The Catcher in the Rye

Faith Cavendish

Faith is a former burlesque stripper and supposed prostitute. Holden calls Faith late at night to set up a date, but she refuses to go.

P.OV

First

Sunny

First things first: we're almost positive that "Sunny" isn't this girl's real name. She's the prostitute the elevator man pimps out to Holden, and when we first meet her we're all excited that we're finally going to figure out why this book has been banned and re-banned. Instead ... Nothing. He never has sex with her; all they do is talk. (Okay, she does take off her dress—but we're pretty sure she's still wearing a slip or something.) By the time the girl is on his bed and taking her dress off, Holden realizes he's not into this after all. Of course, she's not the world's greatest conversationalist either, so she just stomps off after trying to extort even more cash from him. To be fair, we're pretty sure her pimp is making her jack up the price. So, why does Holden back down this time? Partly because he can't do anything, ever. But also partly because she's just a kid—"young as hell" (13.30). Because she's still a kid, she has all these little nervous habits that force Holden to see her as an individual rather than a prostitute. She's "jiggling this one foot up and down" (13.30), and says the childish "Like fun you are" instead of "Like hell you are" or "Cut the crap" (13.35); she's got a tiny little wheeny-whiny voice" (13.31); and—this really kills us—she doesn't even know enough to say "thank you" (13.31). That's where we realize how messed up this situation is, and Holden does too. Here's this kid who's had such a messed-up, disadvantaged upbringing that she never even learned to say "thank you," being forced into prostitution by some elevator-operating jerk; and then here's Holden, rich and depressed outcast from four different prep schools about to make this poor girl's life just a little bit worse. No wonder he can't follow through.

Dick Slagle

he would use Holdens suitcase bc they were better and more expensive. Holden's very short-term roommate at Elkton Hills. Dick was the owner of some very inexpensive suitcases.

What does Holden give us as the reason for "leaving" Elkton Hills?

He didn't exactly dlunk out or anything, just quit kinda b he was surrounded by phones. Puts blame on school master who treated wealthy people right and poor people wrong

What record did Holden get for Phoebe?

He got "little shirley beans." He liked it and thought that Phoebe would, too. It's described as very dixie land and ***** house sexy. Sung by a black lady. Represents society's curruption. Intended for children

Ackley

He is Holden's next door neighbor in Pencey prep. He has pimples on his face and he is terrible about hygiene. he eats his nails in the room cribs his pimples. He acts stupid and often rushes into Holden's room and disturbs him. According to Holden he is also a liar - Holden thinks that he tells him made up stories about his sexual experience. Holden thinks he is really a disgusting person but he feels sorry for him though. Moreover there are lots of common peculiarities between Holden and Ackley. For instance they both hate Stradlater, they call him "sob." but the most important peculiarity between them is that they are both lonely and desperate. We can understand it when we saw them in the dormitory alone while everybody else was at the final game.

What does Holden mean when he says "I'm quite illiterate but I read a lot"?

He likes to rea but he is not interested in learning school stuff, he is reading "oout of Africa" and likes reading his brother's work

What did Spencer do that particularly annoyed Holden?

He reads one of his ssays out loud. He repeats himself and keeps throwing papers all over to the bed but misses and Holden has to pick them up

Phonies

Holden constantly encounters people and situations that strike him as "phony," a word he applies to anything hypocritical, shallow, superficial, inauthentic, or otherwise fake. He sees such "phoniness" everywhere in the adult world, and believes adults are so phony that they can't even see their own phoniness. And Holden is right. Many of the characters in the novel, from Ackley and Stradlater, to Sally, to Mr. Spencer are often phony, and say and do things that keep up appearances rather than reflect what they truly think and feel. Yet even though Holden is right that people are phony, Catcher in the Rye makes it clear that Holden's hatred of phoniness is still self-destructive. Though Holden is constantly pointing out the phoniness in others, he is himself often phony. At various times in the novel, he tells pointless lies, claims to like or agree with statements or ideas he hates, goes out with girls he doesn't like, all to try to feel less lonely or to avoid direct confrontations. The point, then, is that, yes, people are "phony" and can't live up to Holden's wish that the world be simple, a place of black and white. But in the end what Mr. Antolini is trying to make Holden see is that while this "phoniness" is harmful and hurtful, it doesn't make people evil or worthy of hate. It makes them human. Holden, in effect, is wishing that the world could be inhuman, could be something that it never can be.

