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Holden defined the catcher in the rye toward the end, discussing it with Phoebe. She even corrected his interpretation of Robert Burns' poem. He said he wanted to be the Catcher in the Rye, someone who hung out in a field of rye and kept kids from going over a cliff. (Protected them from danger.)
Chapter 22: Phoebe demands to know what Holden is going to do with his life.
"All right, name something else. Name something you'd like to be." (Page 172)
Holden tells Phoebe he wants to be "the catcher in the rye"
He imagines a huge rye field where he will protect children from falling off the edge of a cliff. "If a body catch a body comin' through the rye"
"You'd know what I'd like to be? I mean if I had my goddam choice?...That's all I'd do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it's crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be. I know it's crazy." (Page 173)
Phoebe tells Holden that the lyric he is reciting is wrong. The actual line from the poem is "If a body meet a body comin' through the rye."
These are good quotes and add to the discussion. I cannot determine what his goal is by what is written here. If someone says they want to be a computer programmer I can determine that if they are programming computers they have achieved their goal. But I don't know what Holden is talking about. I think this is on purpose because I believe you have to break the code.
Otherwise you need to answer what rye field? Why didn't Phoebe want him to be specific rather than correct his knowledge of poetry? Why she didn't ask him why are they (children) going to be running through the field toward a cliff in the first place? So please if you can answer this.
The Catcher in the rye is a metaphor, a representation of a desire to protect innocent children, or in a larger sense, mankind in general, from any threat or danger. It's whatever you wnat it to bee, but could be a Peter Pan frame of mind, where children don't ever have to "grow up" (Never-Never Land) and can remain innocent, unspoiled by the phonyism of adult life.
It is of course unrealistic, but if you flip it over, it could be a lament about the loss of innocence that we all must undergo in our path to maturity.
This is one interpretation but it has not satisfied me after studying the Catcher as a coded message rather than a novel. This to me is the best way to study his book because through this prosess he does indeed become the Catcher in the Rye. He wanted to catch children (which I'd what many soldiers are when they enlist from catching bullets.
When I first wrote you I didn't realize that you were not in the discussion that I created that talked about "rye"and how this fits into WW2 and how Holden (Salinger) indeed could protect children in the rye. The opinion that this is a metaphor about innocence is just one interpretation, and I think it is not very convincing for the very things that you mentioned in your first reply about all the things that Holden was involved in. We would more likely say that he needed someone to catch him from going over the cliff. He was not making himself into the kind of person that was going to save anyone. I hope you will read my response to this called breaking the code to the catcher in the rye the title "The Catcher in the Rye".
Would love to hear your comment.
Sorry it should say (which is what many soldiers are when they enlist) from catching bullets.
Just wanted to provide a link to my discussion group https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...
Hope you will check it out and join us.
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Holden defined the catcher in the rye toward the end, discussing it with Phoebe. She even corrected his interpretation of Robert Burns' poem. He said he wanted to be the Catcher in the Rye, someone who hung out in a field of rye and kept kids from going over a cliff. (Protected them from danger.)
Chapter 22: Phoebe demands to know what Holden is going to do with his life."All right, name something else. Name something you'd like to be." (Page 172)
Holden tells Phoebe he wants to be "the catcher in the rye"
He imagines a huge rye field where he will protect children from falling off the edge of a cliff. "If a body catch a body comin' through the rye"
"You'd know what I'd like to be? I mean if I had my goddam choice?...That's all I'd do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it's crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be. I know it's crazy." (Page 173)
Phoebe tells Holden that the lyric he is reciting is wrong. The actual line from the poem is "If a body meet a body comin' through the rye."
These are good quotes and add to the discussion. I cannot determine what his goal is by what is written here. If someone says they want to be a computer programmer I can determine that if they are programming computers they have achieved their goal. But I don't know what Holden is talking about. I think this is on purpose because I believe you have to break the code. Otherwise you need to answer what rye field? Why didn't Phoebe want him to be specific rather than correct his knowledge of poetry? Why she didn't ask him why are they (children) going to be running through the field toward a cliff in the first place? So please if you can answer this.
The Catcher in the rye is a metaphor, a representation of a desire to protect innocent children, or in a larger sense, mankind in general, from any threat or danger. It's whatever you wnat it to bee, but could be a Peter Pan frame of mind, where children don't ever have to "grow up" (Never-Never Land) and can remain innocent, unspoiled by the phonyism of adult life.It is of course unrealistic, but if you flip it over, it could be a lament about the loss of innocence that we all must undergo in our path to maturity.
This is one interpretation but it has not satisfied me after studying the Catcher as a coded message rather than a novel. This to me is the best way to study his book because through this prosess he does indeed become the Catcher in the Rye. He wanted to catch children (which I'd what many soldiers are when they enlist from catching bullets. When I first wrote you I didn't realize that you were not in the discussion that I created that talked about "rye"and how this fits into WW2 and how Holden (Salinger) indeed could protect children in the rye. The opinion that this is a metaphor about innocence is just one interpretation, and I think it is not very convincing for the very things that you mentioned in your first reply about all the things that Holden was involved in. We would more likely say that he needed someone to catch him from going over the cliff. He was not making himself into the kind of person that was going to save anyone. I hope you will read my response to this called breaking the code to the catcher in the rye the title "The Catcher in the Rye".
Would love to hear your comment.
Sorry it should say (which is what many soldiers are when they enlist) from catching bullets.
Just wanted to provide a link to my discussion group https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...Hope you will check it out and join us.
Hmmm, what about his drinking and smoking and going to nightclubs and pretending to be of age? Also going to theater performances and expressing adult-level insights about the performances? And knowing the names and personalities of some of musicians at the clubs? What about the adult-level conversations he had with adult strangers--on the train, the mother of one of his classmates--in the nightclub, the ladies from out of town, even dancing with them--the prostitute--the conversation with the nuns and giving them a donation.
Holden doesn't at all strike me as someone who avoided adulthood. On the contrary, a strong case can be made that he was embracing adulthood with so much gusto that he got over his head and was floundering. Badly.