Alphaville put out their big hit "Forever Young" in the 80s; Catcher in the Rye takes place in the 50s. Too bad they didn't happen at the same time, because Holden Caulfield would have one hell of a theme song. Imagine if Holden knew "Forever Young;" instead of singing the incorrect words from "Comin' Thro' the Rye" by Robert Burns, I think it would be much more appropriate for him to be singing Alphaville.
It's no secret that Holden seems a bit wary of those who have "grown up" or, metaphorically, "fallen off the cliff of the rye field." His only positive reaction are to those who are still young and innocent: his little siblings Allie and Phoebe, and Jane Gallagher's past pre-pubescent self. He finds their honesty refreshing amongst the phonies in the world. Holden finds Jane's straightforward attitude and self-fulfilling quirks endearing and honest. Holden sees her self-fulfilling quirks in a positive way. for example, young Jane keeps all of her kings in the back row when playing checkers; Holden sees this kitschy decision as honest because she's doing it for herself and not caring what others think. Jane's motives are innocent and not phony at all. In regards to Phoebe and Allie, Holden has the same mindset towards them as he does to young Jane Gallagher. Allie finds reading poetry in the outfield off of his baseball glove more fascinating than the actual game he's playing. Phoebe's extremely smart for her age, but also acts sweet and selfless, traits that Holden longs to see in people.
If you haven't heard "Forever Young," I'd give it a listen. It sounds a bit nostalgic, kind of sad, two traits that kind of describe Holden himself. Holden doesn't like any of the pseudo phonies; instead he prefers the playful innocence of being young and transparent. In Holden's perfect world, everyone would be forever young (Ahhh that was so cheesy please forgive me. I'm going to cross it out but leave it, because even though it sounds super cutesy-corny, it actually kind of fits).
Its interesting that you drew these connections. I always tease my parents when they turn that on and seem to ALWAYS reminisce about slow dancing to this at Prom. So in my life this song draws connections to childhood as well. With that said, I think that this would make a great anthem for Holden. The fundamental question is asking if someone would really want to live forever as opposed to being young (something holden would love). Very interesting post, I loved it!
ReplyDeleteThis is a really cool post! I loved how you gave Holden a theme song. I guess my one question is that do you think Holden will remain in this mindset forever? As we've seen, he is rather clever. So it is curious to me whether he will come to terms with his age and when. Until then though, he might be humming "Forever Young" under his hunting hat.
ReplyDeleteAnd we see Holden further trying to hold on to his "youth" and staying forever young in his visions of the Catcher in the Rye: he wants to prevent other kids from falling into adulthood and phonyness. Lol it would be hilarious to make a video of someone actually being a "catcher in the rye" with "forever young" in the background!
ReplyDeleteI agree that he does prefer the young and innocent in comparison to the "phony" adults which makes it all the more interesting that he only knows a few adults that he doesn't mind and maybe even likes (like the nuns and James Castle even though he doesn't really count as an adult). Great post, Leah!
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