Catcher in the Rye

Context

• Zeitgeist/milleu: an environment that influences works. Reactionary to World War 2 and the cultural loss of innocence.

• Themes: trauma and coping with trauma, ways in which individuals process and cope with trauma.

  • Narrator is unreliable; contradictions will be present.\

• Salinger became Holden-esque isolated in a bunker, his safe place.

  • glass stories, kids fought for affection.

  • coping with traumas of war

  • Hinduism: produce perfect works.

  • paranoid editors too

• Book is misinterpreted, becomes catalyst for John Lennon’s death.

Chapter 1

• David Copperfield: an allusion to orphan’s biography.

• physically unwell: being treated in a care facility

• Irresponsibility: leaving the fencing equipment behind — finds amusement.

• Attempts to derive closure from leaving: farewell to his history teacher.

• Resents school via impulse; was expelled for poor academic performance.

• Can’t obtain closure from either the football game or his history teacher.

Chapter 2

• Age and immaturity: naivety of life

• Coming of age too quickly: grey hair

• Establishes how Holden always withholds something from the reader.

• Ducks at central park: future motif.

• Establishes hatred towards the world and its phonies; is distant with the world.

  • hates phonies, is a phony in his own right; hypocritical.

  • perceptions of adulthood is that everyone is a phony.

• Wishing someone good luck is a sign of insincerity or phoniness.

Chapter 3

• Terrific liar: unreliable narrator.

• Insecurities present: Edgar Marsalla interrupting speech by Ossenberger.

• Symbol: Holden’s hunting hat, purchased after fencing foils went missing: security hat/blanket.

  • establishes deer hat as for shooting people → shooting bull with history teacher.

• Robert Ackley: strikes Holden as genuine, yet crubby.

  • god damn superior attitudes: Ackley has attitudes and mannerisms that are questionable at best.

Chapter 4 & 5

• Stradladder: established as a self-absorbed slob; is a reflection upon Holden.

  • horsing around: a rejection of adulthood and maturity.

  • peak of hunting hat: a change to maturity and its securities.

• Jane Gallagher and Checkers: preservation of childhood memory, purity, innocence.

  • checkers: immaturity, less sophisticated than chess; a childhood game.

• Forms a snowball and decides to not throw it: views the purity of the car and the snowball, holds onto the purity.

• Introduction to Allie: a trauma that must be resolved; the nuances of the baseball bat.

  • dodging responsibility

  • needs closure from Allie’s death.

  • psychoanalysis: needed after punching car window, can no longer make a fist.

  • holds onto the purity of Allie through the composition.

Chapter 6

• Differing views about Allie’s glove: Stradladder hates it, composition was supposed to be about a room.

  • Rips up memory of Allie.

• Frozen image of Jane: worried about Stradladder having sexual interactions with Jane.

  • Disrupts the image of youth to not harm purity; expects Stradladder to let it go.

• Holden’s tendency for violence with Stradladder: keeps failing, displays lengths he will go to to preserve purity.

• Hunting hat: a return to childhood, a security blanket.

  • pacifism; vulnerability of childhood after the fight.

• value of Jean’s memory.

Chapter 7

• Breaks down views and perceptions of Jean: perceptions that Stradladder and Jean had sexual interaction in Ed Banksy’s car.

• Elects to escape to New York and leave Pencey early: sells his typewriter to accomplish this.

• Presents make Holden sad: the inability of society to understand or fulfill him.

Chapter 8

• Rudolf Schmidt: embraces anonymity with Ernie’s mother: shoots the bull, is a phony.

  • Tells her a fabricated view of Ernie with noble intentions.

• Lives vicariously through Allie; tumor on the brain (leukemia)

Chapter 9

• Ducks in Central Park: ducks emblematic of purity; expresses concern for the ducks and how they preserve their purity when displaced; views himself as a preserver of innocence.

• aging sickens Holden → displays relationship with aging: wants to resist, yet he has white hair.