Holden

Holden is 16 years old as the central story begins, tall at 6 feet 2 1/2 inches, partially gray-haired, and woefully skinny. He has grown 6 1/2 inches in just one year. He is out of shape because he smokes too much. His general health is poor. He is alternately depressed, confused, angry, anxious, perceptive, bigoted, resentful, thoughtful, kind, and horny. To put it simply, Holden is struggling.

Holden's view on society

Holden resents the adult world and resists entry into it, but he has little choice. Society and his own body are telling him that it is time for him to change. He is attracted to the trappings of adulthood: booze, cigarettes, the idea of sex, and a kind of independence. But he despises the compromises, loss of innocence, absence of integrity, and loss of authenticity in the grown-up world. He seems best at the rites of passage (smoking and drinking) that are themselves artificial if not self-destructive. Despite his limited experience, his attitude toward women is actually admirable and mature. He stops making sexual advances when a girl says "No." He has trouble being very intimate unless he knows the girl well and likes her a lot. In his confusion, he sees this behavior as a weakness that may even call for psychotherapy. His interactions with the prostitute Sunny are comic as well as touching, partly because they are both adolescents trying to be adults. Although Sunny is the more frightening of the two, neither belongs there.

Museum

Holden tells us the symbolic meaning of the museum's displays: they appeal to him because they are frozen and unchanging. He also mentions that he is troubled by the fact that he has changed every time he returns to them. The museum represents the world Holden wishes he could live in: it's the world of his "catcher in the rye" fantasy, a world where nothing ever changes, where everything is simple, understandable, and infinite. Holden is terrified by the unpredictable challenges of the world—he hates conflict, he is confused by Allie's senseless death, and he fears interaction with other people.

The ducks

Holden's curiosity about where the ducks go during the winter reveals a genuine, more youthful side to his character. For most of the book, he sounds like a grumpy old man who is angry at the world, but his search for the ducks represents the curiosity of youth and a joyful willingness to encounter the mysteries of the world. It is a memorable moment, because Holden clearly lacks such willingness in other aspects of his life.

Setting

setting (time) · A long weekend in the late 1940s or early 1950s setting (place) · Holden begins his story in Pennsylvania, at his former school, Pencey Prep. He then recounts his adventures in New York City.

D.B

Holden's older brother is one representative of the aesthetic theme of the genuine artist who sells out. Holden feels that D.B. was a truly "terrific" short-story writer before going to Hollywood to write scripts, drive Jaguars, date gorgeous women, and make money. "The Secret Goldfish," a story about a kid who buys a goldfish with his own money and won't let anyone else look at it, is Holden's favorite short story written by his brother. Holden dislikes the movies because he thinks that they are "phony" and manipulative; he feels that his brother has prostituted himself by becoming a screenwriter. Like Salinger, D.B. served extensively in World War II, landed in France on D-Day, and was in Europe for the duration. He was disillusioned by the war and especially the military. Perhaps that cynicism was part of his decision to become a screenwriter.

Tone

Holden's tone varies between disgust, cynicism, bitterness, and nostalgic longing, all expressed in a colloquial style.

What does Holden mean when he says that his brother D.B is out in Hollywood being a prostitute?

IT means he is selling his stories for as much as he can get from anyone, and writes for movies now

