An Introduction to The Catcher in the Rye

1. An Introduction toThe Catcher in the Rye

2. J.D. Salinger

3. (1919-2010) • Born to the family of a prosperous Manhattan food dealer • Educated in New York City except for the last two years of high school. • These final years were spent at Valley Forge Military Academy in Pennsylvania. • Model for Pencey Prep • Studied from time to time at New York University, Ursinus College, and Columbia University, concentrating on writing courses. • During this time, Salinger published several short stories in popular magazines.

4. Drafted in 1942 and trained in England; Salinger participated in the D-Day invasion. Continued to write during this period and more stories appeared in print. The success of his one novel, The Catcher in the Rye (1951), brought him unwanted attention. However, whenever he was trapped, he offered conflicting information and often totally false biographical data.

5. 1955: Married an Englishwoman, Claire Douglas. • Lived in Cornish, New Hampshire, in a fenced-off, isolated farmhouse with their two children. Salinger used a nearby concrete bunker as his writing office. • Although the marriage ended in divorce in 1967, Salinger remained in Cornish until his death in 2010.

6. The Philosopher • In Salinger’s work, contemporary society is flooded by hypocrisy, injustice, and a lack of love. • In this world of artificiality and indifference, Salinger’s sensitive characters invariably suffer. • One of the few saving graces in Salinger’s corrupt world is the purity of childhood. • short lived • Since childhood innocence is corrupted by passage into adulthood, Salinger offers little hope for a meaningful existence.

7. However, the changes of growing up can be dealt with if the character develops an all-encompassing love. • For example, in a climactic moment in The Catcher in the Rye, Holden is transformed as he watches Phoebe on a carousel. • Through love, he is at last able to accept the inevitability of change and forgive the wrongdoing of others.

8. Some readers object that Salinger’s message is based on negative, backward-looking attitudes. • For example, Holden’s ideals are defined by his disgust with evil, rather than his reverence for good.

9. REALISTIC: use of language use of social criticism where it is due its presentation of real problems which adolescents face in the process of achieving maturity ROMANTIC: the innocence of childhood its quest for truth idealizing the past its emphasis on individual discovery and growth The Novel

10. Salinger utilizes a frame story structure. • Outside frame = Holden talking to a psychoanalyst • Inside story = Holden’s own narrative, with flashbacks of the events, the “madman stuff” that has led to his arrival at a rest home in California • Narrative = first person, autobiographical, and episodic • Picaresque – chronicle presenting the life story of an anti-hero making his way more through his wits than industry

11. Psychological in that the events narrated are accompanied by Holden’s thoughts. • It is also a quest narrative in which Holden seeks to discover truth, values, and, ultimately, himself and his place in the world.

12. Until 2006, The Catcher in the Rye was one of the most frequently banned books.

13. Young readers see in Holden Caulfield a little bit of what they are, while older readers see in Holden a bit of what they once were. • Ultimately, Holden is everyone at some point in his or her life.

14. CITR & John Lennon • December 8, 1980: Mark David Chapman killed musician John Lennon outside his Manhattan apartment building, the Dakota. • Chapman was carrying a copy of CITR with him at the time of the murder and even sat down and read a few pages following the shooting, while waiting for the police to arrive. • He was obsessed with the book and Holden Caulfield and believed that the book expressed who he was. He thought of himself as a catcher in the rye and thought he needed to kill John Lennon, whom he saw as a “phony”.

15. Part of his statement following the murder is as follows: “Then this morning I went to the bookstore and bought The Catcher in the Rye. I’m sure the large part of me is Holden Caulfield, who is the main person in the book. The small part of me must be the Devil.”

16. Lennon and His Wife, Yoko Ono, 1980 Lennon was a member of the band, the Beatles. Mark David Chapman

17. Values & Themes in CITR • The need for inner direction and commitment to action • A sensitive awareness of life’s compensations: • a necessary balance of sympathy and rejection, joy and sorrow • The recognition of superficial standards of behavior; the challenge of seeking positive change in one’s moral environment • The ability to feel compassion and to expect justice for all • The therapeutic worth of honesty in communication with others; the treatment of every person as an individual • The learning of universal love and empathy in one’s individual struggle against hypocrisy and worldly corruption

18. Dominant Symbols & Motifs in CITR • The carousel • The red hunting cap • Allie’s catcher’s mitt • The ducks in Central Park pond • The Museum of Natural History • Pencey Prep a/k/a Valley Forge • Color imagery: red, yellow, and white • The “old” clothes motif

19. What’s in a Name? • Holden Caulfield • Holden – hold on • What does Holden want to hold on to? • Caul – one of the membranes that protects a developing fetus • What does Holden want to protect? • Field • A field of ____?

20. Ackley • Sounds like acne, which Ackley has a lot of • A sound made in disgust • Besides acne, what else disgusts Holden about Ackley? • Stradlater • Straddle - to walk, stand, or sit with the legs wide apart; stand or sit astride • Later – at some time in the future • Put the two together. Where is Stradlater going in the scene in which he and Holden fight?

21. James Castle • Castle – a fortress for protection • What is James’ protecting? How? • His initials are JC. Get it? • Carl Luce • Luce – light; used to refer to intelligence • How does this apply to Carl? • Sally Hayes • Haze – a fog • How does Sally’s last name apply to her character (as Holden sees her)?

22. Phoebe (Fee-be) • A species of bird known for flicking its tail and hopping about • How does this apply to Phoebe? • Old English for “shining” • How does this apply to Phoebe? • In mythology, Phoebe was a titan who became associated with Artemis, the goddess of the moon. • How does this apply to Phoebe?

23. Sources: • Perfection Learning Corporation Curriculum Unit: The Catcher in the Rye. • Center for Learning Curriculum Unit: The Catcher in the Rye. • Contemporary Classics Curriculum Unit: The Catcher in the Rye. • Dr. Cornel Bonca: “He Just Wants to Make Us Happy: Salinger’s Holden Caulfield at 50.”