Sunny's letter to Hattie
Based on the novel, the Catcher in the Rye
Sunny Jenkins
Edmont Hotel 42nd St.
NYC, NY 19503
USA
Hattie,
I’m standin’ on the edge and wonderin’ what people would think if I just jumped. Probably that I had it comin’. Especially if I did it right now - Maurice has me headin’ to that swanky place up on 54th Street and advised me to wear one of those lil’ black numbers that are usually just for the important people. I’ve played it out so many goddam times now, Hattie, how people would react. They’d see my body broken into a million pieces like some sick kinda shattered vase and they’d just keep on walkin’ by. None a’ them would know who I was, Hattie. There’s no one here to miss me.
I’m all ready to jump. It’s late enough, so no one’s watchin’. It’d be just like in that movie we always watched together. But that guy from that picture - he was real old. Ya remember that, Hattie? He had nothin’ left to live for. Nothin’ left to do.
There’s this one thing I’ve always wanted to do, Hattie. I don’t know if I can jump without doin’ it. I need someone to hear my story before it ends. For once in my goddam life, I want someone to really hear me. You always asked me about my past, Hattie, so I wanna tell ya. I should’a told ya back when we were still workin’ together. No one else wants to know.
I left Hollywood when I was twelve. I’ve never thought about goin’ back. My parents were really somethin’ else - ‘specially my pa. There’s this one thing I remember my ol’ man sayin’ to me - ‘Speak up. If you’re not gonna stay in your place, then you’re gonna come and say it to my face. I ain’t gonna listen if ya don’t say it to my face.’ Ya wanna know what I told ‘im, Hattie? I got right up in his wrinkly goddam face and I told ‘im, I screamed, ‘Ya don’t listen anyway! You’re never goin’ to!’ I spoke up real loud then, Hattie. But I still don’t think he quite heard. No one ever really hears.
My lil’ sister’s the only reason I didn’t leave earlier. But I lost her, Hattie. I think it was my father. I really do. I didn’t know where to go for a whole lotta’ time. Sometimes these guys in my hometown would lemme go back to their places, and then one’a them got the big idea that we should just run away. So I went with ‘im, Hattie. I didn’t bring nothin’ but the clothes on my back and this one bag that had my school supplies and all. I didn’t really know where we were goin’, and I didn’t care much, to tell ya the truth. He paid for the cab ride, and found us a room in a real beat up ol’ place. I don’t wanna talk too much ‘bout this next part, Hattie. But he took all my things. He took that bag from me, Hattie. He took everything.
It was about a week that I hid in that putrid ol’ place before Maurice found me. I thought I wouldn’t be alone no more. But you can be around people and still feel alone, Hattie. Maurice taught me that real early on.
We came to New York a lil’ while after he found me, and that was when I met you and the rest a’ the girls. I’ve changed a lot since then - in the way I look, I mean. I saved up some dough to dye my hair blond like all those girls in the shows, and I got rid a’ those glasses, ‘cause I heard that dark doe eyes are what’ll get guys interested. It worked real well, Hattie. I’m seein’ more people than ever. But I don’t look like myself no more, Hattie. They don’t see the real me. They don’t care ‘bout the real me.
There was this one guy, though. Just last week. I can’t remember his name, Hattie, but it sorta reminded me of yours. He asked me what I do durin’ the day - when I ain’t workin’. He didn’t even do nothin’ with me, Hattie. He just asked me ‘bout me. But I didn’t know what to say. There was one damn person who asked me ‘bout me and I couldn’t say nothin’. This job is all I do, Hattie. I don’t want all I do to be somethin’ that leaves me all alone.
I got into this fight with Maurice ‘bout it. I was just askin’ him if there were other things I could do. I said it real nice and everythin’. But he tol’ me I should count my days, and he started lookin’ for people to replace me. I knew I couldn’t trust that bastard. Ya can’t trust no one.
He brought in this one girl. She was so lil’, Hattie. She reminded me of my sister - she had the same sad blue eyes. Ya should’a seen her.
I’m standin’ right on the edge, Hattie. No one would care if I jumped. No one gives a damn if I live or die. But that girl’s ol’ mopy eyes. Ya shoulda seen ‘em. They had these lil’ flecks of of sparkly gold in ‘em. They’d fade if I let her take my place, Hattie.
She’d fade just like you did.
