Re: In search of User Perspectives on Catcher in the Rye

Kidneyboy@aol.com
Sun, 29 Nov 1998 03:17:38 -0500 (EST) 

In a message dated 11/29/98 1:53:09 AM Eastern Standard Time,
susangardner@hotmail.com writes:

<< 1)Rate "Catcher in the Rye" on a scale of 1 to 10 for overall excellence 
 (10 being the highest) ___10_______
 
 2)Describe, briefly, the main plot of the book
 A teenage boy is kicked out of  a prep school and finds himself lost within a
world and a city he is so familar with, yet can't seem to grasp on to.  The
basis is him finding his way back to reality, or rather, his accepting of
reality. 
 
 
 
 
 3)Was there psychological development of the characters?
Yes.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4)Please state the time and place of the novel (geographical, 
 historical, social, whatever).
 New York City, enough said.
 
 
 5)What emotional experience did you get from the novel?
 To me, the real impact of the book hit in the climax scene with Holden
watching Pheobe on the merry-go-round.  The idea that Holden points at when he
says that you just have to let kids reach for those golden rings, and if they
fall doing so, then you have to let them fall (I'm sure could have been worded
better but you get the point). This taught be a lot about my own growing up
process as well as provided me with some input on what my future as a parent
would be like.  
 
 
 
 
 
 6)What information, if any, did you get from the novel? Was there a 
 theme?
 I think one of the main aspects of the book is interpretation.  This is the
account of a teenage boy coming to terms with the world around him.  To
another teenage boy, he sees what Holden sees and truly understands what he is
trying to say (whatever that may, after all it changes with every given person
depending on his or her interpretation and all that other hippy nonsense,
blah). To an adult, the book is an attempt to look back into his or her past
and relive some of the expericences of adolesence.  The view, from the outside
looking in, tends to be a little different. An adult would see different sides
of Holden Caufield that a child would not pick up on. As a teenager would see
things an adult wouldn't necessarily understand.  What I am trying to get at
here is that The Catcher in the Rye is a book about how the human being views
their world at different stages of life. How a person views it's surroundings
and more importantly how those views change over a lifetime.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 7)Describe the philosophical attitude of the author?
 J. D. Salinger is a strange man.   "What's wrong with you is you're in love
with the world!"
 
 
 
 
 8)How readable was the book...was it difficult in language and content?
 
It's written is simple (yet complex, isn't it? How baffling! move on)
language. It's most effective that way.
 
 
 
 
 9)Please list the main characters and their ages, as you remember them.
 Holden 16?, Pheobe 8?
 
 
 
 10)What are some other books that fans of "Catcher in the Rye" might 
 enjoy?
I like Ionesco. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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