The catcher in the rye Ch. 24-26 Austin Turner

J.D. Salinger Born: January 1, 1919 Died: January 27, 2010 Went to several different boarding schools and colleges. Served in WWII Fought at D-Day, Battle of the Bulge

Ch. 24 Holden visits his old English teacher at Elkton Hills, Mr. Antolini, who he looks up to. They talk about school and why Holden failed Oral Composition class. Holden notes several times how he feels sick and uncomfortable. He seems nervous. Mr. Antolini tells Holden about how worried he is for him, and tells him to start trying in school and he needs to improve his attitude. Holden gets tired and sleeps on the couch, but is woken up in the middle of the night by Mr. Antolini, who is watching him sleep while stroking his hair. Pg. 251: “When something perverty like that happens, I start sweating like a bastard. That kind of stuff’s happened to me about twenty times since I was a kid. I can’t stand it.”

Ch. 25 Holden spends the night at a subway station and describes how depressing it was. He expresses regret over leaving Mr. Antolini’s house, thinks that he misinterpreted his actions. He walks around NYC, pretends to be talking to Allie. Decides to hitch hike out west to get a fresh start, walks to Phoebe’s school to say goodbye. At the school, sees “F-ck You” carved on a few walls, describes how he wants to kill whoever did it. Writes a note telling Phoebe to meet him at the museum, finds another “F-ck You” carving. When Phoebe shows up, she has a suitcase and begs to go with him out west. She cries and gets angry at him when he refuses.

Ch. 25-26 Holden decides to take her to the Zoo to cheer her up. She remains mad at him until they see a carrousel they used to ride as kids. Holden watches her ride it several times while sitting in the rain, expresses his happiness. Holden says he doesn't feel like telling the rest of the story. Talks about how it’s stupid that people ask him if he’s going to start trying in school, because he doesn't know if he will. “Don’t ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody.”

Analysis Major theme: Innocence Holden’s history with sexual assault Character development (Or lack thereof) “Don’t ever tell anybody anything…”