The Catcher in the Rye Summary
The Catcher in the Rye - SummaryCatcher in the Rye
1.) The novel, “The Catcher in the Rye,” was narrated by its’ main character, Holden Caulfield. Caulfield is a sixteen-year-old boy recuperating in a rest home due to his nervous breakdown after suffering from a psychological meltdown in New York City. During his life he had attended many prep schools and at the time of his nervous breakdown he was currently enrolled at Pencey Prep. He did decide to leave the school after being expelled from it because of his academic failure. While he is in New York before returning to live with his parents in their Manhattan apartment, he experiences deep feelings of loneliness and desperation and is haunted by the death of his younger brother, Allie. He also finds himself in a bind and his life upside down due to his sexuality. He longs to see his sister, Phoebe, and his old girlfriend, Jane Gallagher. He finally goes home to talk to Phoebe and borrow money from her, only to go away again and live with his English teacher, Mr. Antolini. He then experiences the worst phase of his breakdown and tries to hitchhike out of New York. Holden then goes home, is sent away to the rest home, and attends a new school during the next year.
2.) There are five main characters that play a significant role in Holden’s life. Allie was his younger brother who died of leukemia. Holden believed that he was the smartest of the Califields and is now haunted by his death. His best traits were that he was brilliant and friendly. Then there is Phoebe, Holden’s sister. She is six years younger and is neat, intelligent, and a fabulous dancer. Holden loves her dearly and feels comfortable talking to her because she is one of the only happy things that he holds in his life throughout the novel. Another important character in the story is Jane Gallagher, Holden’s former girlfriend who is currently dating his friend, Stadlater. She is important to Holden because she is one of the few people that understand and care about him. She is also the only person he feels comfortable talking about Allie’s death with. D.B. is also an important figure in the story. He is Holden’s brother and also a writer. He wrote stories that Holden admired before he became a sellout. D.B. was attracted to the money and now has everything he wants. He drives a nice Jaguar and dates movie stars. Holden however, does not see him the way he used to because he sold out to the movie industry. Finally, Mr. Antolini is the last of the five. He was Holden’s former English teacher from Elkton Hills School and who now teaches at New York University. He is clever, young, and sympathetic. Even though Holden suspects him of having a drinking problem, he has respect for him.
3.) One of the three most significant scenes from the story was when Holden was expelled from Pencey School. This began the change of things because he was forced to leave the school and take matters into his own hands, doing what he wished. He decided to spend a few days alone in New York City before returning to his parents’ inevitable wrath. I believe that this is the first turning point of the story because it sets everything into motion. The second significant event is when Holden goes to stay with Mr. Antolini because it was the first time that the real topic of his sexuality came up. His former English teacher made sexual advances toward him, which forced Holden to look at himself and think. The third most important event was when Holden was sent to the rest home. This was important because throughout the story he was slowly approaching a mental breakdown. All of the events in his life that he talked about led up to his breakdown and so it was important.
4.) This work says that the human condition is fragile and should be marked with a sticker that reads, “handle with care.” The Catcher in the Rye is a perceptive study of Holden’s understanding of his human condition. The main thematic viewpoint that the author is relaying is one of emotion. Emotions flow through this story like a river and I think that it is a dominant theme. The specific emotion would be confusion. Throughout the story line, Holden is trying to find himself and figure things out that are frustrating or perplexing. He doesn’t have much experience in the department of his own sexuality so he resorts to people around him such as Stradlater. During the novel I also found that the author was challenging his readers to think about society’s attitude toward the human condition. Sometimes society would rather ignore the facts and go on believing in what they wish, expressing deliberate ignorance.
5.) Just from reading the title of this novel I had a first impression that it would be about baseball. Although it entails it might have something to do with “America’s favorite pastime,” it was actually far from it. I am aware that the man who assassinated John Lennon, Mark Chapman, asked him to sign a copy of his book on the morning that he killed the former Beatle. The police found the book in Chapman’s possession after arresting him. After hearing this, it made me want to read the story even more since there was a sort of drama behind the novel itself. The story however, showed a side of people that has traditionally not been casually discussed before. Holden experienced more tragedy at such an early age than most adults have to endure when they reach their mid-life crisis. He lost a sibling and is forced to deal with changes that society may not have accepted and ones that he might not even be comfortable with himself. The author portrayed his character in a way where we are able to see what an adolescent must go through during the early years. Overall I think that this was a good portrayal of the ignorant society that remains around us and the people who exist within it.