Guide to The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger Holden Caulfield, Allie Sally Hayes Antolini Phoebe

FACTS ABOUT SALINGER: He was enrolled at McBurney in NYC in 1932. His father at this time was an importer of luxury foodstuffs. The boy's frosh grades were terrible, such as "F" for Latin, so the father had the 15 year-old son transferred to Valley Forge Military Academy in Wayne, Pennsylvania. When the writer at age 31 began a relationship with Claire Douglas (age 16), she was a senior at Shipley. This influenced Salinger into placing Jane at Shipley. In early 1936, the writer dropped out of college to work on a cruise ship. He landed on Utah Beach on D-Day (June 6, 1944). In late August, he visited Hemingway, a war correspondent, at the Ritz in Paris. He was at the Battle of the Bulge and by May carried out occupation duties in Germany. In 1952 he bought property on Sander Hill Road in Cornish, New Hampshire (across the Connecticut River from Windsor, Vermont). The house had no hot water when he moved in. His last published work was in The New Yorker in 1965. He died at age 91. __________________________ Below are questions that I ask my high school students when we have seminars on this classic novel, which is set in December 1949. 1) Would you go on a date with Holden or with someone resembling Holden? 2) The Catcher in the Rye opens with Holden saying his parents "would have about two hemorrhages apiece if I told anything pretty personal about them." Does Holden have good or bad parents? 3) Is anyone in Holden's life a wise person who could serve as a wonderful role model, or is Holden surrounded by flawed role models? Is Phoebe too young for Holden to view her as a role model? 4) Loyal Phoebe will portray a traitor—Benedict Arnold—in a school play. Where else is this novel rich in irony? Irony means the opposite of what one expects, like a firehouse burning down or a priest in hell. 5) In Chapter 4, Holden says, "I took off my hat and looked at it for about the ninetieth time" (39). Even if this is not exaggerated (but 90 times?), Holden clearly exaggerates in Chapter 25 when he reports that the carousel "played that same song about fifty years ago when I was a little kid" (272). Does this mean we can't trust what Holden says about the novel's events? To what extent is he an untrustworthy narrator? 6) Holden tells us in Chapter 25 that he was about to hit Phoebe: "I took the bag off her. I was almost all set to hit her. I thought I was going to smack her for a second. I really did" (267; 206 of pb). Does this bother you? 7) Holden meets two boys in the museum and asks if the two are interested in mummies. One boy is silent. Holden asks, "Can't your friend talk?" (263). The bolder boy replies, "He ain't my friend. He's my brudda." Holden persists: "Can't he talk?" The passage doesn't mention Allie, but is Holden probably thinking about Allie (silent in the graveyard) during this exchange? Or am I over-analyzing the way teachers overdo analysis? 8) In Chapter 20, Holden reports, "It's a funny thing, I always shiver like hell when I'm drunk" (197). Pick one word as being especially important or worthy of commentary--what word? Your commentary is what? 9) In Chapter 22, Holden gives Phoebe "a pinch on the behind. It was sticking way out in the breeze...she tried to hit my hand...but she missed" (217). Are you bothered that Holden does this, or is it normal horseplay and therefore not worth talking about? Do you agree that Salinger added this for some reason? What is that reason? 10) During a retreat, all SFHS teachers listened as a priest read passages from The Catcher in the Rye. The priest said Holden upholds Catholic values, stressing that when it comes to what matters, Holden is a fine Christian. What is evidence proving or disproving this? (On page 202, he tells readers, "I know [Allie's] soul's in Heaven and all that crap." Is it reassuring that he believes in Heaven, or is his language too offensive here?) 11) Make a prediction. What will happen when Holden gets out of the t.b. clinic? Holden reports in the 5th paragraph of Chapter 22 that his father will send the young man to a military school if he fails at Pencey. Is military school next? If yes, what will happen there? What would you do if you were Holden's mom? 12) The novel is set in December, 1949 (Allie died on July 18, 1946). Imagine Holden in modern times—today! Would access to high tech devices and social media have helped Holden from spiraling downwards as he does? He wants to phone Jane but is afraid--he could stalk her on Facebook. Would that help? Twitter? Guide to The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger Holden Caulfield, Allie Sally Hayes Antolini Phoebe