Catcher+in+the+Rye+Quote+Response+1

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Quote Responses for Catcher in the Rye (chapters 20-23; pp. 149-180)

Post a quote response. Make sure that you include the quote and then write your response to it in no longer than 150 words. In your response, establish the context, examine a literary element if it is evident in the quote, and analyze its significance to the development of conflict, character, plot, or theme. Include a graphic element that is appropriate and relevant to the response. Don't forget to put your first name after your response.

Period 3
Salinger, pg. 87 "The Navy guy and I told each other that we were glad to've met each other. Which always kills me. I'm always saying 'Glad to've met you' when to somebody I'm not at //all// glad I met. If you want to stay alive, you have to say that stuff, though." In this quote, Holden meets with a former girlfriend of his now famous brother and her Navy boyfriend. When they ask him to sit with them, he quickly makes up a story about having to meet somebody so he can leave. This quote contains irony, because as he constantly goes around judging people about how they hide their true feelings and how they're "phonies" in this quote he HIMSELF is hiding his true feelings. In the second part of the quote, he talks about staying alive. in this sense he may mean that if everyone went around saying what they really felt, there would be crazy feelings flying all over the place. this sort of tells us a little more about Holden, taht while he despises people who are "fake, he himself, depending on the situation, can be just the same as any of them. Grant

"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’re going 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." (173) The source of the Book title is finally reviled to us when Holden states arguably the most famous quote of the story. Holden hates phonies and how people feel they must mould into a mature and acceptable person, which he finds to be utterly boring. He believes that this Rye is a term for innocence and he must be the person who catches people as they start to fall over the cliff into adulthood. Adulthood, to Holden, is what turns people into phonies, because he thinks that people change who they are and start to care about what other people think of them. They lose their sense of not having a care in the world and just living life. We not start to get a grasp on who Holden really is and what he thinks his goal in life is. He believes that he is the "Keeper of Innocence". REED

[]

“She (Phoebe) 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)  When Holden goes into D.B.’s room, he looks at Phoebe, his sister who is sleeping, for a while. He feels better, going around the room and looking at her. Throughout the novel, Holden struggles to find innocence in what he calls a phony world. In his opinion, kids are pure and they always make him feel better, and Allie and Phoebe are the two that he thinks the most innocent. The quote I chose reflects his character because it shows how he thinks kids can do anything and still “look all right” since they don’t know much and are innocent, while adults “look lousy” since they know a lot more than the kids do and are often phony. [] Sayaka

//  "'What's D.B. know about // Annapolis//, for God's sake? What's that got to do with the kind of stories he writes?' I said. Boy that stuff drives me crazy. That goddamn Hollywood." (164)//

This quote is just another reflection of how Holden feels about "phony adults." In the beginning of the book, Holden talks about how his older brother, D.B. loved to write, but is now in Hollywood writing movies and "being a prostitute." (2) Presumably, D.B. knows little to nothing about Annapolis but has to write a screenplay of it, which is what irritates Holden. D.B. now writes for money and fame, though his writing is not genuine anymore, seeing as he writes about subjects he does not have any connection with. Holden feels this way about his brother, though he does admit that D.B. was a good writer, and even enjoyed a collection of short stories D.B. had written before going to Hollywood.

Picture: []

“I hope to hell when I do die somebody has sense enough to just dump me in the river or something. Anything except sticking me in a goddamn cemetery. People coming and putting a bunch of flowers on your stomach on Sunday, and all that crap. Who wants flowers when you’re dead? Nobody.” (155) Holden has always been an outcast in society because his idea’s were peculiar. Most people in society would want to be buried or cremated so that their bodies can rest in peace. However, Holden wishes that somebody would “dump (him) in the river or something”, because he absolutely detests the idea of being buried. Holden claims that he doesn’t want to be “surrounded by dead guys” and doesn’t want “people coming and putting a bunch of flowers on your stomach on Sunday and all that crap”. I think that Holden does not want to be buried or cremated because he doesn’t want anyone to mourn after his death and feel sad. If Holden were to be dumped into a river, people would not have to be reminded of his death because they wouldn’t be able to visit him every so often. [] -Jihye-

