Title "The Catcher in the Rye"

Basically the title of this book "the Catcher in the Rye" is from the part where Holden is talking to Phoebe, and Phoebe asks Holden about one thing he really likes. Then it goes into the thing that he wants to be. Holden then goes on to explain that he pictures him being the only "adult" and he will be surrounded by kids, and he's on like this cliff thing. So every time the kids were running and they weren't looking at where they were going and the fell off the cliff, he would just appear out of nowhere. "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."

I think by Holden telling everyone this, it kinda means that he cares. He cares about kids. He wants to be there for them when they fall. He want to pick them up and reassure them that they're going to be okay. When I read and re-read this part, it makes me realize how much Holden is a caring person, and that he's not all about himself.

Chapters 16-18

The quote that I found to be really important to these chapter/book is when he's talking about the museum. "The best thing though, in that museum was that everything always stayed right where it was. Nobody'd moved. You could go there a hounded thousand times, and that Eskimo would still be just finished catching those those two fish, the birds would still be on their way south, the deers would still be drinking out of that water hole, with their pretty antlers and their pretty skinny legs, and that squaw with the naked bosom would still be weaving that same basket. Nobody'd be different. The only thing that would be different would be you."

To me this quote is saying that you can go back to the same place over, and over, but nothing changes. Only you do. Your perspective changes, and other things change. It also means that things don't change, people do. That's what this quote basically says to me. I think this quote matters because it kinda shows that Holden has changed since the last time he visited that, and he doesn't want to go back inside, because he wants to remember it as it was.

Marriage Poem (it's really bad xD)

Should I get married?
Yes? No?

Almost every girl dreams
about that one special day.
That day when her dad walks her down the isle
in her white dress.

The day when you hear the priest say
“I now pronounce you husband and wife”
Family and friends are there to help celebrate.

When really?
They’re most likely there
for the food and drinks.

Is it worth it?
I mean, months of planning, and spending huge amounts of money?
Why go through all the trouble and the stress?

Can’t you just elope?
Or is that against the rules?

Can you just run away?
Away from society.
Away from the pressures.
Just you and that special someone.

But you can't
Because that’s against everyones expectations.
People expect you to get married,
People expect you to have a wedding in a church,
and to wear a white dress.
People expect you to marry the guy your parents approve of.
But what if they don’t approve?
What happens then?

You marry the man you love,
but your parents aren’t behind your choice of a man.
They think you can do better,
when you think he’s the greatest man in the world.

“You may kiss the bride”
Cheers, and smiles.
Hugs and kisses.
Tears of joy.

Off on the honeymoon,
and everyone knows what’s going to happen tonight.
Ever thought about what you really wanted to do?
I want to go bowling all night.
What they expect is so overrated.

Think about what you want,
not about what everyone else wants for you.
It’s your life.
Live it the way you want to live it.

Holden Quote

To me, the quote that Mrs. Jorgensen chose for Holden, fits him. I take it as "Walk to the bear of your own drummer" You know? 'Better is one's own duty imperfectly carried out than, following perfectly the law of another. Better is death in the fulfillment of one's own law, for to follow another's law is perilous.' I take this quote as, do what you want to do. Who cares about society.

I'm reading the book "Into The Wild" One quote that stood out to me was "Society, man! You know, society! Cause, you know what I don't understand? I don't understand why people, why every fucking person is so bad to each other so fucking often. It doesn't make sense to me. Judgment. Control. All that, the whole spectrum. Well, it just..." This quote screams Holden to me. It's in a way saying "I don't understand why people are so phony all the time. Why can't people be normal?" That's just me, but when I picture Holden, I can see him asking himself the same questions that Chris asked. The control part in the quote is what really got me. Holden (to me) doesn't like control. He wants to do his thing, on his own time.

Holden

After reading chapters 8-11, I still think Holden is not a good person. I don't like how he lies, and stuff like that. But at the same time, I can see that he was changing. I don't really know how I feel about Holden right now. I'm on the fence about him still. I mean, I liked how Holden was all sensitive in chapter 5, and he seems like a nice person and all. I just don't know about him yet >.<

I'll just have to keep reading, and hope that I can pick a side. :)

Grief

After reading chapter 5, I started to think that Holden was close to his family. What gave me this thought was that it said "I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddamn windows with my fist, just for the hell of it" Holden seemed to really care about Allie. I wasn't expecting to see Holden so vulnerable and sad. When I was finished reading chapter 5, I felt kinda sad. I know think of Holden differently. I can see him as this "normal" person who cries, and does normal human stuff. I feel like Holden still deals with Allies death because he has his baseball mitt, and so that might constantly remind him of Allie.

I can see a lot of grief in our society. Especially the grief with losing a loved one. I know how it feels. I feel like almost everyone does. I was a mess after my grandma died last summer. I didn't want to do anything, I just wanted to sleep. So I know how Holden felt kinda.

After reading the chapters that were assigned, I started to pass judgement on Holden. I began to think that Holden was annoying and very rude. I say he's rude because in chapter 2, when Holden went to visit Spencer, you saw how easily Holden get annoyed. So I feel like when he gets annoyed, he can get an attitude, just like any teenager. "I had to sit there and listen to that crap" That quote helps support my theory of him being rude. Yeah he was bored while talking to Spencer, but even when I'm bored, I don't think like that. I start to think about unicorns or something like that. Another quote that I found was "I'M THE MOST terrific liar you ever saw in your life" HE'S A LIAR! That adds to the whole bad boy thing. So that also makes Holden annoying because you can never tell if he's telling the truth or not. So I pass judgement on Holden. Maybe my opinion on Holden will change as I read on. Who Knows. :)