• fascinated by sex → an inconsistency in narrative versus prior interactions.

• wouldn’t call Jane: doesn’t want to corrupt his visions of childhood.

• visions of acts in hotel windows: conflicted between childhood and mature desires, should he embrace it or be disgusted?

Chapter 10

• Introduces reader to Phoebe: smart, cunning, makes him happy.

• juxtaposition of visions: Phoebe as someone who makes him happy and then switch to three witches.

• Marco and Miranda: ingenuine connection with ladies found at dive bar.

• contrasting views: preserving the purity of the idea of dancing with that lady.

  • amusing himself

  • possesses ideal perception of people

• alcohol: attempts to enter a mature role, is blocked

  • his sophistication falls flat.

• ladies were morons: emphasizes that it is a recollection from hindsight.

Chapter 11

• youthful image of Jane Gallagher furthered

• converging of pure images delineates vulnerabilities with Jane.

• desired to have fostered a relationship with Jane.

• sandwiched within complains furthers the juxtaposition

• recollection of experience with Jane: appreciation of differences and quirks

• kissing: an act to restore purity.

Chapter 12

• Ducks at Central Park: the displacement of Holden

  • protector of purity, ducks emblematic of docility and peacefulness

  • how does anything take care of themselves?

  • Jane’s image is not one that needs to be protected.

• Ernie, the pianist → juxtaposition: the purity of the ducks back to phoniness

• “real ugly girls” → associates himself with beauty, thereby disassociating himself of imperfections.

• superiority complex in how he deals with phonies.

• Lillian: impressed with superficial glamour, such as Ernie and DB.

• Stradladder: giving Jane the time; a comparison.

Chapter 13

• envisions theft of gloves: a response via violence

  • removal or disassociation with theft

  • yellowness: mellowness or indifferences

  • puking myself: unreliable narrator.

• pays prostitute: another attempt at fostering interaction.

• fascination with sex: contrast of impurities and immaturities

  • renouncing the impurities of sex

  • hollywood → connects to DB

  • depressed: hatred of the movies, cannot have sex with prostitute.

Chapter 14

• religious purity → Jesus as pure, the Disciples as impure.

• breakdown when faced with Maurice: gives money, is extorted, fuels his depression.

Chapter 15

• suitcases: hates inferiority complexes, desires the genuine nature from people.

  • suppresses any semblance of superiority that he has

• nuns: the phoniness of religious peoples foiled by the purity of nuns → gives them $10 for their mission.

• purity: smart and entertaining killed.

Chapter 16

• Youthful singing: less depressed: idea of catcher in the rye: “if a body catch a body in the rye”

  • Robert Burns: Scottish lyricist and poet; true poem is “if a body meet a body in the rye”, referring to sexual assault → irony of a child singing it

    • catching a body in the jolly tone (happiness)

    • Jenny goes into the rye, loses her innocence, is assaulted; the child is drawn towards the melody.

• Preserving the pure image of Jane (ofc)

• favourite part of Hamlet: where Ophelia refuses to grow up, preserving his naivety and preferring when others do.

• Museum: fancies the preservation aspect of glass boxes.

  • evolution of Holden’s experience, the preservation of purity.

  • realization that he is changed and subjected to the forces of age: changed as a character versus the presentation of the museum

  • adverse to change; does not like unfamiliarity (but we already knew this)

  • nostalgia

• Kids on a seesaw:

  • forced to move onto adulthood in a grey area

  • desires to promote balance of purity and equivalence

  • squashing inferiority between kids

  • sees aspects of himself in the kids and leaves.

• Did not go inside the museum

  • offsets his maturity: Phoebe would achieve the same nostalgia that Holden endured.

  • avoids maturity, cannot justify going to the museum without Phoebe

  • unreliability, is an understatement.

  • refuses to confront his change in maturity, Holden is changed versus the museum

  • Does not want to ruin the memory of the museum

  • Desires to live through Phoebe vicariously and derive enjoyment from her enjoyment.

