Some Thoughts on "Catcher in the Rye"
Reading this book again was an interesting experience to say the least. The last time I read it was Subbie year for the banned book project and I'm realizing now that I understood maybe 20% of it the first time around.
The first thing I want to talk about is the scene right near the end where Holden is waiting for his sister by the art museum to give her back her "Christmas dough" and say goodbye to her before he leaves. The way he describes his sister as carrying this giant suitcase and begging him to take her with him made me incredibly sad. I think that Pheobe as a character is exceptionally underrated. Even though she isn't talked about very often I get the sense that she (like Holden) is dealing with a lot of things behind the scenes. Perhaps that's one of the reasons he's always describing her as more mature and smart than her age would suggest. I remember that the first time I read from that scene to the end I was sort of disappointed. I thought it was anticlimactic and it felt like the book had been a bunch of little bumps as opposed to the nice curve we've come to expect from story arcs. But the second time around it sort of seemed like the only proper ending. It somehow wouldn't fit with the vibe of the book if he were actually to go through with his plan and run away.
Speaking of Holden as a character, I really can't put my finger on how I feel about him. The only adjective that I can 100% confidently put to him is immature. Most of his thoughts are incredibly one dimensional and prejudice (but then again, sometimes he hits us with full on philosopher mode so there's also that). You end up sort of feeling sorry for him by the end. It really seems he's stumbling around blindly and he just needs someone he'd be willing to listen to to get him straightened out. Therapy seems like an excellent place for him to be so I guess in a sense we really did come to the proper solution for him by the end.
The scene where Holden meets Phoebe with the suitcase is one of my favorites. I think it's one of the first times Holden matures, and takes on a role of responsibility. Him feeling so guilty about taking her money began the change in his thought process, and him seeing her wearing the hat asking to run away hammered the point home. I think it was a kind of wake up call for him
ReplyDeleteYeah you hit the nail spot on. Phoebe is an exceedingly likable character (possible because Holden's embellishments?), and really causes Holden to grow in some way. She's the only character in the entire story that causes him to change his mind, forcing Holden to have some self-awareness of how his actions and words hurt others.
ReplyDeleteI agree! I really love Phoebe’s character too, and I also feel that there’s more to her than meets the eye through just Holden’s descriptions of her and how she acts like a “mini Holden” sometimes. I also agree that without the context of the book’s narrative, the ending seems pretty anticlimactic, but that putting it into the perspective of Holden and what he just went through and is dealing with, it is truly meaningful and felt right (with all of the symbolism with the carousel, being with Phoebe, the rain, and much more!). I love the ending scenes of this novel, and it just seems so powerful as it is kind of tying up and strengthening Holden’s relationship with Phoebe, but also allowing him to distance himself a little from childhood and acknowledging the passage of time. And he feels happy! I too feel bad for Holden and hope that he can find someone to speak to and truly help and support him.
ReplyDeleteI also think that the ending was very appropriate to the book. After a rough few days in New York, what better for Holden to find stability than taking his sister to the zoo. I agree that he never found maturity in the book but I think that what makes this ending good is you can almost breathe a sigh of relief at the end. He seems to tread water the whole time on growing up but he saves himself from possibly ruining his life.
ReplyDeleteI definitely found the scene with his sister interesting as well - I think it's one of the first times Holden is hit with the full consequences of his actions and an understanding of the responsibility he has for his sister. Throughout a lot of the book, he seems to travel in a bubble of observing others and interacting with them solely for personal interest or gain - he calls people up when he's bored, he fights with Stradlaer with no goal or chance of winning just because he's frustrated, etc. When Phoebe tries to run away, I think it jolts his back to the reality that he does have influence over and connections to the people around him.
ReplyDeletePhoebe's character is also what caught my attention for a bit, she seems to be an absolutely amazing and different person compared to the rest of Holden's views on everyone else, this maybe due to the fact that Holden trusts her the most out of anyone else, since she's not phony, but rather intellectual and actually can connect with him on a certain level. There definitely could be something else going in in Phoebe's personal life, but from Holden's perspective we can't really say for sure.
ReplyDeleteI really liked your description of Holden at the end. He is super immature and needs help. As long as he doesn't think his therapist is a phony, he'll do well there and get better. I hope he can grow, mature, and learn to apply himself. Overall, Holden was really complicated to read and a very interesting character, even though he was annoying.
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