The Catcher in the Rye
The novel tells us a story that took place in December 1949 in America. The story starts with Holden Caulfield who is a seventeen-year-old boy, a narrator of this book and the leading role of the Catcher . He wants to tell us something about him that took place over a two-day period’s wandering experience in the New York City. It is not only an uncomfortable but vivid trace of a middle school student, but it also criticizes the artificial of the society. The story is consisted of Holden's memories about his encounters he has had with students and the faculty of Pencey Prep. He criticizes them for being so superficial and artificial, and he often says, "Phony."
At the beginning, Holden is at the Pencey Prep, which is a very exclusive private school in Pennsylvania. On the Saturday afternoon, there is a traditional football game with school rival, Saxon Hall, but Holden misses the game. As a manager of the fencing team, he managed to lose the team's equipment on the subway on that morning; as a result, the match is cancelled. Holden has been expelled by his school, but he can not go back to his home until Christmas. Later he is going to the home of his history teacher, Mr. Spencer, to say good-bye to him. Mr. Spencer is an old man who is well-meaning but long-winded. Holden wears his new red hunting cap after back from Mr. Spencer and he begins to read. But his reverie is only temporary; a dormitory neighbor who is named Ackley always disturbs him. Later, Holden has a argue with his roommate, Stradlater, because he is not satisfied with the composition which Holden has written for him about Holden's deceased brother Allie's baseball gloves. So the two roommates fight, Stradlater winning easily. Holden catches a train to New York City. Next things are what he does in New York City and something he recalls about his little sister.
From the story, we could know that most of the people in the 50s in America hardly have their ideals; they are very depression, and they live in a very terrible life, maybe because they are unable to change their social situation. And the leading role Holden is one of these people. And he is the typical of teenagers who has individual and complex personality. When he is in the school, he is smoking, drinking and not progress; and he always fails in the final examination. But he is also a childishness people, he has the pursuit of better life and he also has a beautiful ideal; and he has a bad feeling of the people who is like to talk about women and wine. What is more? When he sees the nasty words written on the wall, he would wipe them off angrily; he is very generous when he sees the nuns are donating thing for the victims. All of these indicate that he is a very kind-hearted boy, is not it?
He has a little sister named Philip; he loves her very much. And he gives sincere love to her and take care of her because there is a beautiful and distant ideal in his heart----that is to be a “the catcher in the rye ”. Although his desire is so simple and sincere, but the realistic society is filled of deceit. And he is unable to change the situation, so he is just depression, hesitation and wallow; and finally, he even wants to escape from the real world, and pretend as a deaf and dumb people. It is so sadness!
This just happens in 50s, and we are a group of new power lives in a new time. Of course, we would have confusion and troubles too, but we need more encouragement and courage, instead of the hesitation and wallow, and we also should have ideal and ambitious. When we are children, we are filled with the hope of our future; we want to be scientists, doctors, nurses and teachers and so on like these. I believe that Holden must fall off at the end without his pure ideal, so I think it is his ideal let him alive.
Should we young people let our life become so awful? Yes, ideal is the beacon of people and it takes people to the future, to the bright. Our life is just beginning, even if life makes us a bit little confusion and doubts, but everything is temporary and it will pass away. What we need now is the ideal! Yeah! As the saying goes: where there is a river, there is a way. But I want to say: where there is an ideal, there is a hope. Hope will be tomorrow and tomorrow will be better! Grasp your life! Enjoy your life! And believe that the future would be better than it now! Live simply and enjoy freely, that is the truth of life.
Finally, I want to share some beautiful sentences with you. The first: I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids and nobody is around----nobody big, I mean----except me. And I am 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 are running and they do not look where they are going, I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That is all I’d do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it is crazy, but that is the only thing I’d really like to be. I know it is crazy. The second: Life is a game, boy. Life is a game that one plays according to the rules. There are so many words which are worth thinking.
At the end of this book, the writer has left some imaginations about the leading role for us. Let us think and think. Nobody can assert what would happen in the future!
