THE CATCHER IN THE RYE has become an essential selection of American Literature, no doubt due to the unique and complex voice of its narrator, Holden Caulfield.
Being such an interesting voice has its flaws, though, as much of the novel's depth lies hidden in what Caulfield doesn't actually say. As we begin our study of the novel, I'd like for you to analyze the opening line. What do you see? What do you not see? What do you expect from this person? How does this line impact your perception of Holden?
First Line:
"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, but I don't feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth."
As always, I'd like to see this become a discussion. Respond to a classmate or two with something meaningful. Let's see where Holden takes us...
Holden wasn't ok since he was totally in a hospital and he feels like his childhood and where he comes from is of no importance. I expect Holden to be someone who is a realist but tends to lean towards the pessimistic side as well. My perception of Holden was always that he may have had a lack of serotonin in his brain. It was also the fact that he never took the death of his younger brother any better. Holden was just this guy who had to build up some really strong walls.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the "really strong walls" thing. Holden almost seems like he can't be reached in a way.
DeleteI agree that he wants to build up some strong emotional walls, but what evidence can you use to conclude that Holden was definitely hospitalized? And if he was hospitalized, what was it for?
DeleteNo spoilers Tyson. You just have to keep reading.
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DeleteIn this opening line, we see that Holden is hesitant to tell us about his childhood,giving us the impression that he doesn't care to tell us, and to do so would be almost like a chore. From what he does tell us however, we can infer that he has had a lonely childhood, and that perhaps acting as if he doesn't care hides the fact that truly, he does care.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if him not wanting to tell us about his childhood necessarily means that his childhood was lonely. I just think he's an arrogant person and does not want to waste his time giving his backstory.
DeleteI agree that we can infer he had a lonely childhood. He doesn't seem to be very fond of people and all and that probably stems from being alone most of his life. -kilby
DeleteI don't think he is trying to hide the fact about him caring about his childhood. I believe he is referencing that most childhood stories are all the same and he has no passion to reminisce on these times.
DeleteTo begin, Holden seems to think that we, the reader, are quite interested in his life from the beginning.He expects us to want to know all the details of his life in full. This immediately signals that Holden is a bit arrogant. Secondly, the fact that he is resistant to talking about his childhood shows some signs that he is very emotionally sensitive to what has happened to him The fact that he withholds all of this information from the reader is also a very big indicator that he is also an unreliable narrator. It also doesn't help his case when he sates he's a fantastic liar.
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I don't think it's that he believes that we are interested in his life but more so that it's like a first impression. Salinger is trying to break the 4th wall by having Holden specifically talk to the reader. Holden may have also called himself a fantastic liar to throw the reader off. By admitting to being a great liar must mean you're very honest.
DeleteI agree that Holden is emotionally sensitive to his childhood. I also didn't really think of Holden as arrogant, but looking back now I totally agree with you.
DeleteI agree with this. It's almost like Holden expects the attention, and that that's what he craves most. However, even though he expects the attention, he would rather have it focused on something that he is into and enjoys rather than his past and his family life.
DeleteI completely agree with this analysis. I also have some doubts about Holden's narration. Because he is a fantastic liar, and he likes to play with people, I suspect that he is playing with us too. I find myself wondering if he is only being dramatic by telling us that he doesn't want to talk about it, rather than actually not wanting to go into it.
DeleteI don't really think he thinks we will be interested in his life from the start. I think he thinks his story isn't even that significant. I did point out that he was a liar too, because these first lines just make us doubt his story.
DeleteThis first line shows that Holden knows he is speaking to an audience. The language Holden uses shows that he is not a fan of over explaining a story. Holden does not tell the reader his name in the first line of the story, showing how up front of a person he is. This first line gives the impression that the reader already knows what the book is about. He assumes that the reader wants to know his backstory, where he comes from, and his family. This makes Holden seem somewhat cocky about his self.
ReplyDeleteI never thought of it as cocky, but now thinking about it I totally see where you get that from. He has this slight underwhelming sense of pridefulness and arrogance in everything he does, that we as readers have the ability to pick up on. I think you're also right in saying that Caulfield seems slightly judgy even in the first line by already having assumptions about what we would want to know about him.
