THE CATCHER IN THE RYE

Things to consider about Holden's view of women:

 Holden displays typical adolescent behaviour towards the opposite sex - he is unsure how to
relate to girls and at times seems even ambivalent towards them

 however, this ambivalence can be an example of his alienation & disconnectedness - he is

unable to form relationships with people in general - except with his younger sister, Phoebe

 with Phoebe, Holden hangs onto the fact that she is still young and innocent, although she acts
as Holden’s councillor, confidante & a source of insight & knowledge - he still wants to protect
her and hold onto her innocence before she too becomes a 'phony' adult

 why does Holden sabotage a relationship with Sally - as soon as someone starts to get close to
him, he sabotages the relationship and feels guilty about doing so

 Holden is upset on hearing that Jane Gallagher is going out with Stradlater because he knows
what kind of person Stradlater is and concerned for Jane - he obviously has some connection to
Jane, which he wants to hold onto, but cannot

 Holden seems to be aware how the death of Allie has affected his mother but is unable to
connect with her despite his own inability to come to terms with Allie's death - Holden does
have strong feelings for his mother (consider how he feels packing the ice-skates that his mother
has just recently bought for him)

 Holden thinks he is ready for a sexual relationship, and calls Sunny to his hotel room - however,
as soon as she is in the room with him, he finds he just wants to talk and connect with another
person

 A first person narrator is one that appears as a character within the story. This type of
narrator is easy to recognise as the story is told from his/her perspective and so the
personal pronouns, ‘I’, or ‘we’ are used throughout. This narrator seems to speak
directly to the reader in that they are telling the story to ‘someone’. With a first person
narrator, the information is limited to what the first person narrator knows or sees,
therefore the reader only has access to what the narrator knows.

 A third person narrator is generally thought to be ‘omniscient’. This means they know
everything and can tell us all the characters’ thoughts and actions. The third person
narrator can move freely around the events and characters of the story so that the
reader has access to all the information.

How does the use of first-person narration inform your reading of a text?

 With a first person narration, we assume that the narrator is ‘reliable’. This is because
we believe the narrator tell us everything he/she sees, although this may be limited.
However, we are also aware that it is a limited perspective and therefore, can also be
said to be unreliable, because it is just what this character has access to. We do not
 usually think this type of narrator ‘lies’ to us or withholds information, although we can
be manipulated by the narrator.

Does this mean that Holden is an unreliable narrator? Discuss examples that illustrate this.

 Throughout this novel, Holden constantly contradicts himself and the story. We are
never quite sure of his feelings or the stories he tells, because we soon realise that he
does not tell us everything. The first example of Holden’s ‘unreliability’ appears on page
9:

‘’Partly because I act quite young for my age sometimes. I was sixteen then, and
I’m seventeen now, and sometimes I act like I’m about thirteen.’ (Salinger, 2010:9)

And yet, on the following page, p. 10, he says the following:

“Sometimes I act a lot older than I am - I really do - but people never notice it.
People never notice anything.” (Salinger, 2010:10)

Holden tells us that he left the fencing team's equipment on the train, which meant they could
not play their game. He admits this was his fault, yet when he tells us, “the whole team
ostracized [sic] me the whole way back on the train. It was pretty funny, in a way”, (Salinger:
2010:3) we know that it is not “pretty funny”, and he really must have felt very bad about what
he had done. So, he is unable to admit when he is wrong and how hurt he feels not being
included.

Throughout the novel, Holden denigrates himself in ways that seem to belittle him. Yet, we can
see that he is well read, “I’d rather call old Thomas Hardy up. I like that Eustacia Vye”
(Salinger: 2010:20) intelligent, “My brother gave me a book by Ring Lardner” (Salinger,
2010:19) and extremely sensitive. It is this sensitivity that Holden is most unaware of and like
a typical teenager, he is most embarrassed at. He becomes furious with Stradlater because of
Jane Gallagher, “The next part I don’t remember so hot. All I know is I got up from the bed, like
I was going down to the can or something, and then I tried to sock him, with all my might, right
smack in the toothbrush, so it would split his goddam throat open” (Salinger, 2010: 45-46)

At the start of chapter three, Holden tells us, “I’m the most terrific liar you ever saw in your
life” (Salinger, 2010:17). This is quite a statement from Holden, because we feel that he is being
honest with us, and that we are a party to his lies to others. However, we soon realise, that
Holden also lies to himself and therefore to us as well. He has not been able to come to terms
with the death of Allie, and because of this, he cannot tell us of this pain.

