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Analysis Of Quotes From 'Catcher In The Rye'

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In chapter 25 of J.D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye, when Holden is at Mr. Antolini’s house, Mr. Antolini gives Holden a quote on a piece of paper for him to quote. The quote was, ‘The mark of an immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for a one.’ The meaning behind this quote is that a person wanting to die in order to prove something is unreasonable, while wanting to live to prove something makes more of an impact. What the author of this quote is saying makes a lot of sense because when you are dead, there is nothing you can really do for whatever your cause is. If you try to live for a cause, on the other hand, you will actually be able to serve a purpose to the world. …show more content…

This makes him even more depressed and he attempts to prove her wrong by attempting to name something that he likes. However, he is not able to think of anything. So, Phoebe asks him to name something that he would like to do instead. He tells her that he just wanted to stand at the edge of a cliff while many children played in a field of rye on top of the cliff. When the children got to the edge of the cliff, “I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. 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” (173). The bottom of the cliff represents death or the loss of innocence. Holden wants to stop children from being exposed to the “real world” and keep them in the dark for as long as he can in a sort of Peter Pan-esque way. What he does not realize is that he should not waste his life trying to achieve this dream of

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Catcher in the rye is a phrase that Holden misunderstands horribly. So another question that could be raised is his constant image issue. Also faced with his prostitute dilemma he refused to pay money to the Maurice, the pimp. Because he’s Holden he thinks he is invulnerable to everything. “Maurice said five, I told her…

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His obsession with innocence growing clear when he admits his dream profession is not a scientist or lawyer, but just a fantasy he created after hearing a poem. “If a body catch a body comin’ through the rye.” Holden says that he pictures a huge field of rye on a cliff full of children playing. He wants to stand at the edge of the cliff and catch the children when they come too close to falling of to be “the catcher in the rye.” Phoebe tells Holden has misheard the words the actual lyrics from the Robert Burns poem, “Coming Thro’ the Rye,” is “If a body meet a body coming through the rye.”

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The concept of "the catcher in the rye," shows Salinger’s and Holden’s love and fascination in children. Holden daydreams about standing at the edge of a rye field catching any children that are too close to the edge of the cliff of the rye field and are about to fall off the cliff. To Holden, the children falling off this cliff symbolizes them falling into adulthood and losing their innocence. Holden likes children because of their innocence and because of the fact that they cannot be “phonies” because of their innocence. Holden views adults and teenagers as “phonies” and therefore does not give them respect.

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“He [ Holden] replies using the “image” of the song the catcher in the rye. He imagines a field of rye perched high on the cliff, full of children romping and playing. He describes it as catching little children from losing their innocence, therefore being the catcher in the rye means catching people’s

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2132 Words | 9 Pages

However, instead of acknowledging that adulthood scares him, he tries to create a fantasy in which adulthood is all full of phonies and childhood is all filled with innocence. Throughout the novel we see Holden try to cling on to his own childhood but also in turn he wants to prevent others from exiting their childhood. This is optimized when he talks about himself wanting to ‘ be the catcher in the rye and all.’ From this quote we learn that Holden perceives adulthood as something that just happens and you don’t see it coming. He wants to stop people and prevent them from entering adulthood, which he likens to being like falling off of a cliff; “What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff” .

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Plot advancement in The Catcher in the Rye is driven almost completely driven by the decisions of the protagonist, Holden Caulfield. The story is told in a stream of consciousness style, which lets us into his head and lets us witness Holden's thought process first hand. Holden is a character with a strong moral center, he never looks to wrong anybody, and that is what drives his decision making. A major idea in the novel that correlates with his moral center, is his need to protect the innocence of the young. Holden knows that the adult world is not as glamorous and great as it might have seemed at first, and he strives to protect children such as his younger sister and deceased younger brother from what he couldn’t avoid himself.

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Chris Tamayo Mr. Rodriguez English III; Period 5 18 August 2015 Part 1: Character Identification Sunny - Sunny is a street walker at the Edmont Hotel. She was hired by Holden through Maurice. Bernice - Bernice is one of the three tourists from Seattle. She is known as a very good dancer. Ackley - Ackley is Holden’s dorm neighbor at Pencey Prep.

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Adolescence is the transitional period of psychological changes that generally occurs during puberty. Although the Catcher in the Rye was published in 1951, when the characteristics of adolescents were not fully acknowledged, Salinger portrays adolescents’ struggle comprehensively. He depicts teenagers’ unstable mindsets through the Catcher in the Rye, especially through his teenaged protagonist, Holden Caulfield. Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, he uses Holden to convey the immature curiosity, painfulness of the process of growing up for a typical teenagers and adolescents’ view on the adult world.

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“A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” - Christopher Reeve (Reeve, 1999). The protagonists in both stories, A man for all seasons and Catcher in the rye, have some qualities that make them a hero, not necessarily the same type of hero, but nevertheless a hero. Holden Caulfield can be seen as an anti-hero and Thomas More can be seen as an existential hero. In this essay, the following will be discussed, the characteristics of an anti-hero, why Holden can be classified as an anti-hero, the characteristics of an existential hero and why Thomas More can be classified as an existential hero.

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I know it’s crazy but that's the only thing I’d really like to be”(173). Holden what's to save the children from falling over the cliff so they can play safely. But he is not talking about a literal cliff, the cliff is adulthood. He wants to save the children from entering adulthood; wants to save them before they lose there honesty, innocence and curiosity. The symbols in The catcher in the Rye show the pain one might faced with Adulthood, the museum of natural history, “the catcher in the rye”, and the ducks in the central park.

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This title refers to Holden’s desire to protect kids from adulthood which relates to his aversion to change and growing up. Holden’s explanation of a catcher in the rye symbolizes his desire to protect kids from growing up. When his younger sister Phoebe asks him to name one thing he would like to be, he says, “I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye… And I’m standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff… I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all.”

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891 Words | 4 Pages

While Holden is visiting Phoebe, she asks Holden what his dream job is. Holden answers that question by saying he wants to be the catcher in the rye. “His basic kindness comes through in glimpses, particularly in the passage where he reveals that the only thing he would like to be is a "catcher in the rye" protecting innocent children from falling into the abyss of adulthood.” ( Guilt and Innocence 124). This quote from Novels for Students is letting the reader know that Holden wants to preserve innocents in children by being the catcher in the rye.

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Holden’s Struggle To Find Himself: Throughout the novel, The Catcher In The Rye, by J.D. Salinger, Holden struggles to find himself and who he truly is in order to be happy. His struggles relate to many things that he does or say in particular. Holden lacks with a social status with women and his family, whether it’s a relationship or being antisocial. Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield experiences the complexities and struggles involved with both physical and emotional relationships.

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In J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher In The Rye, Mr. Antolini gives Holden the following advice; “The mark of an immature man is that he wants to die for a noble cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one.” Although a person wants to do a good act it should be out of the kindness of the heart and not intended solely for attention purposes. Salinger states that “ The mark of an immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause , while the mark of the mature man wants to live humbly for one." Someone who is immature is someone who is undeveloped , while someone who is a noble person wants to have distinguished a title. A person who is mature has already developed, and humble person doesn't do things to get attention and simply does a good deed without the need for attention.

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