Holden's perspective

In "The Catcher in the Rye", Holden views the world as an evil and corrupt place where there is no peace. This perception of the world does not change significantly through the novel. However as the novel progresses, Holden gradually comes to the realization that he is powerless to change this. During the short period of Holden's life covered in this book, "Holden does succeed in making us perceive that the world is crazy". Shortly after Holden leaves Pencey Prep he checks in to the Edmont Hotel. This is where Holden's turmoil begins. Holden spends the following evening in this hotel which was "full of perverts and morons. (There were) screwballs all over the place." His situation only deteriorates from this point on as the more he looks around this world, the more depressing life seems. Around every corner Holden sees evil. He looks out on a world which appears completely immoral and unscrupulous. The three days we learn of from the novel place a distressed Holden in the vicinity of Manhattan. The city is decked with decorations and holiday splendor, yet, much to Holden's despair "seldom yields any occasions of peace, charity or even genuine merriment." Holden is surrounded by what he views as drunks, perverts, morons and screwballs. These convictions which Holden holds waver very momentarily during only one particular scene in the book. The scene is that with Mr. Antolini when he patted Holden on the head while he was sleeping, Holden jumped up and ran out thinking that Mr. Antolini was a pervert as well. This is the only time during the novel where Holden thinks twice about considering someone as a pervert. After reviewing Mr. Antolini, Holden finally concludes that maybe he wasn't making a "flitty" pass at him. Maybe he just liked patting guys' heads as they sleep. This is really the only time in the novel where Holden actually considers a positive side. This event does not constitute a significant change. As Holden himself says, "It's not too bad when the sun's out, but the sun only comes out when it feels like coming out." The sun of course is a reference to decency through the common association of light and goodness. His perception of the world remains the same. The one conviction that does change during the novel is Holden's belief that he can change the world. On his date with Sally, Holden reveals his feelings. "Did you ever get fed up?... I mean did you ever get scared that everything was going to go lousy unless you did something..." Holden goes through several plans. Holden at one point contemplates heading out west where he will pretend to be a deaf-mute and live a quiet life. At another point Holden proposes to Sally to escape this world with him. It is finally to his younger sister Phoebe that Holden reveals his ultimate plan. Although Holden describes the situation in a very picturesque and symbolic manner he essentially tells Phoebe that he wants to prevent children from growing up. He blames the world's corruption on adults and believes that when he stops the children from growing up he will preserve their innocence and save the world. It takes most of the book before Holden begins to realize that he is helpless to stop this corruption. Finally, he realizes that not only is there nothing that he can do, but there is nowhere he can go to hide from it. Holden takes awhile to comprehend these concepts. One good example is when Holden is delivering the note to his sister. He encounters a "****-you" written on the wall. Holden careful rubs this off with his hand so as to protect the innocent children from reading it. Later on he finds "****-you" scratched into the surface with a knife. He discovers that he can't efface this one. Even in the timeless peace of the Egyptian tomb room at the museum there is an un-erasable "****-you." This incident is the beginning of Holden's realization that his dreams are unfeasible. Ironically enough, it is one of the "innocent" children that he is trying to protect who helps him come to terms with this realization. It is Phoebe who challenges his plan to escape out west. As he is telling Phoebe that she can not run away, he discovers that he too can not run away. "You can't ever find a place that is nice and peaceful, because there isn't any." The final breakdown comes near the end of the book when he is watching Phoebe on the carousel. "All the kids kept trying to grab for the gold ring, and so was old Phoebe, and I was sort of afraid she'd fall off the goddam horse, but I didn't say anything or do anything. The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but it's bad if you say anything to them". In the above passage from the novel, Holden hits the final breakdown. Being "the catcher" becomes obviously unrealistic. The gold rings are ironically not gold but really brass-plated iron. The gold rings are symbols of the corrupted world which always "wears" a shiny surface to hide its evil. It is at this point that Holden sees that he can not stop children from growing up and therefore losing their innocence. They will fall if they fall, there is nothing that can be done. Shortly after this point Holden has his nervous breakdown. His breakdown is due to this depressing realization that the world is corrupt and filled with evil. He knows now with a sickening certainty that he is powerless to stop both evil and maturation. As a matter of fact, it is "bad" to do so.

Jim Steele

In Catcher in the Rye Jim Steele is the alias Holden uses with Sunny & the three Lavender Room girls.

