you honestly have one of the most amazing voices of all time. i can listen to you and perceive everything in a whole different way. your voice-is me on marijuana....you unlock the unconscious mind and bring me to a knew perspective.
I wish I had these videos when I was reading Catcher in the Rye because I was the only kid out of all my friends and classmates who thought it was interesting and worthwhile, and one of my best friends (at the time) often said to me that Holden was pathetic and a loser. I did not care for her analysis.
i am reading this book in my english class right now and honestly i do not really like it the way you seem to do but i guess i will try a bit more now...
"It's not our fault that empathy is inherantly limited." I don't agree. Actually, I think not listening has less to do with empathy than it does that they just don't think we're worth listening to. Like I said below: They don't think we know what we're talking about because we're "too young" and all that nonsense. So they just don't listen. They don't have to, they don't want to, so they don't. They - adults - don't think that we - adolescents - can have inteligent ideas on what's going on. Urgh
Wow, I feel like I'd really like Catcher in the Rye because I REALLY like books with characters I identify with, and Holden sounds just as shunted by adults (with the not listening) as I do. Actually, it's very frustrating when all you want is for someone to listen to what you have to say and they think you're just...unimportant and don't know what you're talking about when really you know a great deal more than they do. Honestly, age shouldn't determine whether or not your voice is heard! Gosh!
I believe there are two kinds of people in the world.
Those who love catcher in the rye, and those who hate it. Those who hate it are usually the people who have always had a wonderful life, who have never really felt alone. Those who love it are those who know what Holden goes through and and understands.
Pay heed all you atheists and agnostics! Without God, there IS no meaning to life--we are all just a random accumulation of atoms swirling around on the great "carousel" of infinite space. Rather than going to the Zoo, Holden should have taken Phoebe to the nearest church!
@happy543210 hold up. You seem grossly misinformed. I hoped that nerdfighter would feel like that, but okay. 1) Agnostics do NOT believe that there is no god, they simply believe that we as humans can never really know if there is a god or if there is not. I mean, come on. Someones beliefs are their choice. And I dont think anything other than Phoebe couldve made Holden happy at that point.
@happy543210 Please stop preaching to me. There can be a time and a place...and that is not when we are talking about the Catcher in the Rye with John Green.
thank you John for interpretting that book for me in a way my english class did not. In grade 11 english, the end was biasically described as Holden 'giving up' his cause and accepting life's hopelessness. This interpretation, however, is so very much better.
im doing a character analysis on my banned book essay for english on holden caulfield cuz i read catcher in the rye. and thank you for the red hunting cap-protective shield thing. i needed it! :)
I think carrousel was a symbol for unchanged. It just goes around, end up in a same place over again and that's what holden hoped to see , and phoebe was the only one left beside holden who would always be right beside him all the time, never changed. She is the one that helped holden to hold back his bad thoughts about never coming back to home and stuff so thats probably why she was on the carrousel
i feel like the holden tht's telling the story is more depressing in a way than the holden it's happening to. it seems like he's teling the story while in a mental hospital and by his tone, it clearly is not where he wants to be, but that he's forced there. i feel like that is the worst possible situation one can be in: being forced to change yourself, for better or worse.
@IsmaProject Weell weell weell, I was like, wow someone else reading this book in school right now, and then I was like hi best friend :P Found the video all by my self, good job me, and I did gain new perspective on the book :) still dont care toooo much for it though ;) but i do empathize more with Holden now! Great video :)
Honestly, if you had been the one who taught this book to not only myself, but all of my friends who had a terrible English teacher this past year, maybe I would have enjoyed it more.
i just finished this book john literally a minute ago, and god it was great. i loved the symbolism and how it wasnt too specific on its ending and it wasnt all happy go lucky with dogs having puppies and all, but it was hopeful. i have to say it was so freaking sad how no one listened to him and the phoebe on the carousel and all but i think that was all the charm. i adored it.