DeleteFrom this quote, I get the impression of someone hurting on the inside. Holden seems like an outcast in every aspect. He's a middle child so maybe he feels like he doesn't belong with his family or with social cliques. I expect him to be a very manipulative person on the low. This makes me feel like Holden is an extremely relatable character and that a lot of teenagers his age sympathize with him and what he goes through. -kilby
ReplyDeleteDefinitely! I feel like so many teenagers feel isolated or neglected by their family or peers. And that definitely can be seen where he says that his parents were already preoccupied when he was born.
DeleteI agree with the point that Holden is the way he is to portray typical teenage behavior. Maybe to from a connection with the reader regardless of age.
DeleteWhat we see is a character who says that this is normally what people want to know about you as a person the first time you meet them. I read under this line, a sense of extreme loneliness and longing for attention. As a first impression, this line makes me think that Holden believes in knowing someone better than that, and not trying to be friendly to people that you may not see yourself friends with later on down the road. We can perceive Holden as someone that doesn't agree with societal normalities and would rather be asked different questions rather than the very general and common ones he typically receives. I expect a rather genuine, upfront, and very blunt person out of this first sentence of the book.
ReplyDeleteI agree that this gives an insight to Holden and his thoughts and feelings about societal normalities. This first line delivers more about who Holden is underneath all the negativity.
DeleteI also agree that we gain an insight to Holden's character. We can see these things through Holden's attitude throughout the book such as depression/loneliness, wanting attention with the three girls, and not being actual friends with anybody as the story progresses.
DeleteThe voice of Caulfield I feel sounds very laid back. It's almost as if he is trying too hard to sound carefree, but this forms a paradox because he cares about sounding carefree. He sounds reluctant to share his story, but this reluctancy makes him sound almost eagar by saying "If you really want to hear about it" and "you'll probably want to know". He is assuming what his audience wants to know about him. By saying that he doesn't want to talk about it, we can infer that maybe those are memories he does not want to remember due to trauma, or he is just adding suspense to his story and being dramatic for his audience.
ReplyDeleteI like and agree with your mentioning of him trying too hard to sound carefree. It also seems like he partially does and does not want the reader's attention, which makes him appear a bit self-centered by expecting people to care.
DeleteI feel like Holden is going in saying that everyone has this sad story of their childhood and how they came from the bottom. He dislikes this response, because it is a 'phony response'. Not everyone's childhood should be faked as some sad story for attention. The truth and details of your life make you who you are. These fake stories make them sound all the same and takes away from the uniqueness of that person's life or childhood.There is a good quality in being yourself.
ReplyDeleteThis sentence sets the tone for the novel and as the reader, it feels like it is a burden for Holden to explain any details at all. The negativity in his words give a first impression of Holden and his overall attitude. It sticks out to me that although he does not have an interest in giving details at the very beginning, he hints at them. After the opening line, I made the assumption that Holden would give the reader the bare minimum of details from then on. Yet, that is not the case. Holden is brutally honest and makes it very clear. This line gives a clear insight to who Holden is at this time.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the notion that Holden is burdened by telling his story and, by extension, the reader. This line indeed provides insight into Holden's character.
DeleteI like how you worded it that it is a burden for him to give us details. I think that adds to the fact that it seems like he doesn't even want to tell us this story and yet he is. He is very negative and not motivated and makes that clear here.
DeleteIt’s interesting the mixture of selfishness and humility mixed in one sentence. Because at the beginning he doesn’t want to talk about himself, but at the end, you realize he doesn’t want to write about it is because he doesn’t want to talk about it. It definitely makes him more like a real teenager, in the sense that teenhood is a mix of learned humility and childlike selfishness. You’d definitely expect a more laid back person that doesn’t really bother with the mundanities of life. You also feel bad for him because he talks about a lousy childhood with occupied parents. It's also weird how he won't tell us basica details about himself but he gets very personal later in the novel.
ReplyDeleteI find this very interesting! Holden is definitely expressing a sort of selfishness since he's a teen, but is being sincere by not telling us what has happened. I think his intent is trying to save time from us hearing all the boring events in the beginning, so he can talk about them more later.
