/lit/ - Literature

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Anonymous Sun Jul 28 22:12:54 2013 No.3978427 [Reply] [Original]

Hey /lit/ my gf is trying to get me to read The Catcher In The Rye. I was just wondering if it was worth the time or effort seeing that I have no idea what to expect from it. Positives and negatives please.

Anonymous Sun Jul 28 22:15:53 2013 No.3978435

It is dreary as hell. whether you like it or not will largely be determined by where you are emotionally.

If you are constantly pissed off at society and people in general it is probably worth a read.

SPOILER: nothing ever happens in the book.

It is nice to be able to say you have read it though

>>	Anonymous Sun Jul 28 22:20:53 2013 No.3978447 thanks for your input anon

>>	Anonymous Sun Jul 28 22:21:53 2013 No.3978450 >>3978427 Read it. It's short and easy and easy to talk about

>>	Anonymous Sun Jul 28 22:23:53 2013 No.3978455 I didn't really enjoy it but it was well-written. It's one of those books that you just must read in order to get into literature.

Anonymous Sun Jul 28 22:46:53 2013 No.3978521

>>3978435
why would it not be worth a reading if you're able to relate to it more? it isn't like the entire book is depressing, the ending is optimistic.

and you're retarded, OP. she tried to share something personal with you and you need 4chan's go ahead first?

>>	Anonymous Sun Jul 28 22:52:54 2013 No.3978539 Well, it's love-it-or-hate-it. So if you love it, you'll read a novel that you'll go on to list as one of your favorites. If you hate it, you'll be able to participate in conversations about how overrated and whiny it is. So it's a win-win situation

>>	Anonymous Sun Jul 28 23:25:53 2013 No.3978624 >>3978521 Now if you look closely, you'll notice that I am in actual fact saying that you will like it if you can relate to it. And no, the ending is not optimistic, l2r.

Anonymous Sun Jul 28 23:57:53 2013 No.3978678

>>3978624
yeah i'm tired, i misread that.

it's ambiguous, but the ending is optimistic than not. he realizes that with phoebe there is still beauty in the world and that he isn't alone, he shows signs of maturation when he decides to stay, and says that he's looking forward to going into school again.

Anonymous Mon Jul 29 00:09:53 2013 No.3978692

>>3978678
I guess its a matter of interpretation, I found that he communicated less with Phoebe as the novel progressed and the fact that he is 'maturing' is a sign of him selling out to the the "phoniness" of being an adult, the same as he knows Phoebe will inevitably do. Also Phoebe was his only friend and person he could confine in.

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 00:13:53 2013 No.3978700 Do it now, faggot.

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 00:15:53 2013 No.3978707 It takes like a day tops to read, don't be a bitch. Find out if you like it or not for yourself, it's pointless for us to have your opinions for you.

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 01:13:53 2013 No.3978781 Different guy. My girlfriend wants me to read " The Host". She promises me it is not as bad as Twilight but i am really skeptical. All the online reviews I read seem mega biased

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 01:19:53 2013 No.3978791 its a great book up until that ending

Anonymous Mon Jul 29 01:25:53 2013 No.3978804

"The boy himself is too simple and too complex for us to make any final comment about him or his story. Perhaps the safest thing we can say about Holden is that he was born in the world not just strongly attracted to beauty but, almost, hopelessly impaled on it." — Original jacket copy (J.D. Salinger?)

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 01:25:53 2013 No.3978805 >>3978427 Its a slight psychological book. basically a huge flashback. Read like, the first 20 pages and I can tell you more about it. It doesn't help to just simply spoil the entire book for you

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 01:37:54 2013 No.3978833 >>3978707 This. The book isn't written by James Joyce. You don't have to apply yourself that much in order to plow through it.

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 02:26:53 2013 No.3978914 >>3978781 bumping question

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 02:41:53 2013 No.3978940 >>3978781 Lol. I wouldn't touch that thing with a ten foot pole.

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 02:42:53 2013 No.3978942 It's worth reading solely based on the fact that you should be able to say you have read it if you want to get into literature. The story is dreary, but at least it's not complex.

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 03:11:53 2013 No.3978978 Not trying to be a dick but how have you NOT read this? Isn't it required reading for high-schoolers?

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 03:30:54 2013 No.3979019 >>3978978 Not all high schoolers. I was in AP English, so while the other classes read it, we had to read Plath and Poe and Shakespeare and Sophocles and Frost and Ibsen and a pretty decent novel called Sophies World.

Anonymous Mon Jul 29 03:34:53 2013 No.3979027

>>3978435
>If you are constantly pissed off at society and people in general it is probably worth a read.

I concur - I find that most people who praise it are at that exact stage in life where they feel angsty or resentful to society.

It's a shame they find CitR so filling when they would be better served reading something like The Stranger to get peace of mind.

CitR feeds too much into their present and ugly state of mind and doesn't do much to change their perspective. They just start adopting the 'everyone are phonies' attitude and become even more cynical and feel justifiably so.

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 03:35:53 2013 No.3979029 >>3979027 Addendum: I should add not all people who read it do if that was a bit ambiguous and anyone thought I was calling out everyone who read the book.

Anonymous Mon Jul 29 04:06:54 2013 No.3979090
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>>3979027

I have a pretty positive outlook on society. The book is funny as fuck. It's possible to read it and enjoy it without relating to Holden at all.

"It's a shame THEY..."

The book is hardly a waste of time. In terms of substance and technique it is on par with The Stranger. I'm not sure why you suggest The Stranger is better for offering 'piece of mind.'

Anonymous Mon Jul 29 04:17:54 2013 No.3979109
File: 114 KB, 333x500, 9320044461e145a2d14d.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]

Honestly, one of the best books I've read. I avoided to read it in my teens, because I thought I was going to hate it* because I thought it was about teen angst and an anoying main character.

I was wrong. The book has humor, has a main character who is sad, funny and likeable, I felt real compassion for Holden. Has good scenes and an interesting thematic drive.

If you want to understand better how good this books is:

Part1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R66eQLLOins
Part2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LI1CusL7Ceo

*The book is portrayed as a love-it or hate-it novel, which is actually stupid, as you're going to love it if you're not stupid.

>>	Anonymous Mon Jul 29 07:34:53 2013 No.3979395 >>3979109 >If you want to understand better how good this books is >Fucking John Green explaining why CitR is good. I don't think I can handle this explodes

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