CT Journal: Write a paper in which you develop a line of thought about Catcher in the Rye by means of an extended analogy. Conclude with a paragraph discussing how your analogy helps you think differently about CITR.


Shaina S.

The Catcher in theRye is like a roller coaster that takes you through twists and turns of Holden's mind, flipping you upside down and inside out. Roller coasters are bumpy rides that aren't meant to be smooth and easy-going, much like the way that Holden introduces himself to you. At the beginning of the book Holden seems very blunt and uses rude language to introduce himself implying that he didn't care much about what you were about to read. At the beginning of the roller coaster ride its not really smooth; you can feel the bumps in the tracks and the friction between it and the wheels of the cart you are in.

The story starts off with an intro to Holden and a brief summary of some of the things that had happened in the past, but then he decides to leave Pencey early. This point in the story is like the big drop that is present at the beginning of most roller coasters. Then it takes you through a few twists and turns as Holden has some experiences while in New York by himself. For example, he goes dancing with three girls in the lavender room, which is a little fling of fun for Holden, but not the main part of his journey/ride. Then he encounters an elevator man named Maurice that tries to get Holden involved in a prostitution transaction and because Holden is pretty drunk he agrees. Holden ends up having to pay more than he thought for the prostitute even though he didn't do anything with her. When he refuses to pay he gets hit and he ends up feeling lonely without company.

At this point the story takes a break of action while Holden meets with Sally and Carl Luce and spends time with then because he has no one else to be around. In both situations Holden calls them up to meet him. This s like the point in the roller coaster ride when the drops have died out for a while and you're wanting more action in the ride. Holden is crying out and asking for something to keep him occupied; little does he know that another series of drops are about to come. Holden decides to go home to see Phoebe because he wants to see her and almost gets caught at home early by his parents coming home late. Holden gets rattled about this event and decides to leave as soon as he can. Then Holden goes to visit his old teacher, Mr. Antolini, and ends up planing to stay the night at his house till the next day. Then all of a sudden in the middle of the night, Holden is awakened by the touch of his teacher's hand on his head. This action comes as a complete surprise to Holden and he can think of no other way to deal with the situation than to run out. This is like one of those sharp turns that you would never expect to be around the corner on that roller coaster ride.

Then the story ends with a little fight between Holden and Phoebe because Phoebe wants to go with Holden, but then ends gently with a happy ending that leaves you wanting to hear more. The fight between Holden and Phoebe is the one last small drop before the ride starts to slow down to a stop. As the roller coaster stops and the end of the ride, they bring you in gently, getting ready to let you off, yet you want to ride it again and again. The story leaves you wanting to hear more about the future that Holden will encounter, leaving you in wonderment and letting you use your imagination to think of what is next in Holden Caulfield's life.

The roller coaster is a direct example to the ups and downs of the events in the story. Holden may be at a point in the story where nothing seems to be happening, then all of a sudden something big will happen that will affect the rest ofthe story. A roller coaster has dips, turn, drops, and straight areas like Holden's life.



Joshua L.


The book The Catcher in the Rye is like peanut butter. Like peanut butter the book has been around unchanged for a pretty long time. Even so, both have remained popular. I'm not saying that the newest fads advocate eating peanut butter or reading The Catcher in the Rye, but they have retained somewhat of a following. There are people who eat peanut butter every day, and others who like it and eat it occasionally. In the same way there are people who spend months/years reading and analyzing the book, and others who just read it and study it for a little while if at all.

Another way that The Catcher in the Rye is like peanut butter is that they both seem simple, but contain a lot of good stuff. Peanut butter is a simple paste, but it is packed with nutrients. It is high in calories, fats, protein, carbohydrates, fiber, and also contains many vitamins and minerals. In the same way the book does not seem like it is anything special at first, however, if you study it you find that it has a lot to offer. Peanut butter is more nutritious than its equivalent weight in beef. In the same way most serious readers could get much more out of The Catcher in the Rye, than from reading a lot of other more popular books like Harry Potter or Dr. Seuss.

Peanut butter is also similar to the book because it is somewhat consistent. Throughout the book there are certain things that keep popping up. Holden was always saying that something was depressing or phony, that someone was a bastard, that Allie and his sister were smart, "if you want to know the truth," etc. Other things like the ducks and hunting hat were also mentioned many times throughout the book. Even though there is a lot of consistency, there are also many surprising or unexpected parts of the story, like when he looks out his window and sees a cross-dresser or when Mr. Antolini is petting him. Peanut butter can be surprising in several different ways. You can open a jar and find that it is moldy, learn of a new use for it (cleaner, fuel, etc.), find a chunk of peanut in a jar of smooth peanut butter, learn that old peanut butter separates, etc.

Once peanut butter is used and the originally smooth surface is disrupted, it is nearly impossible to make it the way it used to be. If you try you often make it worse. Also if you have gum stuck to something, you can get it off using peanut butter. Unfortunately, you have to deal with getting the peanut butter off, after you are finished. In the story, when something bad happens, things do not return to normal, and problems often are not completely resolved. Actions taken by Holden or other characters usually caused other problems. For example in the beginning of the story Holden can't stand staying at his school. His solution is to go to New York and stay at a hotel for a couple of days. This solution created many problems of its own, because he wasn't happy in New York either. Another example is when he asks the second cab driver if he knew what happened to the ducks during to winter. Instead of answering Holden's question, the cab driver just gives him false information about fish. When Holden invited Carl Luce to have a drink with him, so that he could ask for advice or maybe feel less depressed and lonely, Carl doesn't want to talk about anything serious. Holden ends up getting really drunk, and he suffers from the effects of over drinking for a long time afterwards.

One thing that my analogy helps me understand about the book is that it is a complex book. Even though we have studied it in class for quite some time, I feel that we could go a lot deeper. My analogy made me think of things that we had discussed briefly in class, but had not found very convincing explanations for. We mostly agreed that the things that kept coming up, like the ducks, were significant, but we never really found out why. I already kind of knew that there were things we did not discuss in much depth, but my analogy really brought those things to my attention.