The Catcher in the Rye

Author

• J.D. Salinger was born in 1919 in NYC.• Salinger fought in WWII.• He was one of the first soldiers to liberate a

concentration camp.• After the war he was hospitalized with combat

stress disorder.

Publishing

• Salinger published Catcher in 1951.• The book was a 30 week best-seller.

Reviews

• New York Times: “unusually brilliant novel.”• Faulkner and Flanner O’Connor both liked it.• Others did not like the book because of the

“immorality and perversion” of Holden.• Critics are split as to whether or Holden ever

matures.

After Catcher

• Salinger stopped publishing fiction in 1965.• Salinger has refused to give interviews since

1980.• Refuses to hand over the rights for book to be

made into film.

Narration

• Told from Holden’s point of view• Teenage voice– Conversational tone– Simple language– Slang– Lots of repetition– Cussing– Many digressions

• Can the audience trust Holden? He may be an unreliable narrator.

• Story told as a confession (“If you really want to hear about it…”)

• Narrating from a “rest home”• Constant ranting/complaining

Beginning of book

• Holden says he’s not going to give the audience “all that David Copperfield kind of crap.”

• He is saying that he is not defining himself through others or through the past (birth of the American rebel).

• Not defined by:– Family– Society– Old literature– Old movies

Holden’s Obsessions

A. Things frozen in timeB. Child-like thingsC. “Phonies”

Dramatic Irony

• Definition: When the audience knows something the character does not

• Example: Throughout Catcher in the Rye, Holden’s immaturity and flaws are obvious to the reader but not to Holden himself.

Similarities between author and character

• Both born and raised in NYC• Both attend schools and fail to graduate• Both have parents of different religious faiths• Both have well-to-do parents• Both underwent treat (Holden- psychiatric;

Salinger- postwar stress)• Both isolate themselves from others (Holden

runs away; Salinger is a recluse in N.H.)