The Catcher In The Rye.

Has anyone read this, or am i alone?

 

This book is fiction, and no, millions have read it.

 

i know millions have read it, but i was hoping to have a disscussion about it, sorry for posting in the wrong forum.

 

Anything specific you would like to discuss?

 

i saw the movie i don't read books

 

I have read it 1000 times over i adore it, my opinion of Holden is different everytime i read it sometimes i hate him for being a spoilt brat and others i think he is a genius. Regardless of my opinion of Holden its a great book everytime.

I didnt even realise there was a movie!

 

There's a movie of The Catcher in the Rye? Ironic, Holden Hates The Movies.....

 

My whole life is a dark room.

 

I didnt know there was a movie either. I read the book back in high school. It wasnt part of a class or anything, I had just wanted to read it. I think it is definately one of those books that sticks with you as we are all searching for meaning in our lives and trying to leave things behind. Hmm.....maybe i'll read it again.

 

I managed about the first three chapters, then gave up.

I just could not get into it for some reason.

 

thats what i thought about at first, then it started getting interesting.

 

What exactly do you think is interesting about it?

 

You think maybe if I started at chapter 4 ...

Maybe, someday, I'll give it another go, but to be honest there are so many books that grab me from the first page, I just dont feel inclined to persevere with something I'm not getting after 3 chapters.

Write it off to experience, move on to the next one...

 

I don't know if it's crude to state so in this thread, but I really wouldn't recommend it.

 

I can understand the appeal of the book, most people share his apathy at one point or more throughout their lives. However from a literary standpoint it lacks a message, a point, likeable characters, and resolution (I understand that's the point of the book). Any sort of resolution would have been fine. I know people relate because of Holden's sheer apathy, it's an interesting story, but that's about it.

It's more great for his innocence that he retains throughout the novel, wanting to just dream and be a catcher in the rye rather than do all the "adult" crap his friends are doing.

 

Catcher In The Rye or my philosophy on books I cant get into

 

And...what exactly is a catcher in the rye anyway

 

Catchet in the Rye -- I always recommend philosophy, even the bad stuff =P

He explains it in the book, it's the dude that catches the children from falling off of a cliff in a rye field in a dream Holden had.

 

I don't think (so far) there has been a film based on the book. Salinger despised Hollywood, and turned down several offers to have a film made. But since his recent death - who knows? Maybe it will finally happen. I like the book. But it impressed me more when I was still in my late teens. It manages to capture all the uncertainty and disappointment so many young people experience, etc.

BTW, the book is somewhat infamous because the unstable dude that killed John Lennon - claimed he was inspired by Holden's belief that most people (especially adults) are fake. So he resented John Lennon for singing about living a humble life, while earning millions of dollars.

QP

 

Holden's opinion early on;

"Anyway, I'm sort of glad they've got the atomic bomb invented. If there's ever another war, I'm going to sit right the hell on top of it. I'll volunteer for it, I swear to God I will."

He's very apathetic and thinks that people are shit (for lack of a better term).

His opinion later on;

"Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, 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're going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That's all I 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."

It's basically his way of saying that he admires the innocence of youth, which is why he rebels against all the adult activities his friends are doing, such as going to bars and clubs. At the end of the book he hangs out with his "kid sister" at the zoo and on a merry-go-round. He admires kids because they just play and have fun and they don't have expectations and they don't contribute to the terrible state of the world (which is what he complains about throughout the entire novel). It's basically his way of saying that he wants to stay young and care free forever. The world is a shitty place, and because of its state, it turned him into a bitter shitty person.

In real life J. D. Salinger was apparently only ever friends with children. I've read that he didn't care for adults.