Stradlater

In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Stradlater is Holden Caulfield's roommate at Pencey Prep. To Holden, Stradlater represents a self-absorbed athlete that presents well to the outside world, but that has hidden flaws. In this lesson, we will learn more about Stradlater. 'He's got this superior attitude all the time,' Ackley said. 'I just can't stand the sonuvabitch...' Holden isn't the only one to complain of Stradlater's arrogance. At first, Holden tries to focus on Stradlater's finer points by praising Stradlater's generosity. 'Say he had a tie on that you liked a helluva lot--I'm just giving you an example, now. You know what he'd do? He'd probably take it off and give it to you. He really would,' says Holden. But even Holden has to agree that Stradlater is a little obsessed with himself. 'Stradlater ...spent around half his goddam life in front of the mirror.' Holden hates people who act phony, but seems to excuse and even appreciate Stradlater's friendliness. 'He was at least a pretty friendly guy, Stradlater. It was partly a phony kind of friendly, but at least he always said hello to Ackley and all.' It strikes Holden, however, how people like Stradlater tend to present to others differently from how they really are. For example, Stradlater always looked really nice on the outside and seemed impressive to girls and parents, but Holden knows that his razor is nasty and unclean. Always asking for favors

James Castle

James Castle was one of Holdens class mates at Elkton Hills. He asks to borrow one of his turtleneck sweaters. He and Holden are very smiliar but don't know each other well. James later kills himself by jumping out a window instead of taking back what he said to another student.

Jane

Jane Gallagher is an enigma to Holden Caulfield. She is the girl that he can't stop thinking about, but that he never seems in the mood to talk to. She is a girl that Holden actually likes and respects. Does he think he doesn't deserve her? In this lesson, we will learn more about Jane Gallagher from the J.D. Salinger novel, The Catcher in the Rye. Ever since Holden found out that his roommate, Stradlater, had a date with Jane Gallagher, he can't stop thinking about her. Part of the reason Holden left school and went to New York to spend a few days on his own, before returning home for winter break, is because of a fight that broke out between Holden and Stradlater about Stradlater's date with Jane. Leaving school does not clear Holden's mind of Jane, though. While Holden is pretty sure that Jane is not the kind of girl that would give in to Stradlater's advances, the thought of Stradlater with his Jane makes Holden insanely jealous. For him, Sally Hayes is arm candy, but Jane is the real deal. She is the kind of girl he really likes and wants to know on more than just a physical level. Holden respects her taste in books and feels comfortable enough with Jane that he talks to her about Allie, Holden's deceased brother. Holden doesn't talk to anyone outside his family about Allie.

Carl Luce

Luce is three years older than Holden and now a student at Columbia University. At the Whooton School, Luce used to tell the younger boys about sex. Holden says that he finds Luce amusing, even though he is effeminate and a phony. When Luce arrives, he treats Holden coolly, and Holden pesters him with questions about sex.

MAurice

Maurice is an angry pimp who prostitutes out a young girl, steals five dollars, and punches Holden in the stomach. He wears a "phony shirt collar" under his uniform, has a "big fat hairy stomach" and looks "very, very tired or very, very bored" the whole time he's intimidating Holden into paying five more dollars for the privilege of talking to a nervous teenager (14.20, 22). And Holden misses him. So, what's going on? Well, the whole reason Holden agrees to the prostitute thing in the first place is that he's "depressed" and isolated. In a way, it makes sense that he thinks he "misses" all the people he met over the course of the novel—even Maurice. The world may be full of phonies, morons, and bastards, but he needs to connect with them anyway—even if he's connecting with a hard punch to the stomach. The whole incident with Maurice also helps us see that Holden just can't help making things worse for himself. This isn't the only instance of Holden intentionally making things worse for himself. You could (very, very easily) argue that he purposefully gets kicked out of Pencey, drinks to dangerous levels, and wanders around the freezing park at night because he's acting out a wish to self-destruct. When you put it like that, trying to get punched by a "pimply" elevator man doesn't seem too bad, does it?

Mr. Antolini

Mr. Antolini is Holden's former teacher--"the best teacher I ever had"--at Elkton Hills. Bored and lonely, Holden decides to call him late one night, and Antolini graciously invites him to his home. Antolini and his wife had hosted a party earlier in the evening, and he appears to have been a bit drunk. The two reminisce, and Holden complains about teachers at Pencey. Antolini defends their actions, and writes a note for Holden to consider.

