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165 and page 167 Holden has snuck home and is in his sister’s room talking to
her. She gets very frustrated at him when she finds out that Holden got kicked
out of another school. You truly hear the voice being demonstrated in this part
of the novel. His sister says to Holden “You didn’t get kicked out or anything”
she says this on page 165 and it’s very clear that she is frustrated with
Holden in this moment Holden is really trying to say no I didn’t get kicked out
but she makes him admit the truth. Through this leads to his sister getting mad
but right at the end of the chapter she said something to Holden that I think
sank very deep with him “Why did you do it” This seems to hurt Holden he even
said that he couldn’t believe that she said that. He said that she can really
be a brat sometimes and seems to try and just put this moment off in his head
but I really don’t think that’s the truth. He always talked pretty positively and
highly about his sister and Holden did seem to really like her so when he
starts attacking her it was pretty surprising. To me this part is going to be a
fork in the road, it’s the last straw for Holden and his struggles. So when I read
this scene and his sister says that comment “Why did you do it” is just such a
huge amount of voice to me. It’s like the author put this scene/line in the book
just to show to not give up, that this is the point where Holden is coming out,
he’s not slumping anymore, he’s coming to the surface and is going to start
being the person he is supposed to be.
I really liked how you analyzed Phoebe and how her character in the novel impacts Holden. I also appreciated how you noted Holden's change in attitude towards Phoebe -- how earlier in the novel he spoke so fondly of her, to now where he says, "She can be quite snotty" (166). This led me to wonder, will Holden start to shape up and behave better due to his little sister and her reaction?
ReplyDeleteThis post really resonates with me Vince. I agree with the emphasis your post had on the line "Why did you do it?" This is evident because there is a clear change in Holden's mood as he gets more defensive and withdrawn from the conversation. This change in behavior can be seen multiple times throughout the book forming a pattern.
ReplyDeleteDo you think Holden's more concerned about making Phoebe proud than he he is making himself proud? Personally, I doubt Holden cares about where he is. But this quote makes it seem that Holden genuinely cares about what Phoebe thinks of him.
ReplyDelete