I admire John's admiration of this book. However, I don't really see much hope in this. SPOILER: I saw the ending as more depressing than the actual book. He ended up in a mental hospital, which his meeting with Luce in chapter 19 seemed to foreshadow.
I still found it sad, a story about a boy who is not yet a man and does stuff. He is seeking a purpose beyond the view that life is the process of getting by each day. The part that no one listens to him is interesting though. "Holden the story is happening to" is not good at communicating himself and his intentions well. If he could do something with his life rather than critique others for being "phony" it would strengthen his point. But he narrates a story of his struggle. Interesting...
I wouldn't say Catcher is very subtle in its methods and concerns, but the ending is "heartbreakingly sad". For me though, in the final chapter, rather than giving up his dream, Holden becomes something better than it; like Mr Antolini quotes "the mark of a mature man is that he lives humbly for a cause". Instead of dying for the cause of being the catcher IN the rye, Holden becomes, by giving the us his narrative, the catcher BELOW the rye. He catches us and sets us down below the cliff gently.
@RhapsodyForYouBlue that is an interesting concept. I guess I never thought of him that way. That Holden could set you down below the cliff gently. It sort of opens an entirely different discussion to the meaning of the book that I hadn't thought of before. I guess it all depends on what the cliff is supposed to represent, when you think of it. Thank you :)
@Bmichigan7 I think the text is a bit more ambivalent than that. But essentially, yes. However, that's surely a testament to how the almost Waste Land-esque environment in which Holden finds himself is so corrupt that the person who gives him the best advice in life is also the person who wants to harm him the most.
@Bmichigan7 I think the text is a bit more ambivalent than that. But essentially, yes. However, that's surely a testament to how the almost Waste Land-esque environment in which Holden finds himself is so corrupt that the person who gives him the best advice in life is also the person who wants to harm him the most.
@RhapsodyForYouBlue Thank you for addressing the title (because that's probably the reason I love this book) and making me see it in a new way. I also think it's worth mentioning that he mishears (or hears correctly and changes) the lyrics to the song, which to me reflects the lack of empathy within his relationships with others. He wants to be that catcher for people coming through the rye, and he sees himself as that, not realizing that others are simply "meeting" him and moving on.
@halmjamin The books about her, look at every chapter, she gets brought up all the time, well not nessicarilly about HER life but about he cares about her for being INNOCENT
@Shaggyfull0vsuga Hank is a fictional character from a "sci-fi-Western" TV show that was canceled from Fox after one season. He was formerly a seargant in a war, but after his side of the war lost, he bought a spaceship and became a goods smuggler to spite the winning side. He has a small crew who becomes more close-knit and trusting of one another as the series progesses. He is also known as Hankcolm, Mr. Green, and Cap'n Nerdpants.
Vlogbrothers and Saturninefilms finally convinced me to read Catcher in the Rye... I did it in about 4 hours. The plot might not be the most driving thing in the world, it might not be the most descriptive or elegant book, but its blunt, childlike language combined with stark depression makes Holden one of the few literary characters I can find myself empathizing with. Amazing book.
@Llawliet246 I also think that the way it is written although you hope you will never became like that there is still a part of you that sees that in yourself and sees that in other people. It is an amazing book with so many underlying symbolisms that all that 'English class stuff' brings out and makes you realise. Very good book! x
@Allieissoawesomelike For me, actually, I'd much rather be like Holden than any of the other characters in the book. I saw a lot of him in myself... I find so many things about society phony and boring, and because of that I have few friends. Hard to find someone to talk to. But I know there are millions of other teenagers with this same plight... that's what Nerdfightaria is for <3 DFTBA!
I'm in the process of watching every vlogbrothers video from the beginning, so I'm not sure if this type of video happens again, but I am SO glad they made this video. I read Catcher and the Rye as and adult and honestly didn't understand why Holden Caulfield was such an amazing literary character... and now I think he's, well, still a shitty person but now I understand why the book is awesome. Thank you John Green, you funny and amazing man.
You have just inspired me to reread "The Catcher in the Rye" outside of English class to fully understand the wonder and amazingness of the book. For that, John Green, I thank you.