Mr. Spencer

Mr. Spencer, Holden's history teacher, has sent him a note asking him to visit before Holden leaves Pencey Prep. When Holden arrives, he immediately notices that the Spencers don't have a maid to answer the door, which makes him assume they don't have much money. Holden may be telling more about himself than he is about Mr. Spencer by noticing that. Mr. Spencer is just getting over the grippe, or flu, and is wearing a bathrobe, which makes Holden uncomfortable. Holden doesn't like looking at older people's bodies. Mr. and Mrs. Spencer are well past retirement age. Holden notices Mr. Spencer's poor posture and difficulty moving around and wonders how much longer he will live. 'The minute I went in, I was sort of sorry I'd come. He was reading the Atlantic Monthly, and there were pills and medicine all over the place, and everything smelled like Vicks Nose Drops. It was pretty depressing. I'm not too crazy about sick people, anyway.'

Tense

Past

where is Pencey Prep?

Pennsylvania

Phoebe

Phoebe Caulfield is Holden's ten-year-old little sister, but she is not your typical ten-year-old. Adorable? Yes, but she also understands Holden in a way that not many people could comprehend. At his low points, Holden craves conversations with her because he knows that she is one person who will always adore him no matter what. In this lesson, we will learn more about Phoebe Caulfield from the J.D. Salinger novel The Catcher in the Rye.

What type of school is holden attending?

Prep School

Sally

Sally Hayes is Holden Caulfield's non-exclusive girlfriend the J.D. Salinger novel, The Catcher in the Rye. We're first introduced to Sally when Ackley, a boy from a neighboring dorm, keeps staring at her picture. Sally is stunning, but are looks enough? She certainly makes an impression on Holden: 'Finally, old Sally started coming up the stairs, and I started down to meet her. She looked terrific. She really did. She had on this black coat and sort of a black beret. She hardly ever wore a hat, but that beret looked nice. The funny part is, I felt like marrying her the minute I saw her. I'm crazy. I didn't even like her much, and yet all of a sudden I felt like I was in love with her and wanted to marry her. I swear to God I'm crazy. I admit it.' (Holden) Sally knows that her looks have an intoxicating effect on boys. According to Holden, she is way less concerned about having any substance beneath the surface. She convinces Holden to take her ice skating, even though she is a terrible ice skater, so she can show off in a cute skating skirt.

Who is Sally Hayes

She was a girl Holden sometimes dates. He didn't like her too much, but he thought she was good looking

J.D Salinger

The Author?

The Carousel

The carousel represents life, its cyclical quality, and its opportunities for change and growth. As Phoebe rides around and around on the carousel, the mechanical horses move up and down, just as people have high and low moments in the cycles of their lives. When little Phoebe grabs the gold ring, Holden realizes that children must be allowed to extend themselves and take chances in life or they cannot mature and develop their own individuality. This gold ring symbolizes hope in life and the striving for and attainment of dreams. Watching Phoebe, Holden recognizes the flaw in his dream of being a "catcher in the rye" who holds and protects innocent children from the "phoniness" and dangers of adulthood. Now he realizes that Phoebe's need to "grab for the gold ring" suggests that children must be allowed to mature and take risks in order to grow into adulthood: The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but it's bad if you say anything to them. Grabbing the brass ring involves taking the chance that one may miss; however, one must extend oneself if one is to mature. After Phoebe gets off the carousel, she reaches into Holden's coat pocket and pulls out his red hunting hat and places it on his head. He asks her, "Don't you want it?" but Phoebe replies, "You can wear it a while." Phoebe suggests to her brother that he, too, must maintain and develop his own individuality.