"That's what nearly drove me crazy. All the visitors could get in their cars and turn on their radios and all and then go someplace nice for dinner --- everybody except Allie. I couldn't stand it." (156) "I know he's dead! Don't you think I know that? I can still like him, though, can't I? Just because somebody's dead, you don't just stop liking them, for God's sake --- especially if they were about a thousand times nicer than the people you know that're //alive// and all." (171) Phoebe intense to ask Holden about what he likes the most, but Holden couldn't think of anything he likes in this "phony" world, but 3 people, Allie, and the 2 nuns. Though Holden may not be noticing about the fact Allie is not in the world he stands, he still cannot forget about Allies existence. Funerals are there for letting the dead sleep in peace, and to let the people who are still alive to live in peace. Holden believes that when someone dies, the only thing that the lived would do is leave behind flowers every once a week. Holden speaks to Phoebe saying that he still likes Allie, and is not a bad thing to still love him. He thinks that since the day Allie died, everyone doesn’t seem to like nor talk about him. So Holden feels sorry for Allie and the result of Holden holding him back in the past, effects the reason why he causes alienation. picture: []
 * Hikari**

"I like Allie… I know he's dead! Don't you think I know that? I can still like him thought, can't I? Just because somebody's dead, you don't just stop liking them, for God's sake- especially if they were about a thousand times nicer than the people you know that're alive and all." (Salinger, 171)

Holden always came off as a person who only saw the negative sides to almost everything, but this quote shows that he is just like any average teenager. He can't seem to let go of Allie even after his death or other innocent memories of the past. Holden saw Allie and Pheobe as the only innocent people he knew, but Allie was taken away from him leaving Pheobe with him. He sees quite a few people as phonies. Seeking for innocence, he is afraid of everything changing. He wants everything to stay the same and innocent as it was once before. Holden likes the museum, because everything is always in the same place every time you return. Holden is afraid of accepting new ideas, and only holds on to the past. Holding on to the past and innocence only holds Holden back from seeing past the negative side of "phonies". Allie's death and Holden's grip around it till now shows how Holden doesn't like changes and tries to find the similarity of the present to the past.

Picture: http://photos.demandstudios.com/59/88/fotolia_1089520_XS.jpg Kristina Chong

pg. 174 " He was about the best teacher i ever had, Mr. Antolini... He was the one that finally picked up that boy that jumped out the window i told you about, James Castle. Old Mr. Antolini felt his pulse and all, and then he took off his coat and put if over James Castle and carried him all the way over to the infirmary. He didn't even give a damn if his coat got all bloody."

In this quote, Holden tells us of a Mr. Antolini whom Holden believes to be a good person and not a phony person. This quote is significant in the story because it tells us that Holden is not one who believes that everyone in the world in phony but he still believes that there are people out there who are good people. The situation that Holden is in right now shows that the one person that he turns to is an old teacher from a school he used to go to. Mr. Antolini helps Holden by allowing Holden to stay out his house for the night. This quote also shows the development of character within Holden, how he shows that not everyone is a bunch of phonies.

[] Ricky Quan

Shortly after Holden leaves the Wicker Bar stinking drunk, he decides to go to the Central Park lagoon to see if there are any ducks around. He picks up his quest for ducks where he left it during his conversation with Horwitz the cab driver, who tells him Mother Nature will protect her creatures. Holden clumsily drops Phoebe’s record as he stumbles around looking for the lagoon. Holden does not see the symbolism, but he can be seen as a lost duck, wishing to find his brethren because, unlike him, they seem to know where to go when the winter approaches and the lake freezes over. Holden frequently complains about a being cold when he’s drunk and the coldness from the ice in his hair. Holden is alone, confused, and cold; longing for refuge from the loneliness and hardship he is facing, and hoping that the location of the ducks will give him insight about where he should be headed with his life, and how he should handle the cold that is freezing over him. Picture source: []
 * “Then, finally, I found it. What it was, it was partly frozen and partly not frozen. But I didn’t see any ducks around. I walked all around the whole damn lake- I damn near fell in once, in fact- but I didn’t see a single duck.”(154)**
 * -Christian**

