1. The Catcher in The Rye Chapters 1-3

2. Holden Narration / Cynical tone
“If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap…” (Salinger 1).
Allusion
Story told from adult’s perspective
Holden tells story as a teenager
Holden will tell story in a deeper, more intelligent level
singular first-person perspective
Follow along with Holden

3. Tone
“Besides, I’m not going to tell you my whole goddam autobiography or anything. I’ll just tell you about this madman stuff that happened to me around last Christmas just before I got pretty run-down and had to come out here and take it easy” (1).
Where he is telling the story from
Doesn’t include personal information

4. Characterization
“practically the whole school except me was there…” (2)
Ostracized by fencing team
On his way to Spencer’s, been expelled

5. Holden Characterization Contradiction
Respects their academia but hates it
“ What I was really hanging around for, I was trying to feel some kind of good-by. I mean I’ve left schools and places I didn’t even know I was leaving them. I hate that. I don’t care it’s a sad good-by or a bad good-by, but when I leave a place I like to know I’m leaving it. If you don’t, you feel even worse,” (Salinger 4).
Looks for a sense or feeling of good-by
Indicates true feelings

6. Holden Characterization Contradiction:
Praises academia but hates Pencey
“ What I was really hanging around for, I was trying to feel some kind of good-by. I mean I’ve left schools and places I didn’t even know I was leaving them. I hate that. I don’t care if it’s a sad good-by or a bad good-by, but when I leave a place I like to know I’m leaving it. If you don’t, you feel even worse,” (4).
Looks for a sense or feeling of good-by
Indicates true feelings

7. Characterization
“After I got across the road, I felt like I was sort of disappearing. It was that kind of a crazy afternoon, terrifically cold, and no sun out or anything, and you felt like you were disappearing every time you crossed a road” (5).
Feels lonely and isolated

8. Tone Holden’s Tone: Cynical
“Game, my ass. Some game. If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then it’s a game, all right…But if you get on the other side, where there aren’t any hot-shots, then what’s a game about it?” (Salinger 8).
Holden refuses to “play” by the rules – conform
Alienation- identifies with the “other side”
Contempt for adults

9. Holden Characterization Refuses to face reality
Reality causes sadness and despair of his situation
“I didn’t like hearing him say that. It made me sound dead or something. It was very depressing,” (14).
“ But I just couldn’t hang around there any longer, the way we were on opposite sides of the pole…” (15).
“It made me feel sad as hell,” (15).

10. Holden Characterization - Hypocrisy that surrounds him
- Ugliness which surrounds him
Unpleasantness of Spencer’s room
Reveals own flaws and condemns the rest of the world

11. Holden’s Actions Despises everyone/ everything
Contradiction in his thoughts
Surface behavior versus inner feelings
No close bond- irritating/ disgusting

12. Characterization
“I’m the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life” (16).
Indicates that he will lie, unreliable narrator
Exaggeration but not malicious
Life is boring for Holden, how he “spices it up”

13. Hunting Hat
“…then I put on this hat that I’d bought in New York that morning. It was this red hunting hat, with one of those very, very long peaks…The way I wore it, I swung the old peak way around to the back- very corny, I’ll admit, but I liked it that way. I looked good that way” (17-18).
Holden’s sense of joy when he wears it
Unconventional in style, as Holden sees himself

14. Ackley & Stradlater Still acts kindly to both Recluse
Gross personal habits
Hates everyone
Loner
Self-absorbed
Concerned with appearance
Many friends
Still acts kindly to both

15. Holden’s Interactions
Parallel between Ackley and Holden:
Isolation
Bitter, critical tone and outlook -shield themselves from others.
Ackley’s annoying habits protect him from interaction & intimacy
Interaction & intimacy are what Holden needs and fears most