Chapter 17

• bores of the show: fools perception of himself.

• Lultz: husband-wife performance.

• Crew cut: a short buzz cut, emblematic of maturity and age.

• Luntz: Ernie-esque: hates phonies and legitimacy, which he desires.

  • Salinger: rubs shoulders with critics, a reflection of his own life.

• Outburst to Sally: a rejection of his environment.

  • desires to manifest adulthood and maturity but still in this pure form, escapist desires.

  • Greenwich village: miserable in New York, dynamic shift between Sally and Holden

  • natural beauty = purity, intertwines responsibility

  • yelling violence: a hint towards humour.

• Retrospect: an understatement of his experience with Sally, outburst as a response.

  • Isolates himself, does not belong in the world.

  • Sally can’t save him, Holden can’t take no for an answer.

    • Holden is worried that he will become what he hates

    • more that he himself will change versus his environment.

    • alone together, latching on for connection.

      • wider aspects of preservation, afraid of submission to society, an inability to resist societal pressure.

      • “now or never”

• Stream of conscience: existentialism, the dread of existence within the New York society.

Chapter 18

• concedes to movies → surrounding aspects of himself.

  • Allie moment: enjoyment in movies, reveals why Holden dislikes the movies (Allie)

• References to war: the environment of Salinger; the evolution of the Atomic Bomb.

• Firing squad is a nialistic reference.

• Calls Jane: is physically blocked.

• Won’t tell you the rest of the movie: irony because he proceeds to do so.

• Lost memory: lost memory of purity with the cricket ball; foreshadows turning point.

• D.B.: the impact of war: the personal revelation of Salinger’s literature.

• The Great Gatsby: an allusion that extends to Holden with Jane: attraction, pleasing etc.

• will happen: establishes disturbing desires of self harm to be placed on top of the Atomic bomb; the cartoonish nature masking troublesome desires.

• Inferiority complexes

  • superiority as a non-phony person (irony)

  • inferiority: act of phonies; paradox.

  • expands from a black and white view

  • relates back to suitcases

Chapter 19

• love story in Wicker Bar: a reference.

• Luce: guy from school (from Chapter 18)

  • flit: femenite clothing (lesbian-esque); a gay man → points out sarcasm.

  • repeats prior interactions, the desires to relax and discuss topics.

  • pushes topics of sex, psychoanalysis to foster connections.

• duality present: the bar and setting versus the Caufield conversation; communicates virginity and unreliability.

• psychoanalysis: link to resolving Allie’s death, immaturity

• immaturity: intrigue on sex → identity

• intellectuals: discussion of morality, hypocritical nature of those discussions.

• a tiresome fascination into sex/psychoanalysis/girls

Chapter 20

• bullet in the guts: pretends to be shot

  • immaturity → a juxtaposition because mobsters are usually mature topics, yet its a game Holden is playing as a child.

  • wounds via mental health/emotionally; conceals them.

  • “drunk as a snake” refers to impulse; covering up phoniness

• rejected by society: resorts back to hunting hat

• Phoebe’s record: his life in pieces

• Ducks: displacement

• “dump into river”: considers worth of life and lowsyness.

  • Fears regret from Phoebe and parents.

• Demonstrates decline: random crying, incoherent calling, record smashing, where to go, projects himself to ducks, chunks of ice, ridding himself of money.

• Funerals: flower, needs genuine connection in his life, not after.

• care for Allie: having to stay behind for his funeral, mad for enjoying comforts while Allie is in the ground decomposing.

Chapter 21

• quiet nature of Holden’s house: the smell, belonging.

  • the purity is present; the naivety that the house represents is present.

• cartons: decline in Holden

• blanket: security blanket for Holden.

• Phoebe: capable of healing and perceiving Holden.

  • uncovers being kicked out → responsibility

  • escapism like with Sally.