**“It is so something //really//! Certainly it is! Why the hell isn’t it? People never think anything is anything //really//. I’m getting goddam sick of it.” (pg. 172)**

Holden’s little sister, Phoebe, asks him to name one thing that he likes in life. He tells her that he likes Allie, and that he likes what he’s currently doing (just sitting down with her and talking). However, Phoebe angrily reminds him that Allie is dead, and says that just sitting down and talking isn’t ‘anything //really//’. Holden gets frustrated, wondering why little aspects of life, such as ‘chewing the fat’ and admiring loved ones cant ‘count’ as things you enjoy in life. He believes that people always over look the little things in life, and don’t appreciate them, and that it’s important to not take genuine moments, or people for granted.

picture source: [] - **Devin Johnson** ===

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Period 4
//"I just wish he (Allie) weren't there...It's not too bad when the sun's out, but the sun only comes out when it feels like coming out." (156)//

Recognition isn't given out to just anyone, so the ones who lose feel inferior to those who have won. This is like how the rich can afford many luxuries, but others cannot afford what they have. But like how all humans longs for the sun, everyone wants to have a lot of money because money is happiness. This book continually questions whether or not money should dictate the happiness of a person. Allie certainly didn't deserve to be left in the dark, but the sun does not reach him. Instead, it shines upon those who "go someplace nice for dinner" (156.), because they are fortunate enough to still be alive. Salinger argues that people shouldn't judge people according to their possessions and lifestyle, but the good deeds and the life they lived. Therefore, it isn't reasonable for those that do not have money to be inferior to the rich. Josephine Ong Picture= [|http://saluscredentium.blogspot.com]

"I hope to hell when I //do// die somebody has sense enough just to dump me in the river or something... Who wants flowers when you're dead? Nobody." (155) Holden imagines his whole family mourning his death, burying him, and bringing him flowers. Holden does not want to be remembered like that. He obviously has no use for flowers after he dies, and he does not want his family to mourn him. He especially does not want to make his mother sadder than she already is after Allie died. This shows how Holden wants his family to keep their peace of mind and be happy, regardless of what happens to him. He wants them to remember him the way he remembers Allie, happy and young. Holden would rather be thrown in a river than buried where he is accessible for his family to mourn. Hunter Stephens []

"'I like Allie"...'I know he's (Allie) dead! Don't you think I know that? I can still like him though, can't I? Just because somebody's dead, you don't just stop liking them, for God's sake-especially if they were about a thousand times nicer than the people you know that're alive and all.'" (171)

This quote develops Holden's character. We come to understand that he isn't just some egotistical pessimistic jerk, but that he’s afraid to let go. In reality behind those cold hard words, Holden is a regular teenage guy whose desperately looking for his place in the world. He knows what its like to disappoint others and no longer knows how to voice his feelings without seeing others’ objectives as phony. Holden accepts Allie's death, but he's afraid of letting other people come close and has been living life through the memories of his happier times, of his childhood. This specifically relates to the symbol of museums, which preserve items keeping alive certain aspects of the past. Likewise, Holden’s trying to preserve his memories, specifically Allie’s. Allie died young therefore he never was able to “grow up”, forever keeping his innocence and youth, unlike Holden, who realizes that things keep changing. Gabriella credit for the picture: http://www.livestrong.com/article/339472-how-are-baseball-gloves-sized/

