Weblog Entry 15 1e

Holden's fantastical scenario after his physical altercation with Maurice gives us a closer look at his inner psyche, emotional affection, and subconscious misconceptions (especially his hypocritical ways). The first way in which the fantasy is significant to us is by displaying his hypocritical nature. Holden claims in most of the book that he is a passive and peaceful individual, yet he blatantly insults Maurice (even though he is bigger and much stronger than him) and nearly promotes the fight between himself and Maurice. Not only that, in his fantasy world he even goes as far as to shoot Maurice in the stomach nearly 6 times, even though all Maurice did was punch him in the stomach. This displays his hypocritical tendencies when it comes to his demeanor and also his immaturity to acknowledge his faults. Not only that, however, the fantasy also displays his misconception of the adult world. in Holden's mind adults are cruel, violent, immoral and not genuine. His fantasy world clearly portrays this. In it he think's of himself as a very masculine character, who steals an individuals life and later calls up a girl to bandage him up while he smokes a cigarette. This not only displays his misconception of adult hood, but his misconception of life as well. Finally, the fantasy after his beating from Maurice manifests Holden's affectionate side. In his fantasy he pictures himself being bandaged from his childhood friend (possibly love interest) Jane Gallanger. He calls her up sucessfully (although hes already tried to call her a number of times) and she comes over to comfort him physically (even holds a cigarette for him while he smokes). This section of the fantasy portrays Holden's deeper side, and it is one of the first scenes that show something that Holden truly admires in the world.

Weblog Entry 15 1e

Holden's fantastical scenario after his physical altercation with Maurice gives us a closer look at his inner psyche, emotional affection, and subconscious misconceptions (especially his hypocritical ways). The first way in which the fantasy is significant to us is by displaying his hypocritical nature. Holden claims in most of the book that he is a passive and peaceful individual, yet he blatantly insults Maurice (even though he is bigger and much stronger than him) and nearly promotes the fight between himself and Maurice. Not only that, in his fantasy world he even goes as far as to shoot Maurice in the stomach nearly 6 times, even though all Maurice did was punch him in the stomach. This displays his hypocritical tendencies when it comes to his demeanor and also his immaturity to acknowledge his faults. Not only that, however, the fantasy also displays his misconception of the adult world. in Holden's mind adults are cruel, violent, immoral and not genuine. His fantasy world clearly portrays this. In it he think's of himself as a very masculine character, who steals an individuals life and later calls up a girl to bandage him up while he smokes a cigarette. This not only displays his misconception of adult hood, but his misconception of life as well. Finally, the fantasy after his beating from Maurice manifests Holden's affectionate side. In his fantasy he pictures himself being bandaged from his childhood friend (possibly love interest) Jane Gallanger. He calls her up sucessfully (although hes already tried to call her a number of times) and she comes over to comfort him physically (even holds a cigarette for him while he smokes). This section of the fantasy portrays Holden's deeper side, and it is one of the first scenes that show something that Holden truly admires in the world.

The Catcher in the Rye

My book cover portrays the personality and desires of Holden Caufield, along with his melancoly perception of the world. All of the elements in my picture are placed in order to form a more accurate understanding on Holden's psyche. The snowglobe that has New York City within it is meant to depict the setting of the story,and also the fact that New York is encased in a snowglobe in my cover displays Holden's isolation, which he blames on his resent for everything that is fake or unreal about society(New York City isnt actually within a snowglobe). The gray and bland colorscheme of the New York is also meant to show Holden's distaste for life and his lack of creativity, which is shown in the novel through his unapproval of the arts(movies, plays, actors). The field of rye surrounding New York City portrays Holden's three day ordeal in New York City in which he tries to discover what it means to be an adult, and corresponds with Holden's statement in which he declares he wants to protect the children of the world from falling off the rye into adulthood, which Holden clearly hates from his misconception on what it means to be an adult(sex, phoniness, gambling etc). The snowglobe also happens to rest on Allie's baseball glove, one of Holden's most cherished possesions, and thus symbolizes Holden's reliance on people like Allie and Pheobe, whom he considers actually "real", or genuine. The barrier between the snowglobe and Allie's glove also shows the sad reality of Allie's untimely death (which had a major impact on Holden) and it also the reason for Holden's search to surround himself with intelligent, genuine people (such as the authors he wishes to converse with) to mask the pain of his brother's death.

Weblog Entry 13: Holden the Hypocrite (#3e)

It is very obvious that Holden Caulfield is very critical of others in the book Catcher in the Rye. In all of his observations of his peers and those around him, he always seems to put people in a sort of a negative connotation. Whether they are "phony," unhygienic, or just plain stupid to him, there just always seems to be something fundamentally wrong with one's character in Holden's perspective. However, Holden is not the ideal human being either. Although his tone in the story seems to assert himself as the only genuine character in the novel, this is not the case. Unbeknownst to him, there are many flaws in his character. For instance, one of the main problems with him all throughout the novel is that he is not a good communicator. Take for instance the scene in which he has a huge fight with Stradlater. Although it is obvious that Holden was deeply offended by Stradlater’s lack of integrity and honesty with him, he never actually declared that to Stradlater and hit him anyway. This clearly demonstrates how Holden’s lack of communication is not only a flaw, but a hypocritical one too, as he always criticizes others for not showing their genuine character, yet he does not exhibit his. Another hypocritical flaw that Holden struggles with throughout the entire story is his dishonesty, or lying problem. Holden hates when others lie to others about their personalities and such, but Holden does the exact same to people on a daily basis. For instance, throughout his entire ordeal in New York, he seldom gives away his true identity to the people he encounters. Some great examples of this are when he is trying to coax others into letting him order alcoholic beverages. He drastically lowers his voice and try’s to talk in a quick, yet suave accent. Many times in the story he blames other for altering their personalities for their own personal gains, but Holden is no different.