The Catcher in the Rye

“Ch-ch-ch-changes… time to face the day”

Political Climate

-Increasingly conservative. -In 1948, Harry S Truman, a Roosevelt liberal

from Missouri, who never attended college and had gone through bankruptcy, defeated conservative Thomas Edmund Dewey, an attorney with degrees from the University of Michigan and Columbia University

-Four years later, Republican conservative General Dwight Eisenhower won easily, as he would again in 1956. Other factors affected these elections, but the shift toward conservatism was paramount.

Context – Post-War United States

This book was published in the early 1950s. World War 2 had been over for 5 or 6 years at point of publication.

Author JD Salinger served in WWII During the war, many women went to work in

factories. When men (male soldiers) returned home, women went back to being at home.

The “nuclear family” is born. There is a baby-boom. Lots of babies are born in

the mid-late 1940s. Many families move out of cities and into

suburbs.

McCarthyism In February of 1950, a first-term U.S. Senator

from Wisconsin named Joseph McCarthy accused the Department of State of employing 205 known Communists. He later reduced the number to 57. Although the accusations were never proven, McCarthy had become a national figure and the most infamous leader of a witch-hunt that rivaled that of Salem in 1692.

Nuclear Threat

When the Soviet Union set off its first nuclear explosion in 1949, it was clear that the cold war could turn hot and destroy civilization.

A real fear permeated American culture. Even in remote areas, ordinary people built bomb shelters in their backyards.

Schools took time to instruct students on the best way to react during a nuclear attack. Although the intent was benevolent, the most likely result was fear and confusion on the part of impressionable young minds.

Make a T-Chart

On-the Surface Under-the-Surface Write down everything

you see in these images that is ON THE SURFACE. MAKE NO INFERENCES.

What do you see in the foreground? Background? List details.

What do the words say? Give details about the

expressions of the people. Not what “seems” but, what “is”

What is not present?

Make 3 inferences. What does this

society value? What does this

society not value? How would you fit in

this world? How are things

different today? How are they not?

Pictures 1 & 2

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5

6

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On your separate sheet of paper Write down a description of 1950s America.

What is valued, important? What are people like?

Consider how you would fit in this world.

Write down each question. Leave space to answer.

1. GROWING UP - What are the difficulties of growing up and leaving childhood behind?

2. MAINSTREAM SOCIETY & SELF - How does society impact our understanding of our place in the world?

3. NORMAL - What is “normal”? Define it.

Key Terms innocence, fear, love, death, loss, sex, phony, conform / conformity sincere lies indifference unreliable narrator

fragile, identity mainstream, subversive, confusion, loneliness, alienation, sanity / insanity, hypocrisy / hypocritical materialism authority sacrifice intimacy

You will each receive a slip of paper with a character on it. You will pretend to be this character.

You will have 15 minutes to walk around the room and introduce yourself to other people. Remember this is a tea party, so you need to schmooze and make friends.

As you meet characters fill out the character description on the character chart.

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TEA PARTY TIME!

Who is your favorite character? Why? Who is your least favorite character? Why? What are three specific predictions you make

for this novel?

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On the bottom of your character chart

HOLDEN CAUFIELD’S LIST OF FREQUENTLY USED WORDS

Holden says the same thing quite a bit. This running list will help you evaluate his character quite a bit.

 After reading, write down the 5 words or

phrases that Holden uses most frequently.  

Choose 3 words or phrases.

Next to each word or phrase, write down what you can INFER about his character, based upon repeated use of that word or phrase.

Use the underlined part as a sentence starter, if you like.

Example: “To tell the truth” – Because Holden repeats this, it

seems as though he really wants his audience (the reader) to believe his story. One can infer that he, perhaps, does not always feel like he is believed by others, or that others do not take him seriously, and so the “truth”, and having his audience know he is telling the truth, becomes really important.

COMIC STRIP I always picture Holden Caulfield to be the student

busy doodling in his notebook while I give impassioned lectures on the effects of war, or symbolism, or some crap like that.

Now is your chance to draw him. After reading the events of your assigned chapter, create a 3-panel comic strip with Holden being the leading character.

Make a 3-panel comic of your chapter, that includes at least 3 of the most significant passages from the

chapter and details 3 of the most significant plot developments Has the chapter #, as well as a creative title for that

chapter, somewhere on there. The chapter title should make sense, given what happens during that chapter.

SYMBOLS! HOORAY! You are going to create a symbol from the

novel. You need to: Draw/create the symbol. Find a passage that mentions the symbol. Write

it somewhere near/on the symbol you made. Be sure to include MLA format with page #.

In the box, explain what larger/abstract idea the symbol represents. Be thorough, creative, and insightful in your explanation, and make it a MINIMUM OF 4 SENTENCES.