CITR Discussion Questions

1.  How have your impressions/predictions been different from the actual text?

I though that Jane would be playing larger part in the story so far. When Holden mentions her you know that she is important but we ( the readers) still haven't met her yet. I thought at the end of the book there would be a big resolution and there wasn't one. 

2.  Ch. 18 “The part that got to me was, there was a lady sitting next to me that cried all through the GD picture…”  Can you think of any hypocritical situations like this that you have encountered in your own life?  How does this fit into Holden’s idea of phoniness?

A hypocritical situation I have been in is when I am having a sleepover with a friend and they ask me a question, and you tell them before you answer it that they can't tell anyone, and they promise they would never tell anyone's secret. Then later they say "I'm not suppposed tell anyone this, or you didn't hear this from me." It's hypocritical because they say they don't tell other peoples secrets and then they tell you someone else's. It fits into the idea of phoniness because they are a lying about what they said and aren't telling the truth, and they are a fake friend.

3.  Discuss Holden’s psychological state.  What clues from the text lead you believe what you do about it?

I think that Holden has been depressed throughout the story so far. Some very distinct context clues are the many phrases where Holden mentions how lonesome he is. There are also the countless occasions where he states that something is just too depressing, or he is too depressed.

4.  There was something else going on within the text with the prostitute situation.  How might you see this situation as symbolic?

Holden states that as soon as he got the conversation rolling he was already regretting it. And it showed real character when the prostitute showed up to his room and all he wanted to do was talk to her, most people I think would take advantage of the situation. Also he still payed the girl the amount that he was told he had to even though he didn't end up requiring her services. It is symbolic because it showed that Holden actually wanted to do the right thing, and noticed the error of initially starting the conversation with the man in the elevator.