Contemporary Literature

Ms. Schultz

The Catcher in the Rye

Your thoughts

Take a few moments and reflect on each of these questions, jotting down notes and
ideas that come to your head. The key is to have ideas and things to talk about—not to
get the “right” answer.

Why do we criticize or judge people? Why is Holden so concerned with people’s outward
appearances?

Holden thinks a lot about women and has many interactions with them in this section: the
women in the Lavender Room, Sunny, Sally, Lillian Simmons. The first person he calls when
he gets to New York is Faith, a woman. He thinks a lot about Jane.
What is Holden looking for in these women?
What idea or concept does Holden struggle with in regards to women?
How are his interactions with these women similar?
What do we learn about Jane?

Give examples of Holden’s increasingly irrational behavior—times when he does things that
just don’t make sense.
Speculate on the importance of the ducks Holden continues to ask the cab drivers about.

Give examples of Holden trying to act like an adult—behaviors that are normally “adult”
behaviors that younger children or teenagers participate in to make them feel older.

Track the red hunting hat from chapter 8 through chapter 14. When does Holden put it on and
why?

Based on what you’ve read so far, is The Catcher in the Rye controversial? Does it deserved
to have been banned? What about in the 1950s when it was published?

Is Holden a typical teenager? Why or why not?