about romeo and Juliet. Holden was nervous about talking about romeo and Juliet with the nun because of the racey aspects of the play, however he was suprised to discover that the nun had a great interest and love for romeo and Juliet. Holden gave them a donation before they left.

Yes, he did.

He decides to leave the nightclub and listening to Ernie play, just not to have to stand Lilian Simmons, one of D.B.'s ex-girlfriends.

Holden didn't have any place to go, and didn't feel like going to get a another cab. So what he did was go to Grand Central Station.

No, in their biographies, they are shown to have different parents, in diferent birthplaces.

They are not directly related, if at all.

There are no actual totals of the schools that have banned 'Catcher in the Rye,' over the years, because those who ban, and later decide to allow the book, or the reverse, are constantly changing. However, it is among a cadre of books that share the distinction of being the most banned of all time. Reasons for banning ranged from obscenity, and inappropriate language to being 'biased against white people.'

Because she tried sucking his dick but his dick was too small... Soddy

New York City

I had the same question but I just looked around the Internet

also: if Phoebe went to school in New York, then they must live close because they are brother and sister

Holden's epiphany is that he can not protect childhood innocence. He realizes that no matter what he does children are going to be exposed to many things while they are young and there is nothing he can do about it.

Holden Caufield, is seventeen years old when he is narrating, but sixteen when the flashback takes place. He is young looking with good personal hygiene. He is six foot two and a half inches, with grey hair on the right side of his head.

He died in his condominium in Santa Monica, CA in Nov 1981. He basically bled to death after slipping, hitting his head and failing to get emergency assistance to stop the bleeding. He was intoxicated at the time.

The carrosel shows that 1: Holden has accepted himself into the "adult world' by not going on it. He has accepted that he is grown up. 2: When all the kids are reaching for the "gold ring, if they fall, they fall" you just have to let them "fall" out of childhood, which goes back to the cliff catcher in the rye scene, Holden no longer feels the responsibility of saving kids from falling into adult hood.

There's no exact answer for as to what type of depression he has. However, we can be sure that it's serious enough that he has to see a proffesional. If you read the first chapter, he keeps saying "before I had to come out here to relax." Basically, he's talking to a shrink the whole time. The author has put the reader in the doctor's place. A few people have wanted to contact the author to ask what Holden's condition was, but he's a bit of an introvert. He keeps to himself, won't talk about his book, and doesn't give interviews. He wants us all to come up with our own opinions and ideas about his work.

He thinks they're innocent, and wants to protect them from "falling". That's why when he goes to Phoebe's school and sees the ---- you's written on the wall twice, and again in the museum, he gets so upset. Also, he looks for companionship in anyone, even children. Holden likes kids, which is especially shown when he's with Phoebe, and also in chapter 16, when he hears the boy singing "if a body catch a body coming through the rye...", helps the girl with her skates, and finally tries to help the kids playing seesaw (because one of them is rather large and the smaller one is struggling to push down). Holden wants to protect kids, but at the end, when he's watching Phoebe go around the carousel, he realizes that sometimes kids are going to fall, and you have to let them get back up. He realizes that "you have to let them grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but it's bad if you say anything to them."

I think it may be a metaphor for the complex relationship between Holden and Jane in the novel. The fact that the idea of a highly romanticised Shakespearean love story could be Holden looking back on the memories of the past with rose-tinted glasses, and that he is using it to gloss over the cracks and less desirable parts of the memory, making more of a story than there really is. If you look closely, one can see that the metaphor does fit. However, it could also merely show Holden's interest in English.