I can’t jump, Hattie. I can’t go find ya just yet. I hope ya don’t hate me. You always did think I ran too much. But no one should have to replace me. I don’t wanna be the reason anyone else feels this way. Like they’re all by themself. Like no one’s listenin’. There’s just so much goddam loneliness in this world, Hattie. You should never have to realise it so young.
Letters can’t reach heaven, Hattie. But I’d like to think you still hear me when no one else does.
I’ll see ya again some day,
Sunny
Explain the purpose of your creative piece (what is the character expressing and why are they expressing this?)
My story shares the perspective of Sunny, who wasn’t given much personality in The Catcher in the Rye outside of her profession and the fact that she enjoyed movies. My story aims to give her depth, reflect on the theme of alienation, and highlight the fact that no one is alone in feeling alone. I explore the role of alienation in Sunny’s life, from her childhood to the moment my story is set where she is contemplating suicide. I open with her ‘standin’ on the edge’, a reference of Holden’s desire to be the catcher in the rye and prevent people from falling like he did. Sunny is talking to her old friend Hattie (who I created for the purpose of this story), discussing how isolated she feels. Sunny claims that Hattie is her only friend, but I reveal toward the end of my story that Hattie is dead; a source of both grief and guidance. Ultimately, Sunny doesn’t commit suicide, expressing that someone would need to take her place if she did - she doesn’t want anyone else to feel isolated from everyone and everything. My story aims to demonstrate the tragic implications of alienation, how it is caused, and how it can be prevented by simply reaching out.
Analyse the way you showed the character’s personality and the context of the novel through your writing (how does the language and content suit the character and the location/time period? Use quotes from your work and the novel to support your answer)
Sunny’s language in The Catcher in the Rye was quite similar to Holden’s - consistently colloquial. I mimicked this speech in my writing, and a letter was the perfect medium to speak casually.
Sunny’s work as a prostitute is her defining characteristic in the novel, and an integral part of my story. However, I wanted her character to be more than this - I needed to explain how she ended up working as a prostitute, and how her past resulted in alienation. I concocted a past of abusive parents and loss of a sibling, leaving Sunny feeling alone at just 12 years old. It’s mentioned in the novel that Sunny grew up in Hollywood, so I say she grew up there in my story.
At the top of my letter, I wrote Sunny’s address (Hattie is not alive and therefore her address cannot be given) as the Edmont Hotel, which is where she met Holden in the novel, suiting the time frame. I also mention that Sunny is ‘headin’ to that swanky place up on 43th Street’, where Holden meets up with Luce in the novel, suiting the location.
Sunny mentions movies at various points in my story, as she states this is one of her only hobbies in The Catcher in the Rye. I also incorporated Holden’s claim that Sunny has dyed hair, and provided a reason for it.
Based on Allie’s role in The Catcher in the Rye, I created Hattie. She added dimension to Sunny’s story, reflecting on the tragic form of alienation that arises when you lose your closest companion.
I felt that the relationship between Sunny and Maurice wasn’t really explained in the novel, an issue I sought to fix within my story - he teaches her that you can feel alone even when you are close to somebody.
Analyse how your writing reflects one of the major themes of the novel and shows the character’s perspective on this theme (what does your writing communicate about the theme to the audience? How does this show the character’s understanding of the theme? Use quotes from your work and the novel to support your answer)
Alienation was carried through every scene in The Catcher in the Rye, with Holden using it as a form of self protection. While keeping others at a distance for self-preservation is common in society, it is not the only way alienation comes about. My story repositions the theme of alienation, from something you bring upon yourself and can easily resolve, to a distressing sense brought on by abuse, loss, and trusting the wrong people. I want readers to understand that while alienation is something that can be fixed, it is not always something that you choose. Readers often come out of The Catcher in the Rye with a strong distaste for Holden, and in finishing the novel, I wondered how readers would think about alienation differently if they felt more sympathy for the character experiencing it. This is why I chose Sunny - she had no backstory, and I could use this to my advantage. Sunny’s tragic and heartfelt story allows readers to relate to her loneliness, instead of disregarding it.
Alienation is felt by all people at some point, and, as Mr Antolini points out in The Catcher in the Rye, many people have been ‘confused and frightened and even sickened by human behaviour (pg. 170)’. Human nature is complex, and we should not assume that our thoughts, or us as people, are starkly different from those of others. My story is meant to force readers to think critically about the people around them. You can’t tell how people feel by how they appear, and, as Holden made Sunny question herself in my story, you never know the impact you can have on someone. You can be the reason someone feels seen, or the reason they feel alienated.