Nuns

The nuns are yet another example of a minor character (or in this case, a set of minor characters) that exist only to tell us about Holden. We don't know enough about the nuns to analyze them as characters, but we can delve into the way Holden views them and, consequently, what that tells us about Holden. Take his conversation with them about literature. Holden has claimed before that he's not too smart. His brothers and sister, he says, are about fifty times more intelligent than he is. But the Romeo and Juliet conversation reminds us that, while Holden does have issues with formal education, he's a smart guy. His thoughts about the play are far from trivial, and he delves into the emotional gut of the story to identify what is indeed one of the most tragic moments of the play: when Mercutio dies. The point is, Holden is both intellectually and emotionally sharp. He knows what's up. And not just in 17th-century literature, either. Holden's observation that nuns "never [go] anywhere swanky for lunch" is perceptive and touching (16.1). Like his interaction with Sunny, this shows us how compassionate Holden really is. He constantly puts himself in other people's shoes, has a sharp awareness of those around him, and thinks conscientiously about how that relates to his own position in life—like how it bums him out to eat eggs and bacon when the nuns are only eating toast and coffee (15.18). And that leads us into a digression about money and religion: if one person has money and another person doesn't, it makes it hard to spend time together. He concludes the same about people from different religions; Catholics are always trying to find out if you're a Catholic too, he says, because they'd enjoy the conversation more if you were. In Holden's mind, all these constructions create social barriers. For an isolated teenager trying to make a connection with someone, barriers are not a good thing.

Red Hunting cap

The red hunting hat is one of the most recognizable symbols from twentieth-century American literature. It is inseparable from our image of Holden, with good reason: it is a symbol of his uniqueness and individuality. The hat is outlandish, and it shows that Holden desires to be different from everyone around him. At the same time, he is very self-conscious about the hat—he always mentions when he is wearing it, and he often doesn't wear it if he is going to be around people he knows. The presence of the hat, therefore, mirrors the central conflict in the book: Holden's need for isolation versus his need for companionship. It is worth noting that the hat's color, red, is the same as that of Allie's and Phoebe's hair. Perhaps Holden associates it with the innocence and purity he believes these characters represent and wears it as a way to connect to them. He never explicitly comments on the hat's significance other than to mention its unusual appearance.

Catcher in the rye symbole

What Holden most wants to be in life is someone who stands on the edge of a cliff in a rye field catching children before they fall. The image is symbolic of Holden's desire to save both himself and other children from having to grow up into an adult world he sees as "phony." The image is even more symbolic because it is based on Holden mishearing a song based on Robert Burns (1759-1796) poem "Coming Thro the Rye," which is about two bodies meeting in the rye to have sex. Holden's misinterpretation underscores both his desire to shield children from the adult world, and his misunderstanding about just how innocent the world of children is.

Phoebe's record

What Holden most wants to be in life is someone who stands on the edge of a cliff in a rye field catching children before they fall. The image is symbolic of Holden's desire to save both himself and other children from having to grow up into an adult world he sees as "phony." The image is even more symbolic because it is based on Holden mishearing a song based on Robert Burns (1759-1796) poem "Coming Thro the Rye," which is about two bodies meeting in the rye to have sex. Holden's misinterpretation underscores both his desire to shield children from the adult world, and his misunderstanding about just how innocent the world of children is.

Holden's good qualities

What I think is Holden's greatest problem is that he can't get people to listen to him. Soumya Mittal mentioned that he can't communicate. That's part of it, but he also can't get people to listen to him: and he really values the people that do: the nun in the coffee shop, Phoebe...and then you could, I suppose, count Mr. Antolini, but that trust is broken almost directly after. Holden just wants to be listened to, like every teenager. It's why the novel happens- Holden is likely institutionalized, and he's getting to tell his story to us, and that's how we find out about his adventures.