The Catcher in the Rye
The novel tells us a story that took place in December 1949 in America. The story starts with Holden Caulfield who is a seventeen-year-old boy, a narrator of this book and the leading role of the Catcher . He wants to tell us something about him that took place over a two-day period’s wandering experience in the New York City. It is not only an uncomfortable but vivid trace of a middle school student, but it also criticizes the artificial of the society. The story is consisted of Holden's memories about his encounters he has had with students and the faculty of Pencey Prep. He criticizes them for being so superficial and artificial, and he often says, "Phony."
At the beginning, Holden is at the Pencey Prep, which is a very exclusive private school in Pennsylvania. On the Saturday afternoon, there is a traditional football game with school rival, Saxon Hall, but Holden misses the game. As a manager of the fencing team, he managed to lose the team's equipment on the subway on that morning; as a result, the match is cancelled. Holden has been expelled by his school, but he can not go back to his home until Christmas. Later he is going to the home of his history teacher, Mr. Spencer, to say good-bye to him. Mr. Spencer is an old man who is well-meaning but long-winded. Holden wears his new red hunting cap after back from Mr. Spencer and he begins to read. But his reverie is only temporary; a dormitory neighbor who is named Ackley always disturbs him. Later, Holden has a argue with his roommate, Stradlater, because he is not satisfied with the composition which Holden has written for him about Holden's deceased brother Allie's baseball gloves. So the two roommates fight, Stradlater winning easily. Holden catches a train to New York City. Next things are what he does in New York City and something he recalls about his little sister.
From the story, we could know that most of the people in the 50s in America hardly have their ideals; they are very depression, and they live in a very terrible life, maybe because they are unable to change their social situation. And the leading role Holden is one of these people. And he is the typical of teenagers who has individual and complex personality. When he is in the school, he is smoking, drinking and not progress; and he always fails in the final examination. But he is also a childishness people, he has the pursuit of better life and he also has a beautiful ideal; and he has a bad feeling of the people who is like to talk about women and wine. What is more? When he sees the nasty words written on the wall, he would wipe them off angrily; he is very generous when he sees the nuns are donating thing for the victims. All of these indicate that he is a very kind-hearted boy, is not it?
He has a little sister named Philip; he loves her very much. And he gives sincere love to her and take care of her because there is a beautiful and distant ideal in his heart----that is to be a “the catcher in the rye ”. Although his desire is so simple and sincere, but the realistic society is filled of deceit. And he is unable to change the situation, so he is just depression, hesitation and wallow; and finally, he even wants to escape from the real world, and pretend as a deaf and dumb people. It is so sadness!
This just happens in 50s, and we are a group of new power lives in a new time. Of course, we would have confusion and troubles too, but we need more encouragement and courage, instead of the hesitation and wallow, and we also should have ideal and ambitious. When we are children, we are filled with the hope of our future; we want to be scientists, doctors, nurses and teachers and so on like these. I believe that Holden must fall off at the end without his pure ideal, so I think it is his ideal let him alive.
Should we young people let our life become so awful? Yes, ideal is the beacon of people and it takes people to the future, to the bright. Our life is just beginning, even if life makes us a bit little confusion and doubts, but everything is temporary and it will pass away. What we need now is the ideal! Yeah! As the saying goes: where there is a river, there is a way. But I want to say: where there is an ideal, there is a hope. Hope will be tomorrow and tomorrow will be better! Grasp your life! Enjoy your life! And believe that the future would be better than it now! Live simply and enjoy freely, that is the truth of life.
Finally, I want to share some beautiful sentences with you. The first: I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids and nobody is around----nobody big, I mean----except me. And I am 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 are running and they do not look where they are going, I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That is all I’d do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it is crazy, but that is the only thing I’d really like to be. I know it is crazy. The second: Life is a game, boy. Life is a game that one plays according to the rules. There are so many words which are worth thinking.
At the end of this book, the writer has left some imaginations about the leading role for us. Let us think and think. Nobody can assert what would happen in the future!