The Catcher in the Rye

The title of the novel The Catcher in the Rye is meaningful as to the themes in the novel. The phrase comes from the main character's misinterpretation of an old poem called Comin Thro' The Rye. He believed the poem to be about a saviour who saved children from falling off a cliff. We believe that the rye in which they play symbolizes innocence and mind of a child while the cliff is a metaphor for adulthood, materialism, shallowness and to use Holden's own word; phoniness.

One example of this is when he meets up with three girls at a club. He tries to start a conversation with them, it fails since their minds are focused on looking for celebrities. This of course upsets him. In contrast, we have the young child singing while walking down the street. The child's innocence touches and pleases him.

The cliff represents things that to some degree disgust and repel Holden. Even though he will soon be a part of the adult world, he becomes so unwillingly. He doesn't want to give up all of his innocence. Nevertheless, he has already adopted several aspects of being a grown-up, such as heavy smoking and drinking.

//Marco, Pontus & Jonathan