By the way, totally sorry if I spelled your last name wrong just then
its not that english teachers are ruining literature, its the fact that they over think it. ex-- Is that hat really a security blanket? Or is it just something to protect himself from the rain? Is the rain the words of other people?
English Teachers over process the book to the point where you cant stand it anymore. Or..at least mines like that
I'm currently documenting this moment of recording, and soaking up as much catcher of the rye knowledge as possible to write my essay about it do tomorrow(or about several hours :L).
The only thing i don't understand is the simbolism of the carrusel and the movies. Well, the movies are phony and too perfect in comparison to the real life that is maybe why Holden hates them.. i don't know. But what about the carrusell?
@merymumu ahh the carousel. In another cover of that book, you can see a horse right? It is actually, related to the carousel. Now, at the end of the book, Holden told Phoebe, her sister, that he will no longer join her in the ride. Hence, the carousel is more like childhood. Where Holden has just finished, and Phoebe will now undergo with the help of his brother.
Man, I wish they'd show these 2 videos in my English class. The whole book made so much more sense to me after seeing these, and I think it would really help all the closed-minded kids in my class to hear this.
All of my friends hated this book, but for some reason I really loved it. It's hard to explain why, but I think in some way I can relate to the story. Anyways, your videos helped me to better understand why I like it so much.
... John, where were you when I had to read this book in middle school and couldn't get over the fact that it was depressing as hell and I just wanted to defenestrate my copy and be done with it?
I really loath Holden as a person, though he is an interesting character. I mean understandably, he has some issues because of his brother, but his lack of empathy is what makes the story have any plot at all. He refuses to feel any empathy for anyone which is why no one will talk to him. He makes me so angry with his hate of "phonies," when he himself is pretty much the same.
One question though, you mention having hope for Holden, as he's writing this story a year later about the person he was at that time.
But in part one you mention the fact that Holden says some things in some kind of "you-perspective" when talking about memories that involve him, not the reader and that he does this to put distance between him and his past. Then why is Holden, who's, as mentioned before, telling the story a year later, still doing this?
I know lots of people who hated the ending of "Catcher in the Rye", but I loved it. It fit Holden so perfectly- to just get bored and quit. It matched his personality perfectly.
When we read this last semester, I didn't think about the fact that there was an "old" Holden and a "new" Holden. I never thought about it. I'm ashamed at myself, but I'm also ashamed at my English teacher for never bringing it up.
Oh my GOODNESS! i need to read this! See, YOU make analysis and studying the book sound fun! Whereas some books we read in class make me want to headdesk.
This comment has received too many negative votesshow
i took every las word u just said and wrote it down and returned it as my report on this book for collage.. i got a 9.5 out of 10.... i didn't even read to book
I seriously want one of those Holden hats now ^^ just to further express my nerdiness at school ^^
DFTBA John...DFTBA
(Daleks Fail. Tennant Beats All.)
Yesh...Dr. Who ^^ (slightly obsessed)
And my friend TheHanwen and I are planning on becoming your secret sibs...we actually have a group on Facebook called The Bow Nerdfighters. Because we're from NH. And we're Nerds. <-- (must be capitalized ) ^^
@eshiett2006 yeah, sure, but unless you really want to read an essay about the rewriting of a greek myth in east germany in german, I doubt you'll get much out of it. But gimme your email adress and I'll be happy to send it to you.
These videos made me want to read the book again from a different frame of mind and perspective. Because I read Catcher a couple of years ago and just hated it. I don't know why I didn't reread it and try and understand it, because that's what I do with everything else, but maybe I just wasn't the right person then. Getting it from the library tomorrow.
ALL OF THESE CONNECTIONS I NEVER CAUGHT ONTO. For a person who used to consider herself relatively intelligent, you've sure usurped me. You killed me. You really did. :)
I'm so glad that you made these videos, John, because I wouldn't have read The Catcher in the Rye if I hadn't wanted to understand what you were talking about. And now I can understand why I felt so terrible when Holden left his teacher's house, and why I felt like I could relate to him uncomfortably well, and why I came out of reading the book with a bit of hope for what happened to him next. Thanks for that.
