The Catcher in the Rye
Chapters 17-22
Companionship
• Focus on lack of compatibility
– “In a way, it was sort of depressing, too, because
you kept wondering what the hell would happen
to all of them. When they got out of school and
college, I mean. You figured most of them would
probably marry dopey guys. Guys that always
talk about how many miles they get to a gallon in
their goddamn cars…” (123).
• Holden worries about other girls
• He should worry about his situation
• He is meeting Sally but should be meeting Jane
Companionship
• Focus on lack of compatibility
– Play focuses on life partners
• Seem compatible but phony
• Lunts are good, but too good
– Like Ernie they are superficial
– Holden’s continued search for companion
Companionship
• Focus on lack of compatibility
– “I felt like marrying her the minute I saw her.
I’m crazy. I didn’t even like her much, and yet
all of a sudden I felt like I was in love with her
and wanted to marry her. I swear to God I’m
crazy. I admit it” (124).
• She is the opposite of Holden
• She represents the phoniness Holden despises
Holden’s Manic Behavior
•
Indicate he’s heading for an emotional
breakdown
– Contradicts himself about his feelings for her
» “I told her I loved her and all. It was a lie, of
course, but the thing is, I meant it when I said
it” (125).
– Yells at Sally and doesn’t realize it
» “Don’t shout, please,” old Sally said. Which
was very funny, because I wasn’t even
shouting” (132).
– Reveals his passions and feelings to her
– She doesn’t understand or have the depth to
Holden’s Increasing Manic
Behavior
•
Wants to run away with Sally
– Indicates break from reality
» “We’ll stay in these cabin camps and stuff
like that…we could get married or
something. I could chop all our own wood
in the wintertime and all. Honest to God,
we could have a terrific time!” (132).
• Sally is conventional and practical and
questions practicality of this venture
Fear and Confusion with Sex
•
Immaturity and inexperience
» “I kept waiting to turn into a flit or something”
(143)
•
Seeks guidance and insight about sex
» “’You do? Wuddaya mean ‘philosophy?’ Ya
mean sex and all? You mean it’s better in
China? That what you mean?” (146)
Breakdown
•
•
•
•
Holden is acting random
Calls Sally and talks about the mob
Confused and looks for the ducks
Drunk, alone and cold with no money
Cemetery
•
Not able to attend the funeral services
–
•
•
“I went with them a couple times, but I cut it out. In the
first place, I certainly don’t enjoy seeing him in that crazy
cemetery” (155)
Finality of the grave
Allie can’t leave
–
“It was awful. It rained on his lousy tombstone, and it rained on
the grass on his stomach. It rained all over the place. All the
visitors that were visiting the cemetery started running like hell
over to their cars. That’s what nearly drove me crazy. All the
visitors could get into their cars and turn on their radios and all
and then go someplace nice for dinner- everybody except
Allie…I know it’s his body and all that’s in the cemetery, and his
soul’s in Heaven and all that crap, but I couldn’t stand it anyway.
I just wish he was here” (155-156).
Phoebe
•
Represents innocence
– “She had her mouth way open. It’s funny. You
take adults, they look lousy when they’re asleep
and they have their mouths way open, but kids
don’t. Kids look all right. They can even have spit
all over the pillow and they still look all right” (159)
•
•
•
He trusts her and can confide in her
She speaks rationally and intelligently
She doesn’t understand Holden’s darker side
– His need to self-destruct and his failure
Phoebe
• Her alienation affects Holden
» “She was ostracizing the hell out of me. Just like
the fencing team at Pencey when I left all the
goddam foils on the subway” (166)
» “’Oh, why did you do it?’ She meant why did I get
the ax again. It made me sort of sad, the way she
said it” (167)
– She is compassionate and caring towards Holden
Phoebe
•
Phoebe is the one person who can confront
Holden
– “’You don’t like anything that’s happening.’
It made me even more depressed when
she said that.” (169)
– “’Allie’s dead- you always say that…”
(171)
» She can confront but doesn’t
understand enough to help Holden
Loss of Innocence
• James Castle
– “He was a skinny little weak-looking guy, with
wrists about as big as pencils. Finally what
he did, instead of taking back what he said,
he jumped out the window…and there was
old James Castle laying right on the stone
steps and all. He was dead, and his teeth,
and blood, were all over the place, and
nobody would even go near him. He had on
this turtleneck sweater I’d lent him” (170).
Loss of Innocence
• Holden could not save James from his
loss
• Dies in Holden’s sweater
– Will Holden end up like him?
Significance of the Title
•
“Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids
playing some game in this big field of rye and
all…and nobody’s around- nobody big, I mean
except me. 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 mean if they’re running and they don’t
look where they are going I have to come out
and from somewhere and catch them” (173)
Significance of the Title
•
•
Wants to save the children from the
ugliness and phoniness of the adult
world
Save their innocence
– No one saved James Castle
– No one saved Allie
– No one is there to save him