Homework for the 6th RWM Class

Lucas' Homework for ‘The Catcher in the Rye’

Q: What can we learn from Holden’s conversation with Phoebe?

A: At the beginning, after Phoebe asked Holden about how he did in these subjects, Holden began to complaining  about his school. He said ‘It was one of the worst schools I ever went to. It was full of phonies. And mean guys. You never saw so many mean guys in your life.’ However, based on Holden’s words, he was partly right to some extent. For example, on Veterans’ Day, one person who graduated from Pencey returned and came in classroom and knocked on the door and asked others if they’d mind if used the bathroom just because he wanted to find out if his initials were still in one of the can doors after ninety years. Apart from that, James Castle, a person who Holden knew at Elkton Hills, was even worse. He just said something about a very conceited boy and didn’t take back his words. As a result, he was beat and decided to jump out of the window. Finally, he fell onto the ground and died. From these two examples above, it’s obvious to say Holden lives in a society with lots of bad guys and bad atmosphere. So I believe that Holden’s situation is partly because of the society he live in, not just himself.

Nick's Homework:

 From a general perspective, Holden Caufield had grown more mature as the novel progresses. At the beginning of the book, Holden had also act like really childish at the start of the book. However, Holden at the end of the book started to act like a normal human being. To further elaborate, he had finally understood that he had to take responsibility, and he learned to face his consequence.