 "When i got to the museum, all of a sudden I wouldn't have gone inside for a million bucks." (pg. 122) Memories are important to Holden, especially the good ones. He likes to remember all the fun and happiness he felt in this certain museum. Holden knows that the image he had before and the feelings he felt will be all different, if he steps into the museum again. He wants it the same and he mentions that by saying," the best thing in the museum was that everything always stayed right where it was.....The only thing that would be different would be you." Holden is scared about accepting another indifference in his life. He had to accept Allie's death already and all the other hard troubles because of it. He wants to stop going through those hardships. This shows how Holden has certain things he really cares about by making the museum symbolizes how memories are so precious and that everyone has a special one that they love going back to. Hae Min Credit : http://www.visualphotos.com/photo/2x3337740/man_walking_on_pavement_in_front_of_building_42-15200082.jpg

//"I hope to hell when I do die somebody has sense enough to just dump me in the river or something." (155)// Holden was drunk and just made it to the lagoon. He realizes that there is hunks of ice in his hair and thinks that he'll get pneumonia. He's got little money left and he's just thinking about himself dying right out there. He thinks about who will go to his funeral, and he remembers Allie's. He pictured who would cry, who would be there, and how his mother would be. He then feels that it's not fair how Allie has to lie there during the rain or shine and that makes him realize how he'd rather be thrown into the river than be surrounded by dead guys in the cemetery. -Hazelle- []

"Then something terrible happened just as I got in the park. I dropped old Phoebe's record. It broke into about fifty pieces. It was in a big envelope and all, but it broke anyway. I damn near cried, it made me feel so terrible, but all I did was, I took the pieces out of the envelope and put them in my coat pocket. They weren't any food for anything, but I didn't feel like just throwing them away." (154)
 * Jessica:**

[] Holden is sort of drunk right now and he decides to go to the park for a walk, but he accidentally drops "The Shirley Beans" record he bought for Phoebe. After he dropped, he burst into tears. This shows how important Phoebe is to Holden. He wanted to see Phoebe happy. You also don't see teenage boys crying over a broken record very often. Holden must love Phoebe a lot because even after he broke the record, he kept the broken pieces even though they are useless. This shows a soft side of Holden amidst all his criticism to people.

In this part Holden is trying to convince Phoebe to believe him about not getting kicked out of another school. She is insistent that their father is going to kill him. This shows how much he really cares for her, he wants o keep his good image in front of her and reassure her that he is not in trouble. He really is a caring brother to her and he shows it in this secret conversation with her. This is a new side of Holden; talking to a person he likes and wants them to like him in return. It advances the plot by revealing what type of person she is and how she affects Holden’s life. -Byron pic. at http://www.inmagine.com/izs017/izs017729-photo

"I started thinking how old Phoebe would fell if I got pneumonia and died. It was a childish way to think, but I couldn't stop myself. She'd feel pretty bad if something like that happened. She likes me a lot. I mean she's quite fond of me. She really is. Anyway, I couldn't get that off my mind, so finally what I figured I'd do, I figured I'd better sneak home and see her, in case I died and all. (156)

[]

Holden is at the Central Park right now, and he thought about Allie at his funeral and all of his family members coming and he thought what it would be like if he had died and there was a funeral for him. Right now the only person Holden really cares about is his sister Phoebe with the exception of D.B. and his parents. Holden really likes and cares for Phoebe, and he values her as a sister as much as she values him as a brother. Holden also must really love Phoebe because even after he thought that he was going to die from pneumonia and have a funeral like everyone else, he thought that he must visit Phoebe no matter what. Holden shows a new personality here where he is actually enjoying someone's presence and is not irritated. No matter where he was, Holden always thought about Phoebe. -You Young Cho

