Friday, November 13, 2015
Blog Post #2
In chapter 16 of Catcher in the Rye, Holden tells a vignette about how he would go to museum a lot with his class when he was in grade school. At the end of the vignette, he says how everything in the museum is always the same no matter how many times you go back. Following this, he says, "Nobody'd be different. The only thing that would be different would be you" (Salinger 158). Holden describes how the only thing that changes every time you go back to the museum is you. In between visits to the museum, you'll experience something that will make you different. This was the whole meaning of his vignette. Some things around you will always stay constant, but you are always experiencing things that change you in some way, even if that change is not major. Holden gives examples of these experiences. It could be as simple as being there with a different group, or as complex as hearing your parents fight. Through this vignette, Holden was trying to show that your surroundings may stay constant, but you won't stay the same. People are always changing and even the tiny little details we experience can cause change.
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I like how you mentioned that even the smallest detail can cause change because I think is shows a recurring theme throughout Catcher in the Rye. It reminded of how in the very beginning of the book, Mr. Spencer tries to make a small change in Holden's life in hopes of having a big impact on his future. Mr. Spencer says to Holden, "Do you feel absolutely no concern for your future, boy?" (14). I think Mr. Spencer is trying to get Holden just to recognize that his actions now influence his future. He tries to make a small change in Holden's life to put him on a different path. Do you think the constant change could also be attributed to one of the Romantic's qualities since it helps the character evolve and remain and individual?
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