6 Ultimate Lessons From The Catcher in the Rye
I mean how do you know what you’re going to do till you do it? The answer is, you don’t. I think I am, but how do I know? – Holden Caulfield from The Catcher in the Rye
I absolutely love reading and my favorite book of all time is The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. The first time I read it was in my junior year English class during high school. I’ve read it almost every year since then, re-reading it and capturing little tidbits and details here and there that I may have missed the previous times I’ve read the book. And no matter how many times I read it, I still find it highly amusing and a fun read. It’s an American classic, that’s for sure.
Holden Caulfield is the protagonist in the novel and he is one crazy teenage boy trying to find himself in a big man’s world. He certainly has some ideas of whom he ought to be and how things ought to run and is not afraid to voice those opinions of his.
Holden makes several memorable points throughout the story and I’d like to share them with you. Why? Because it’s fun and I can!
6 Ultimate Lessons From The Catcher in the Rye
1. “Grand. There’s a word I really hate. It’s a phony. I could puke every time I hear it.”
Holden is totally and utterly adamant about his hatred for the word “grand.” To us in the 21st century, one may not come across this word in colloquial conversation as often as one would encounter it back during the 1950’s when the story took place.
The underlying concept is what I’m more interested in than the actual choice of word. I equate his emphasis against phonies using the word grand as similar to those who are only acting and speaking a certain way in order to fit in, impress others, boost their ego, seem smart, or compete with others. Whether that’s speaking in a way that’s unlike yourself, acting a certain way that does not depict who you truly are, or dressing a particular way that is not your ultimate style, the bottom line is clear: Be you and not someone else!
2. “All morons hate it when you call them a moron.”
This quote may not have much application, but it certainly is fun!
Isn’t it true, though?
Liars don’t like to be called liars. Cheaters don’t like to call it cheating, more like “it just happened, how was I supposed to help it”? Stealers don’t like to call it stealing, more like “borrowing.” Whatever, dude.
You are who you are and what you do is a reflection of the person and character you are. It is not a separate entity, something that you cannot control. What you do, what you say, what you think … this is what makes up the person that is you, be it a moron, idiot, ninja, vampire, rock star, entrepreneur, or hacker.
3. “The goddam movies. They can ruin you. I’m not kidding.”
Most of you know that I do not watch TV and don’t advocate it either. I really think it’s a serious waste of time. Not just that, but destructive to our lives as well. Emotionally, relationally, and physically. The detriments of watching TV totally outweigh the benefits of it.
Holden doesn’t like the movies or going to shows. It may not necessarily be television, but he despises the movies because it’s all phony, as he would put it. Nothing is real, and why would it be? It’s a dramatic play put on for the sole entertainment of others who come to watch it.
Life is already way too dramatic for us to handle, why add fictitious drama to our lives if we can help it? Limiting the amount of shows, movies, TV, and videos we watch can free us to live our own lives, rather than watch others live theirs on the big screen.
4. “Goddam money. It always ends up making you blue.”
This is one of my favorite quotes in the entire book. Why? Because it’s so true! Money, if we don’t know how to use it and manage it, can end up making us very blue indeed.
Money is one of the top 3 reasons why couples divorce. It is the subject matter of lawsuits, from the pitifully petty small court lawsuits to the large fraudulent scandals that plague corporations and organizations across the globe. Money is the driving force behind murders, violence, and crimes in our neighborhoods and cities. With enough money, it can buy us entry into some countries. It can also persuade government and local officials of your innocence in any illegal activities that may be going on. Give them enough cash often and generously and they’ll keep things quiet for the time being.
However, money in and of itself is not a bad and evil thing. It doesn’t breathe, walk, talk, and have feelings. Why else do you think they call it “cold, hard cash”?
The overt pursuit of money as it is falsely equated to happiness is what befalls us and can destroy nations. Not only that, it can ultimately destroy us.
Protect yourself from this by not placing your joy and long lasting happiness in the pursuit of acquiring more and more money. In the end, only our most loved ones will matter to us. Not how much is in our bank account, not how much we’ve earned per year, not how much your assets are valued at. All these things will pass, including us. Let us cultivate our relationships with those we care about because that is meant to last.
5. “I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody’s around—nobody big, I mean—except me. And I’m standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff—I mean if they’re running and they don’t look where they’re going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That’s all I’d do all day. I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it’s crazy, but that’s the only thing I’d really like to be. I know it’s crazy.”
Crazy or not, you have got to be who you want to be. This should not and cannot be compromised. Life is too short to not be who you truly are.
6. “A lot of people, especially this one psychoanalyst guy they have here, keeps asking me if I’m going to apply myself when I go back to school next September. It’s such a stupid question, in my opinion. I mean how do you know what you’re going to do till you do it? The answer is, you don’t. I think I am, but how do I know? I swear it’s a stupid question.”
As much as you think you are an emotionally strong and stable person, when things start to get really rough and you completely break down, you have to wonder how far off we are in who we think we are as compared with who we actually are.
I may think I’m some bad ass martial artist just because I earned a 1st degree Black belt but will I truly be able to defend myself if I’m ever in a compromising situation late at night in Chicago? I won’t ever really know until I’m in such a situation (hopefully never …). All I can do is prepare myself as much as possible and think I’m ready. It’s better than nothing at all.
So with that, if you’ve never read The Catcher in the Rye, I highly recommend it. It’s not that long of a read and has several underlying concepts in it, as we’ve already gone through 6 of them here. It’s also pretty humorous!
Tell me, have you read it? If so, what are your thoughts?
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