These are just a few incidents where Holden’s reliability is questioned. But, we begin to realise
that Holden is desperately alienated and disconnected from his peers and family, and is
therefore unable to come to terms with himself and his unhappiness. Until he can do so, he
remains disconnected and alienated.

Other things to consider about this novel:

 what is the difference between a flat and a round character? Find examples in the novel
 does Holden grow over the course of the novel? Discuss in detail examples of this from
the novel
 complete the exercise at the bottom of p. 60, as well as the exercises on p. 61 of Tutorial
letter 501.
 post your answers directly onto the forum:
  what is the difference between a flat and a round character? Find examples in the novel
o a round character is a character that appears realistic. They seem to imitate life,
and are more fully developed by the writer
 Holden Caulfield, as the 1st person narrator in this novel, is obviously a
‘round’ character.
 a flat character is not as fully developed and would not be a central character but
rather a supporting one or a representation of a ‘type’ (a stereotype)
o Stradlater is a flat character in that he represents a type (teenage bully)

 does Holden grow over the course of the novel? Discuss in detail examples of this from
the novel
o we can question whether or not Holden ‘grows’ over the course of this novel. In a
typical bildungsroman (coming of age novel) we expect the protagonist to ‘grow’
throughout the course of the novel. With Holden however, we have to question
whether this happens or not. We have to question why at the beginning of the
novel, he refuses to tell us exactly where he is, and why he continues to
withhold parts of the story. He cannot bring himself to acknowledge his feelings
for Jane Gallagher and why he becomes so angry with Stradlater. His depression
grows as the novel progresses, and once he is with Phoebe, his physical
breakdown matches his emotional breakdown, although we are never quite sure
whether he is in an institution for a mental breakdown, or because he has
become so physically ill. Like everything with respect to Holden Caulfield, we are
not entirely sure of any of the details he gives us.

 complete the exercise at the bottom of p. 60, as well as the exercises on p. 61 of Tutorial
letter 501.
o Holden continually refers to adults, and adulthood as ‘phonies’
o he is disappointed that his brother is now writing screenplays for Hollywood,
and calls him a ‘prostitute’ (p. 2)
o his exaggerated description of Ossenburger, ‘I can see the big phony bastard
shifting into first gear …’ (p. 18)

Holden as a ‘misfit’ with suicidal tendencies:

 ‘What I was really hanging around for, I was trying to feel some kind of a good-by. I
mean I’ve left schools and places I didn’t even know I was leaving them. I hate that. I
don’t care if it’s a sad good-by or a bad good-by, but when I leave a place I like
to know I’m leaving it. If you don’t, you feel even worse’ (p.4) - The fact that Holden has
left many places shows his alienation from his peers & family. And the telling part of
this quotation, is his final words, ‘you feel even worse’. This shows the reader, that
Holden is a very unhappy boy, who does not really know how to come to terms with
whatever is alienating him from others.
 ‘I don’t even know what I was running for … . After I got across the road, I felt like I was
sort of disappearing. … you felt like you were disappearing every time you crossed a
road.’ (p.5) This extract reveals Holden’s sense of loss and his fear of it and by running,
he is avoiding facing it.

The impact of Allie’s death on Holden:

 On page 40 of the novel, Holden tells us about Allie and his death. This is an important
detail, as it reveals the grief Holden has about the death. Holden is still unable to come
to terms with his younger brother’s death:
He was two years younger than I was, but he was about fifty times as intelligent, His teachers
were always writing letters to my mother, telling her what a pleasure it was having a boy like
Allie in their class. And they weren’t just shooting the crap. They really meant it. But it wasn’t
just that he was the most intelligent member in the family. He was also the nicest, in lots of
ways.’ (p.40)

Holden’s descriptions of Allie, ‘You’d have like him.’ (p.40) echo his later description of Phoebe,
‘You’d like her’ (p.73).

This shows us how isolated Holden feels even within his own family.