Students: Christine Ertbøll, Maria, Katrine Hellesen, Winther, Katrine Hoff og Frederikke Held
Summary:
Chapter 5:
Holden and his friends take the bus to the town for the night. It's snowing and before entering the bus Holden packs a snowball. He wants to throw it at different objects but doesn't. He convinces his friend Mal Brossard to let Ackley with them. They want to go to the movies, but the others have already seen the film, so they play games and eat burgers instead. They get back to the dorm and Ackley sits in Holden's room with him and tells stories. When Ackley leaves Holden begins to write Stradlater's composition, which he promised. The composition had to be a description of a room but Holden can think of any room or house, so instead he writes about his brother's glove. Holden tells that his brother, Allie, is dead from leukemia and that he was intelligent and had red hair. Holden gets to the part where Allie dies and he tells that he went into the garage and broke all the windows with his hand. He tried to brake all the windows in the car too but his hand was already broken.
Chapter 6:
Stradlater comes back from his date with Jane. Holden is very interested in what had happened, but won’t really admit it. Holden asks “What’d you do” I said. “Give her the time in Ed Banky’s goddam car?”My voice was shaking something awful. “What a thing to say. Want me to wash your mouth with soap?” “Did you?” “That’s a professional secret, buddy”.
Holden thinks that Stradlater might have had sex with Jane, so Holden goes crazy and tries to hit Stradlater, but however Stradlater is a lot stronger than Holden because he is an athlete. Stradlater tells Holden to stop calling him a moron. Holden says that he will stop but then he calls Stradlater a moron again, so Strandler hits him in the face. Holden bleeds a lot. The reason why he calls him a moron again is probably because he is rebellious and likes to “play with the fire”. The blood scars and fascinates him at the same time. This shows his rebellious side and that he is a typical teenage boy. He could also be secretly in love with Jane.
Class Discussion:
Chapter 5:
- His brother’s death has had a big impact on him
- He is frustrated
- In the 1950’s you didn’t talk about feelings, so this is a way of acting out
- Channels his frustration in the composition
Invites Old Ackley to the movies
- Change of personality, since the death of his brother
Symbols:
- Left handed mitt (different, unique) - Allie: Poetry, childhood.
- Checkers kings - happiness, childhood.
- Snowballs - How he feel, The snowball is “Clean and white), innocence.
Hunting hat - The hat is red, it remind him of his brother Allie, because he had red hair.
Chapter 6:
- Holden is protecting Jane
- Holden show his rebellious side of himself
- He is fascinated and scared of the blood at the same time. This could show how he is dealing with wanting to grow up and being a teenage boy.
- Stradlater leaves the room. Holden puts on his hunting hat and stares at himself in the mirror. This might make him think of Allie. Maybe this comforts him.
- He goes to Ackley's crumby old room. He thinks leaving will make it better but it the feeling he has keeps hunting him.
Important concepts / keywords:
- His brother, Allie
- Grief
- His childhood