J.D. Salinger S the Catcher in the Rye

J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye Discussion Questions for Paideia

1. Reminders a. Listen to others; You Don’t Need To Speak b. Use People’s Names c. Respect the Conversation d. You Don’t Need To Raise Your Hands e. Refer to the Text f. I’ll Keep Track of Comments / Rubric g. Be prepared. This means reading the "text" closely, taking notes, and forming questions. Outline each section and have the outline in front of you. h. Be courteous. There will be no put-downs and no sarcasm. i. Allow the speaker enough time to begin and finish his/her thoughts. (Do not be afraid of silence---this usually means thinking is occurring.) j. Bring others into the discussion and ask others to elaborate on their responses. 2. Everyone has a copy of The Catcher in the Rye, as well as this handout, and your own textual interactions (flags, highlighting). 3. Set a Personal Goal for the Seminar 4. Opening Questions a. After reading the reviews concerning the novel (http://www.levity.com/corduroy/salinger1.htm), which critic did you agree with the most? Which criticism bothered you the most? 5. Core Questions-Have Textual Evidence to Support your Opinion! Questions adapted from www.cas.buffalo.edu and Albany’s Public Library “Read With Me” program. a. Is Holden Caulfield’s voice dated? How valid is his perspective in 2010 compared with 1951, when it was published? b. In your opinion, does The Catcher in the Rye deserve its classic status? Should it continue to be required reading in many high schools? Why or why not? And is there a book that you think speaks more to the teenage experience than Catcher in the Rye? c. In a 1974 New York Times interview, J.D. Salinger, whose last book was published in 1965, is quoted as saying, “There is a marvelous peace in not publishing. It’s peaceful. Still. Publishing is a terrible invasion of my privacy. I like to write. I love to write. But I write just for myself and my own pleasure.” As a reader, how do you feel hearing this? d. How does this novel compare to other bildungsroman (coming of age) novels? Critics have compared Holden to Huck Finn? What similarities or differences do you see? e. What symbols are in the novel? What do they represent? f. There are a variety of characters in the book. Identify five (besides Holden). Discuss what these characters represent and their purpose in the novel. g. Holden hates the movies and any phony acting. Yet he is fascinated by theatricality, such as Hamlet and the Lunts. Consider his dying scene after the fight with Maurice, his comments on Hamlet, or his remarks about movies. What can you say about the issues of authenticity and pretense as they relate to Holden Caulfield? h. Holden tells (us) about his favorite fantasy of being the catcher in the rye. Think about this. What position is he imagining himself in? Why? Is he successful in being what he wishes to be? i. What is the significance of the title of the book? Find the original poem by Robert Burns. Are the ideas of the poem accurately represented by Holden? j. Consider Holden's and Phoebe's trip to Central Park and the carousel. What is he enacting or re-enacting? Why does he become so happy yet sad? k. What are the major themes of the novel? l. This novel is frequently subject to censorship efforts in public schools and libraries. Why do you think this is the case? How might you defend the book against efforts to remove it from school libraries? 6. Closing Questions a. Has your understanding of the novel matured or significantly changed through this discussion? b. What else did you learn during the course of the discussion? 7. Debriefing a. Did you meet your personal goal during the seminar? / What will you work on next time? b. Was there anything about the seminar that bothered you? c. What could we do to improve the seminar? d. What will you remember about the seminar?