Chapter 22

• carousel: horse riding; in circles → further mentioned later.

• fraternity is unreliable → legacy student.

• projects from Phoebe.

  • incapable of embracing positivity through James Castle.

• Phoebe foils Holden.

• “Catcher in the Rye” establishes desires to be a preserver of purity; seems himself stopping people from falling off, or preventing James from falling.

• Castle: repulsion and coping with repulsion; Castle responds with suicide and suicidal thoughts.

• Dynamic of Holden & Phoebe:

  • Phoebe has already processed Allie’s death; contrasts maturity.

  • Keeps Holden in check

  • Foils Holden’s train of thought: positivity thrown out, blaming society

• Catcher: preserver of childhood innocense

  • cliff: the jump into responsibility and maturity

    • seesaw: a rejection from duty, manifesting desire

    • personability with childhood naivety → still connected

  • juxtaposition of lyrical interpretation

  • Phoebe somehow knows the lyrics: knows there isn’t someone who can prevent adulthood.

Chapter 23

• View on teachers evolves: Antolini as someone who can listen and understand Holden.

  • displays connection; all teachers inferior to Antolini.

• Observation on display; smoking: brother-sister loyalty;

  • Holden’s mother beats around the bush like Holden himself.

• Holden crying after Allie gives him his money: a connection to hope → decent tears, the release of emotion

• Hunting hat: naivety, protection, found help outside, shares it with Phoebe.

• recognition of Holden being unwell: recognizes his need for help.

Chapter 24

• Visits Antolini:

  • Terrible psychological fall: descent into depression, incapability; fall into adulthood; death of James; understands Holden; duality of poor school performance as fall, yet its more existential; confirms decline.

  • special kind of fall: validation of Holden’s fears of decline; unknowingly oblivious of the fall into adulthood; likens to a cliff: catcher in the rye; stopped looking for belonging; applying himself; gave up before Holden saw the light of maturity; attempt to find belonging again

  • Die nobly for a cause: immaturity as a byproduct of wanting to escape adulthood; catcher in the rye: die for kids to maintain maturity; maturity instead as an act for belonging and acceptance, not die in vain or in lack thereof.

    • the cause that Holden is dying for is his desire to be a protector of the children.

  • pedo stuff has happened to Holden: trauma that must be resolved; taken in vain, misinterpreted and judge-y; signs himself away; further rejection from society.

Chapter 25/26

• Feelings about Antolini: wonders if head patting was truly pedo-like; commitment stemming from hid depression.

• Cancer: represents Holden’s innate desire to die (made up); refers to Allie.

• Fears: crossing street.

  • Talks to a make belief Allie as a form of revenge.

  • Embraces adulthood and dangers: choosing the sidewalk or the street.

• Running as an act of deterrence: an extension of his poor self worth

• “Fuck you” → loss of innocence, epiphany that he cannot escape the impure

  • cannot rub out all the fuck yous, some are permanent, therefore he cannot be a catch-all preserver of purity.

• Mummies → idea of mummy presentation and preservation resonates with Holden’s views.

  • tomb: feels at peace, then fuck you, the irony of a crayon.

• Carousel: loss of innocence is inevitable, “you have to let [the kids] fall as they try to reach the brass ring.

  • Catcher hat: security from the rain.

  • Epiphany that life is like a carousel: that it goes around in waves of impure and purity, that it must be coped with.

Primary motifs

• Falling: falls into adulthood, maturity

• Hat: security blanket

• Jane: purity of childhood experience.

• Suicide: self-worth, depression, fitting within society.

• Ducks: displacement of pure things.

• Museum: preservation of purity, to keep things static

• Allie: trauma that must be resolved

• Phoebe: a foil to Holden’s train of thought.

• Phony: desire for genuine human connection.

Themes

• innate need for human connection: desires to belong whilst in the limbo between adulthood and youth.

• purity: desire for genuine human connection; for people to be uncorrupted and preserved like how they are in childhood.