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The Catcher in the Rye
The Catcher in the Rye Opinions: Discuss & Debate
Discuss. Debate. Question. Challenge. Discover. See all sides. Develop your own perspective.
Question:
“Are there points in the book when we are unsure if Holden is talking about his feelings now (at age 17) or his feelings at age 16?”
Are there certain instances in the text where we can't tell whether seventeen-year-old Holden is talking about his feelings now or his feelings when he was sixteen? What about the line "Anyway, I'm sort of glad they've got the atomic bomb invented. If there's ever another war, I'm going to sit right the hell on top of it. I'll volunteer for it, I swear to God I will"? Whether that's current Holden or past Holden is a pretty important distinction, don't you think?
Opinion:
“Because of his tendency to digress, Holden often blends the novel’s tenses in a way that makes it difficult to determine which feeling belong to which timeframes. Moreover – and more importantly – the fact that Holden’s moods constantly interfere with his intended actions suggests that regardless of verb tense, Holden’s narrative state of being ultimately takes precedence in coloring the novel’s past events.”
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