"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 in their cars and turn on their radios and all and then go sosmeplace nice for dinner everybody except Allie. I couldn't stand it." (p157~p156) Holden is in the central park sitting on the bench. It is so cold that he would get pneumonia. He thinks that he would die, but he doesn't want to die, because his mom will be so sad and she is still not even good enough after Allie died. That reminds Holden visiting the cemetery where Allie is. He feels really sad for him, because he was one of the few people whom he has known as the genuine poeple. And he feel sad because Allie is surrounded by all the corpses and cannot escape the rain while the alive people run their cars and umbrellas. In my opinin, this reveals that Holden thinks that world what he calls "phony world" doesn't really let innocent people to survive and live like others. It also means that he really misses innocent people, and he is still looking for the innocent people. Kyung

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“When I was //really// drunk, I started that stupid business with the bullet in my guts again. I was the only guy at the bar with a bullet in their guts. I kept putting my hand under my jacket, on my stomach and all, to keep the blood from dripping all over the place. I didn’t want anybody to know I was even wounded… Finally what I felt like, I felt like giving old Jane a buzz…” (Salinger 150)



I believe that this quote reveals that Holden is alienating himself from others. He goes to the bar, gets drunk, then he acts like he has been shot; however, he does not want others to know that he is “wounded.” This is an example of Holden’s alienation because he is resisting the idea of help no matter how hurt he may be; expressing Holden’s independence. Nevertheless, Holden still shows that he is not entirely alienated, because he constantly tries to call and reach his friend Jane. However, when he goes to the phone booth, he is not “much in the mood any more to give Old Jane a buzz…”(Salinger 150). This contradiction and Holden’s indecisiveness express his fear of being rejected by others. I believe that he is in a state of confusion in which he is trying to be freed from his alienation.

- Jong Seok Lee

Pg. 172 “Even if you //did// go around saving guys’ lives and all, how would you know if you did it because you really //wanted// to save guys’ lives, or because you did it because what you //really// wanted to do was be a terrific lawyer.” Holden likes what lawyers do because they work to save innocent people’s lives. However, he says that all lawyers really do is make a lot of money and act like “hot-shots”. He argues that lawyers don’t know the real reason why they decided to become lawyers: whether they really wanted to save lives or because they wanted make money and gain fame. Holden explains that they wouldn’t have known if they were being phonies when they decided to become lawyers. This is ironic because Holden addresses the inevitable phoniness of the world, and at the same time does not accept it. The plot of the story is developed as Holden acknowledges the phony aspects of the world that cannot be helped. Photo: [] -Angella Chang

http://www.tiberiu.linuxship.ro/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/frozen_ducks.jpg //“So what I did, I started walking over to the park. I figured I’d go by that little lake and see what the hell the ducks were doing, see if they were around or not. I still didn’t know if they were around or not. It wasn’t far over to the park, and I didn’t have anyplace else special to go to—I didn’t even know where I was going to sleep yet—so I went. I wasn’t tired or anything. I just felt blue as hell.”// This quote shows Holden’s reality; his virtual aspects when he is left alone without anything. He is haphazard and impulsive, having no plan for what to do next. Yet, the ducks described in the quote above, are pulled out from his deep mind, where the ducks and himself have many similarities – being unsure of what to do when the harsh circumstance comes. The ducks leave off every winter to the south, the warmer side and return every spring cyclically. But the majority of them usually freeze to death. And it was obvious that the ducks wouldn’t be around the lake at that late time. His curiosity of wanting to know if they were around or not again shows his personality of impulsiveness.

-Leena Lee

"I know he's dead! Don't you think i know that? I can still like him, though, can't I? Just because somebody's dead, you don't just stop liking them, for God's sake--especially if they were about a thousand times nicer than the people you know that're alive and all"(171)

At this point Holden retaliates towards Phoebe's statement that Holden's statement of him liking Allie doesn't count because hes dead. Here we see Holden clearly misses his brother, and is still not over his death. We can see that he feels Phoebe should appreciate Allie a little more even though he is gone. One can see that he thinks that some people don't appreciate life as much as they should in this statement. We can also see that he feels that those worthy of living such as Allie sometimes just don't get that chance. You can see his anger to those less deserving when he says "especially if they were about a thousand times nicer than the people you know that're alive and all."