DeleteThe first sentence of the book is essential in establishing the first person limited point of view and Holden Caulfield's unique voice. In this sentence, he establishes that he is recounting the events of the book after they have taken place and to someone who wants to hear about this time in his life. Using later information, the whole book is likely an account told to a doctor or psychoanalyst while Holden is in a mental institution a year after the events of the book take place. More importantly, Holden expresses a great deal of characteristic teenage arrogance and distance with tradition even in the novel’s first sentence. Holden alludes to David Copperfield, the title character of a Charles Dickens novel, who is known for having a miserable childhood and being orphaned at the age of seven. Clearly, Holden has little sympathy for the typical backstory and characterization of the protagonists of most novels and is going to break that mold. Overall, Holden’s discontent with the “phoniness” of others and this contempt for the prototypical beginning of a novel is the first indication of this trend.
ReplyDeleteThe opening line of the book gives the reader an insight to the “I don’t care” mentality Holden has. He also believes whoever he is talking to wants to know about him and his life, showing his ego and arrogance. His avoidance of sharing details of his past life shows how his younger years may have complicated and/or sensitive topics and stories that he doesn’t want to get into.
ReplyDeleteI feel like Holden doesn’t really care if we hear his story or that it is insignificant. He is just like “well if you really want to hear about it” which makes it seem not very important. He mentions his childhood, but then tells us that he does not want to tell us about it. This makes him seem mysterious and like he will continue to leave pieces out of his story. This first line almost makes us doubt what Holden is telling us, which also connects to the fact that later on he tells us he is a liar. It seems like he does not want to tell his reality, but wants to tell us what he wants to hear.
ReplyDeleteThis line definitely characterizes Holden as nonchalant and unbothered by creating a cohesive and traditional narrative. Holden is clearly more motivated by his whims that the truth.
DeleteI agree that it makes him seem to be an unreliable narrator and that he probably won't tell us the complete true reality of what happened/is happening
DeleteI agree that Holden only tells us what he wants us to hear or whatever makes his story seem more interesting. This is typical of a regular teenage boy, because he wants attention but in a good way. I also agree with you that Holden telling us that he's a liar shows that he is unreliable and may not tell the reader everything or how exactly it happened.
DeleteThe first few sentences are all about having that “hook” line. By setting the tone in a way that sounds bored or unnamused it makes you wonder why he feels that way. He also tells us a lot in the first few lines without really saying anything. We learn that he had a bad childhood and that his parents have an interesting past. This also really helps us to meet the narrator/ main character with a very interesting first impression. We learn that he is very blunt and has little patience with others. All of these things encourage the reader to go on and find out more which is what any author would want out of their book.
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What sticks out to me most in this opening line is how he references his childhood. Most people wouldn't reflect on thie younger years being "lousy", because childhood is supposed to be a time of whimsical innocence. However, Holden calling his childhood "lousy" implies that his younger years wasn't such a blissful time. Rather, Holden's childhood was probably boring, or too traumatic to retell, hence why he doesn't ant to get into it.
ReplyDeleteIn the opening line, it can be seen that Holden Caulfield is unwilling to open up about his past. This makes the reader wonder what happened to him during his childhood that makes him uncomfortable to talk about it. The first impression this line gives me about Holden is that he feels his childhood wasn’t as important and he is ready to act more like an adult now. Holden’s voice reflects the thoughts of teenagers, which makes him so relatable. This line affects my perception of Holden because he seems honest straight off the bat, yet later in the book, he admits that he is a terrific liar. The confusion about Holden's honesty makes him an unreliable narrator, since the story is being told exclusively through his eyes.
ReplyDeleteAfter originally reading the first line, Holden came off as really edgy as well as irked. Looking back at it now after reading the first twelve chapters, he comes seems emotionally bruised, angry, and pessimistic. What I expect more of is his very raw, bitter, and very real emotions. It seems like he wants to talk about how he feels deep down, but feels like he also can't.
ReplyDeleteAs we are introduced to Holden Caulfield's character, we can see a glimpse of his attitude toward people. Since he doesn't want to share his backstory to others, included in this first line, then it can be inferred that he doesn't care about others around him, or even himself. Through this, we can see his somewhat stuck-up attitude and phony character, because he is not truthful with the reader in the beginning.
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