As The Catcher in the Rye continues to unfold, Holden is still lost amongst his journey. He continues to debate whether or not to go home sooner than Wednesday or not for fear that his parents will discover he flunked out of school. Ultimately Holden sneaks into the family apartment late at night because he feels the need to visit with Phoebe, his sister. Upon entering her room, he sits and observes her as she sleeps for a short time. Holden remains silent during this period because he is reflecting on his life at home and how it has changed since he left for school. During this time, Holden may also be hoping that Phoebe will have a better life than he has had. No matter what he is thinking, the silence and break in action portrays a reminiscent mood.
When Holden decides to wake Phoebe up, she immediately figures out that he got kicked out of school again. Throughout this scene Phoebe kept saying, “Daddy will kill you. He’s going to kill you.” The repetition for effect through these words depicts that the relationship between Holden and his father is not healthy. Possibly Holden’s father expects too much out of Holden, or maybe he is not supportive of what Holden wants to do.
Phoebe asks Holden to tell her what it is he wants to do with his life. After some deliberation, Holden answers that he wants to “stand at the edge of a cliff [in the rye] and catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff.” This scene refers back in the novel to when the little boy was singing the “Catcher in the Rye” song. The little boy that Holden saw singing represents Holden in his younger years, carefree and happy. Now that Holden is older and struggling to find his place in this world, he remembers that song and understands the true meaning of its lyrics. Holden is on a mission to help others because he doesn’t want them to go through the same struggles that he has had to endure. Will Holden be able to accomplish his dream of becoming a catcher in the rye, or will his father obstruct his dreams?
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