Holden's weaknesses

A couple of people here have listed Holden's seeming inability to express himself or communicate as his greatest weakness. I don't think that's true, at least on the book's own terms. Although he claims he has a lousy vocabulary, his narrative is compelling and subtly playful. Characters in the novel who speak to him always understand him, although they feign confusion or exaggerate his singularity, simply because he doesn't fit their expectations. Take Mr. Antolini's labelling of Holden as a 'weird kid' for not wanting to be touched by him. Instead, I would argue that Holden's biggest weakness is psychological - he's trapped between childhood and adulthood (not in itself a weakness), and cares too much about preserving innocence to be able to cope with the adult world - that, I think is his great weakness. His question about the ducks in winter, his dream (and therefore the title of the novel), his behaviour around Phoebe, his attitude towards the prostitute and the girls his own age all inform us of this great unarticulated desire of his. I think Holden's greatest weakness is his desire to shield his sister, Phoebe from the harsh realities of the world. At the end you see him desperately trying to hide vulgarity from her to save her innocence, but he can't. That's the rub of living in a society where there are people who can say and do things that others find offensive: You cannot shield everyone from these ideas all the time. Should we even try? There was a bumper sticker some number of years ago that read "shit happens," and some parents got upset. They didn't want their children reading that short, yet true statement. These are the same people who go to great lengths to pretend that Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny are real instead of teaching children that these are ideas we like to promote for nostalgic reasons. What I think is Holden's greatest problem is that he can't get people to listen to him. Soumya Mittal mentioned that he can't communicate. That's part of it, but he also can't get people to listen to him: and he really values the people that do: the nun in the coffee shop, Phoebe...and then you could, I suppose, count Mr. Antolini, but that trust is broken almost directly after. Holden just wants to be listened to, like every teenager. It's why the novel happens- Holden is likely institutionalized, and he's getting to tell his story to us, and that's how we find out about his adventures. What I think is Holden's greatest problem is that he can't get people to listen to him. Soumya Mittal mentioned that he can't communicate. That's part of it, but he also can't get people to listen to him: and he really values the people that do: the nun in the coffee shop, Phoebe...and then you could, I suppose, count Mr. Antolini, but that trust is broken almost directly after. Holden just wants to be listened to, like every teenager. It's why the novel happens- Holden is likely institutionalized, and he's getting to tell his story to us, and that's how we find out about his adventures.

Lilian Simmons

All of a sudden, this girl came up to me and said 'Holden Caulfield' her name was Lillian Simmons. He brother D.B. used to go around with her for a while. She had big knockers. Strictly a phoney. She introduced me to the navy guy. His name was commander Blop or something. He was one of those guys who thought they were being a pansy if they didn't brake around forty of your fingers when they shake hands with you. She asked me to join her, but I said I was just leaving. You could tell she was just trying to get in good with me so that I'd tell old D.B. about it. Then she left. The navy guy and I told each other we were glad to have met. Which killed me. I didn't have any choice, I couldn't even stick around to hear old Ernie play something halfway decent. People are always ruining things for you."

Allie's mitt

Allie's left-handed baseball glove is a symbol of his unique personality as well as Holden's love for his brother. The unique part of the glove is that Allie wrote poems all over it, in green ink. He did that so he would have something to read when he was in the baseball field and the game was boring. Holden keeps the glove with him and has it at Pencey. It is, of course, misguided to think that the boorish Stradlater, Holden's roommate, could understand or appreciate the essay that Holden writes about the glove. Stradlater wants something descriptive to hand in to his English teacher and is too lazy and dull to do the work himself. He asks Holden to write it. Telling someone like Stradlater about the glove is a sacrilege. Allie is more than a brother to Holden. In Holden's chaotic cosmos, he is an angelic presence, a connection to death but also to hope.

Allie

Although he has been dead for about three years, Allie is a mystic presence in the novel. Holden thinks of him often and speaks to him when things are darkest in his life. Allie is associated with the theme of death, but his role is not that simple. He also represents hope and the gifted innocence of childhood, which is tenuous and sometimes short-lived. Holden clearly loves his brother. Only two years apart in age, they were close friends. Allie died of leukemia at the Caulfields' summer home in Maine on July 18, 1946. He was 11 years old; Holden was 13. Holden, distraught over the loss of his brother, broke his hand punching the windows out of the garage of their summer home. Holden missed Allie's funeral because he was in the hospital, apparently for psychiatric evaluation as well as for attention to his hand. Depending on the date of Holden's birthday and his precision with numbers, that was about four years before Holden tells the story (at age 17) from the sanitarium in California and perhaps three and a half years before Holden (age 16) leaves Pencey. Allie was the most intelligent as well as the "nicest" member of the family. His connection to Holden was intense. The older brother could sense when Allie was in the vicinity, although he credits Allie's red hair for that. Holden would get a hunch that Allie was there; when he turned around, there Allie was.

Mrs. Morrow

An attractive woman and a classmate's mother who Holden meets on the train. He spins some entertaining lies for her benefit, including a fake name of "Rudolf" and having a brain tumor. Holden also humors Mrs. Morrow by pretending her son is a quality guy, when Holden really can't stand her son.