The Catcher in The Rye Quotes

"I thought of her going in a store and buying it, and nobody in the store knowing she was a prostitute and all. The salesman probably just thought she was a regular girl when she bought it. It made me feel sad as hell -- I don't know why exactly"

Who: Holden When: He thinks about Sunny (the prostitute he hires) buying her dress What does this show: holden gets sad over this because he realizes that you never know what someone is dealing with, like how the salesman did not know why Sunny was buying that dress. Holden gets sad because he does not know everything and that is why he calls everyone phonies. Also Sunny is a young girl and when Holden thinks of young girls he thinks of Jane and not Sunny

"You never wanted to kid Jane too much. I think I really like it best when you can kid the pants off a girl when the opportunity arises, but it's a funny thing. The girl I like best are the ones I never feel much like kidding"

Who: Holden When: Holden describing his relationship with Jane What does this show: it shows that his ideal romantic relationship is if he finds someone he likes then he will like them. It shows how he wants a deep, real relationship which shows his emotional side

"I held hands with her all the time, for instance. That doesn't sound much, I realize, but she was terrific to hold hands with [...] You never even worried with Jane, whether you hand was sweaty or not. All you knew was, you were happy. You really were"

Who: Holden When: Holden describing his relationship with Jane What does this show: that Holden will always feel happy when he is with Jane and how he can be himself with her. She is one of the very few people he can trust. Their relationship is very innocent ex. "hand-holding"

"one of my troubles is, I never care too much when I lose something -- it used to drive my mother crazy when I was a kid. Some guys spend days looking for something they lost. I never seem to have anything that if I lost it I'd care too much"

Who: Holden When: Holden talking about a pair of gloves that he lost What does this show: this shows Holden trying to convince himself that he doesn't care about anything. He already lost his brother, so what else could he lose

"Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around -- nobody big, I mean -- except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff -- I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That's what I'd do all day. I'd be the catcher in the rye and all"

Who: Holden When: Holden talking to Phoebe and describing his desire to be the catcher in the rye What does this show: this shows that Holden wants to be the protector of the kids, and doesn't want them to grow up to be phony adults. He is the "protector of the innocent" and protects them from change and growing up

"Certain things they should stay the way they are. You ought to be able to stick them in of those big glass cases and just leave them alone"

Who: Holden When: Thinking about the Museum of Natural History What does this show: This shows that he wanted everything good in his life to stay the same. He does not want to go into the Museum because he is afraid it changed.

"When I was all set to go, when I had my bags and all, I stood for a while next to the stairs and took a last look down the goddam corridor. I was sort of crying. I don't know why" But then he shouts "Sleep tight ya morons"

Who: Holden When: When Holden is leaving his dorm at Pencey What does this show: this shows Holden trying to hide his emotions and how he hasn't fully grasped how much things mean to him. He puts a mask on to make him seem tough and cool, and when he is sad he says that they were morons to make him seem tough. Him saying "Sleep tight ya morons" is like him saying he does not need Pencey anyways

"I know he's dead! Don't you think I know that? I can still like him, though. can't I? Just because somebody's dead, you don't just stop liking them, for God's sake -- especially if they were about a thousand times nicer that the people you know that;re alive and well"

Who: Holden When: When Phoebe says Holden liking Allie does not count as something he likes because Allie is dead What does this show: This shows that he hasn't been able to find closure with Allie's death. It shows the difference between how Holden processed Allie's death and how Phoebe processed his death. Holden still compares people to Allie and how no one will ever be as great as Allie was. Holden idealizes Allie and builds him up to be a perfect person. Holden might think that moving on is replacing or hurting Allie but it wont.

"I dont care if its 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"

Who: Holden When: When he thinks about leaving Pencey Prep What does this show: this shows that he has a sentimental side. he has a soft spot. he is upset with himself a little bit when he gets kicked out. he need closure to move on.

"If you want to know the truth, I don't even know why i started all that stuff with her. I mean about going away somewhere, to Massachusetts and Vermont and all. I probably wouldn't've taken her even if she'd wanted to go with me. She wouldn't have been anybody to go with. The terrible part, though, is that I meant it when I asked her. That's the terrible part. I swear to God I'm a madman

Who: Holden When: after Holden's date with Sally What does this show: this shows that he does not understand himself, his actions, and his thoughts. He is convincing himself that he wasn't going to do it. He is confused, aware, and ashamed of this.

"I was only thirteen, and they were going to have me psychoanalyzed and all, because I broke all the windows in the garage. I don't blame them. i really don't. i slept in the garbage the night he died, and i broke all the goddam windows with my fist, just for the hell of it. I even tried to break all the windows on the station wagon we had that summer, but my hand was already broken and everything by that time, and I couldn't do it. It was a very stupid thing to do, I'll admit, but I hardly didn't even know I was doing it, and you didn't know Allie"

Who: Holden When: his reaction to when Allie dies What does this show: this shows that Holden was devastated when Allie died because he was such a prominent figure in Holden's life. This death affected him as a person, and how he still hasn't found closure. Holden had a deep love for Allie. He can't contain his grief also. He struggles to process and control his emotions but he also can be lost in emotions.

"I was so damn worried, that's why. When I really worry about something, I don't just fool around. I even have to go to the bathroom when I really worry about something. Only, I don't go. I'm too worried to go. I don't want to interrupt my worrying to go"

Who: Holden When: when Holden thinks about Straddlers' date with Jane What does this show: This shows Holden can be overwhelmed by anxiety

"All the kids kept trying to grad 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"

Who: Holden When: when Phoebe is riding the carousel What does this show: this shows that Holden realizes that he can't protect kids from falling off, you just have to help them back up. He starts to accept change and accepting the truth about life and how he has to accept it