This post is musing upon and responding to this post by Mr. Mitchell.
The Catcher in the Rye is a book title that I heard a lot growing up, and I used to get it mixed up with Where the Red Fern Grows although I quickly figured out the difference once I started reading the book, of course. I imagined it to be some kind of old and boring book that English teachers had some particular fondness for. When we read it for class, I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would, which was a pleasant surprise, but it still wasn't an easy of a read as the books I read for fun.
In terms of relating to Holden as a narrator, I understand where he is coming from, although the thoughts that he has reflect in me only as passing thoughts which I can quickly counteract. As a result, the whole time that Holden fails, I want to yell at him, "Try in school! It matters!" Holden does come off as spoiled and not understanding the system. Even if the system was as Holden thinks it is, he still has to live in it and should play by the rules. That is why Holden frustrates me. Besides, the freedom that Holden has is no longer reasonable in today's culture of fear. We can't wander around now, so that part of the story isn't easy to relate to.
Black Swan Green on the other hand is a book that I had never heard of before this class. I really enjoyed it. It was a breeze to read, and I definitely would have read it for fun. For this reason, it serves as a much better book to read in a discussion-based class, because the easier a book is to read, the easier it is for people to talk about the book. Even though Black Swan Green takes place in the past, just like Catcher does, it is a little bit less in the past and it's easier to relate to the situations that Jason experiences.
Simple things, like the fact that I don't meet a lot of people that do Lacrosse or fencing, but I do go to school dances, affect how I read the books differently. Catcher isn't outdated, and we can relate Catcher to Black Swan Green, but I enjoyed reading the latter more, it was easier to talk about, and easier to relate to.
Something that caught my attention from this post early on was when you said that you had confused Catcher for another book, and I have to say that I had done that as well. A lot of the books on our reading list I either thought I had read them, or I had never heard of them, but I was really grateful to have taken this class to be able to get the chance to appreciate their symbolism. Also, I agree that BSG is the more enjoyable read, although they are both fantastic in their own rights.
ReplyDeleteI also found that I enjoyed Black Swan Green more than Catcher because of the narrative voice which made it an easier read. I'd also never heard of Black Swan Green before the class but I think it would be worth keeping it in the curriculum.
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