SJ Classic Novel Club: "The Catcher in the Rye"

Really? Why? Do you think Holden is emblematic of most high school kids? He's not like anybody I knew or admired. Unless you mean to use old Ackley -- that prince -- as a source of what a lot of high school boys are like. He's the most genuine character in the book, IMHO. Picking his zits, being a moody loner with poor hygiene.

Another reason I like the book is because it reminds me of my own all boys prep school. I wasn't rich like Holden -- my parents were both school teachers -- but I knew plenty of rich twats like Holden who did fuck all in school and mostly because they knew their parents would take care of them down the line.

 

They need to update the story with Holden getting an iPhone and Twitter account.

 

I think his thought processes are, absolutely. Tough exterior. Struggling to make sense of the world inside. Even the way he is trying to understand girls is spot-on, though maybe more like a 14- or 15-year-old than a 17-year-old.

 

Well, back in the 1950s, your average 17 year old is probably getting as far with girls as a 14 or 15 year old nowadays. Or at least that seemed the case when I was in high school in the late 80s, early 90s. Until the pill became available, there was a lot less underage sex. Just that heavy petting stuff.

 

yes.

 

Today, his parents would be putting him on Ritalin and there's not a chance in hell the school would have expelled him without calling his parents first.

I read the book in high school, didn't think much of it then, and then read it again about a year ago. It was more interesting reading it now, as an adult, but it also still seems pretty dated.

It's like in high school, I remember we watched "Rebel Without a Cause." My teacher hyped it up as this great drama of teenage rebellion. Yet, when we saw it, we kinda were like, "that's it?" Maybe because we were a lot more desensitized to violence on TV and in movies and teens arguing with parents. But we didn't really see why the film was such a big deal.

 

Even better, 2017 Holden becomes the lover of a Poin Files rapist.

 

You're not supposed to admire him.

I loved this book. I read it several times, although it has to be almost 30 years since the last time I read it.

 

"you're wrong" -- John hinckley