"The Catcher in the Rye" Section 2

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Characterization

In chapter eleven, Holden Caufield thinks about Jane Gallagher and all the time they spent together. His stream of consciousness about her characterizes who she is and helps the audience know why Holden cares for her. He characterizes her through stories of how they met and his memories of their interactions together. For example, “I remember this one afternoon. It was the only time old Jane and I ever got close to necking, even… Then she really started to cray, and the next thing I knew, I was kissing her all over—anywhere—her eyes, her nose… She sort of wouldn’t let me get to her mouth,” (Salinger, 78-79). Holden and Jane were obviously very good friends who cared deeply for each other. This excerpt also characterizes Jane as modest and different from how most girls would act. Being less physical with Holden actually attracted him more than silly girls who just want to get physical. Holden reveals through his own actions how much he cares about and trusts Jane. For example, “She was the only one, outside my family, that I ever showed Allie’s baseball mitt to, with all the poems written on it,” (Salinger, 77). Through his descriptions of being with other girls seeming meaningless, we can easily decipher that Jane is his ultimate love and friend. His action of showing Jane one of his most treasured possessions speaks volumes towards his feelings about her.  

"Dover Beach"

 “Dover Beach” by Matthew Arnold

In “Dover Beach” three bodies of water are mentioned and they are connected by the same idea of an “eternal note of sadness.” Two of the bodies of water are literal while one of them is figurative.  The first body of water, the English Channel, introduces the “eternal note of sadness.” “Of pebbles which the waves draw back, and fling… with tremulous cadence slow, and bring the eternal note of sadness in,” (Arnold, 892). The channel looks beautiful, but the sound is harsh. “Sophocles long ago heard it on the Aegean, and it brought into his mind the turbid ebb and flow of human misery,” (Arnold, 892). The second body of water, the Aegean sea connects the idea from the previous body of water to human misery. The idea established in the first body of water grows bigger from just water to now humans. In the third body of water, “the Sea of Faith,” the idea grows to relate to the world. The speaker establishes a connection between sadness and faith. For example, “was once, too, at the full, and round earth’s shore… but now I only hear its melancholy, long withdrawing roar,” (Arnold, 892). As faith decreases, sadness increase; therefore, sadness is eternal and faith is fading. “For the world, which seems to lie before us like alnad of dreams, so various, so beautiful, so new, hath really neither joy, nor love…” (Arnold, 893). The eternal not of sadness relates to the idea that the world appears to be this beautiful place full of opportunity; however, it is full of eternal sadness and misery.

"Sorting Laundry"

“Sorting Laundry” by Elisavietta Ritche

Tone

The tone in the first thirteen stanzas of the poem reflects a positive nature to the speaker’s relationship with her lover. The speaker reflects their attitude through the imagery of laundry. “All those wrinkles to be smoothed, or else ignored,” (Ritche, 841). Through this metaphor the speaker is able to convey that there are problems in her relationship, but they do not need to be pressed and focused on fixing them. “So many shirts and skirts and pants recycling week after week, head over heels recapitulating themselves,” (Ritche, 841). The two lovers never seem to get tired of each other. This trend of items of laundry conveying a healthy relationship continues until the tone shifts in the fourteenth stanza. For example, “You brought from Kuwait, the strangely tailored shirt left by a former lover,” (Ritche, 842). The old shirt brings up memories from a previous lover. The tone shifts from positive and healthy to worry. The speaker does not want to be a former lover as she says “a mountain of unsorted wash could not fill the empty side of the bed,” (Ritche, 842).

"The Convergence of the Twain"

“The Convergence of the Twain” by Thomas Hardy

Imagery

Thomas Hardy employs imagery to convey the meaning of “The Convergence of the Twain”, which is the consequences of human pride. The imagery describes the Titanic while the Titanic can be a symbol of human pride. “In a solitude of the sea deep from human vanity, and the pride of life that planned her, stilly coaches she,” (Hardy, 778). The first stanza reveals that Titanic was created through the pride of the people who built her. That pride lies “stilly” at the bottom of the ocean. This establishes a meaning in the poem that human pride is a negative and can be destructive. “The sea-worm crawls—grotesque, slimed, dumb, indifferent,” (Hardy, 778). This line in stanza III add to the negative tone of human pride. “Jewels in joy designed to ravish the sensuous mind lie lightless, all their sparkles bleared and black and blind,” (Hardy, 778). The imagery of the jewels represent the pride in the Titanic and its beauty. The dark and gloomy imagery, “lightless,” “bleared,” “black,” and “blind” contribute to the meaning of our human pride leading to the destruction of beautiful and bright things that we create.

"I taste a liquor never brewed"

“I taste a liquor never brewed” by Emily Dickinson

Extended Metaphor

“I taste a liquor never brewed” is an extended metaphor and it compares being drunk to being drunk of nature. We know that the speaker is not literally drinking beer because the title, “liquor never brewed.” “Not all the Vats upon the Rhine Yield such an Alcohol!” (Dickinson, 797). The Rhine river is known as a location where grapes for wine are grown and alcohol is fermented. The speaker saying that the best alcohol does not compare to nature conveys the truly amazing feeling of being surrounded by nature. The comparison towards nature is revealed through the diction of a “drunken Bee,” “Foxgloves,” and “Butterflies.” Since the extended metaphor is comparing being drunk to nature, “Molten Blue” and “Pearl” represent the blue sky and fluffy clouds. “Till Seraphs… and Saints—to windows run—to see the little Tippler Leaning against the—Sun,” (Dickinson, 797). This excerpt shows the amused and happy reaction of the Seraphs and saints to this person drunk with nature.  The person drunk with nature “leaning against the sun” further emphasizes the comparison to nature and relates back to the idea of drunks not being able to stand up straight.

"My Mistress' Eyes"

“My Mistress’ Eyes” by William Shakespeare

Question 1

The speaker in the poem mocks the typical comparisons of love poetry. This indicates the exaggeration of beauty typically used in love poetry. These comparisons contribute to a negative and satirical tone in the first twelve lines of the sonnet. “My misstres’ eyes are nothing like the sun,” (Shakespeare, 885). This line of the poem makes fun of the commonly used cliché in love poetry, “your eyes are like the sun.” “Coral is far more red than her lips’ red,” (Shakespeare, 885). This recalls the comparison of lips being red as coral. “But no such roses see I in her cheeks,” (Shakespeare, 885). Love poems often make comparisons of their lover having cheeks as red as roses. A common cheesy comparison in love poetry is comparing a lover to a goddess. Shakespeare makes fun at this comparison in his poem. For example, “I grant I never saw a goddess go, my mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground,” (Shakespeare, 885).

"Barbie Doll"

“Barbie Doll” by Marge Piercy

Question 1

Barbie dolls are supposed to be the superficial beauty that every girl dreams of being. Barbie’s are stick thin, have long legs, and a perfect face. A classmate said to the girl, “You have a great big nose and fat legs,” (Piercy, 835). The girl “possessed strong arms and back,” (Piercy, 835). The girl having strong arms and back indicate she is not stick thin, but full and healthy. Barbie dolls are lifeless and therefore do not possess human qualities. The poem describes the girl as lifelike and human through words such as “intelligent,” “healthy,” and “apologizing.” Because people only saw appearance in the girl, she strived to become more like a Barbie doll. The lifelessness of a Barbie doll is emphasized through diction in the poem. For example, “In the casket displayed on satin she lay with the undertaker’s cosmetics painted on,” (Piercy, 836).