I like how this video was made. My teacher showed this video once everyone finished the book and really helped to tie in a group discussion. 5 stars. n.n
I think in a way the first Holden finally, after all that had happened, got the attention that he so desperately wanted and needed. He did need to speak honestly to someone(no phoniness), because he couldn't explain to himself what all these things he was feeling(childhood nostalgia, loneliness) were about, he couldn't completely understand it. He needed to tell his story, because when you keep everything to yourself you get stuck on your own ideas without little or no progress, just frozen...
@niminonono He needed to fly away towards other people, to relate with them and let them relate to him, to better understand himself and learn to cope with the world around him. I think he couldn't bare to be by himself anymore, he'd driven himself mad with the same thoughts on repeat, never letting them out. When he was finally able to tell his story, to let his mind bounce on other people, then maybe he turned into the second Holden.....just my take on it
First video I've seen of yours. Very insightfull. It's really going to make me rethink what's going on when I'm reading books written in the first person
It's not that "English class stuff" kills books. Metaphors and symbolism are amazing tools of wonder and books containing these have affected me greatly as a person. However, being forced to find them for marks feels shitty. If I see a metaphor, it is because it means something to ME. Not to the teacher.
@IVlogBecauseICare That is sooo true. And the teacher doesn't want to listen to the metaphors you find and how YOU see the characters and the story.
Also, to me stories are really personal. Some of them are almost sacred (that sounds weird but I don' t know how else to say it) You get to know the characters and the places and they become real to you. It's really hard to discuss. And to discuss it with teachers for grades feels like desecration.
@IVlogBecauseICare Amen to that. I want to find the clues and hidden parts because I want to, not because it's the sole boundary between getting me into college and not.
@IVlogBecauseICare but that's completely against the point! the symbols are easily connectible, well-known objects in life that allow something that happened to character that means something to them get through to us. its easy to look at literature as meant to be re-constructed for us and by us, and used only in the context of our lives, but Johns main point here is that the effort that it takes to find these symbols that we don't neccesarily connect with is what lets the book take more meaning
I would argue that symbolism and metaphor is an effective way into the reader's mind and heart when they are NOT focusing on its presence. For me, reading a book is enjoyable not because i can see the symbolism and go 'HA, that symbolism', but because that subconsiously i am living what i am reading. When critically analysing a book I don't enjoy reading it because i dont focus on the imagery, but the physical characters on the paper.
What you have stated about placing your Consciousness onto a character is truth. It is also used for manipulation. Writers know that the reader/audience places their consciousness onto a character and compares themselves to that character. Whatever the character does, say, etc they believe is happening to them.
In cartoons they project "humaness" onto cartoon characters to do this for little kids.
idk how but watching these videos are blowing my mind when I thought I had picked up on most of the symoblic and metaphorical meanings throughout the book, please teach a class somewhere, you are my idol T_T
The whole thing about the book is individuality. There was no individuality in the 50s, but the author knew it was coming and wrote a book about a weird guy, who today is normal
I want to re-read this book! Watching these videos makes me want to re-read every book I own, and try to find symbolism in every book I own.
ginarocks75 2 days ago
Did anyone want to kill john lennon after they read this book; anyone feel like killing john lennon seriously guys...
TheFunnysamnoob333 1 week ago
my favorite book !!!!!!!!!
free510 2 weeks ago
you honestly have one of the most amazing voices of all time. i can listen to you and perceive everything in a whole different way. your voice-is me on marijuana....you unlock the unconscious mind and bring me to a knew perspective.
mikegilden19 3 weeks ago
I wish I had these videos when I was reading Catcher in the Rye because I was the only kid out of all my friends and classmates who thought it was interesting and worthwhile, and one of my best friends (at the time) often said to me that Holden was pathetic and a loser. I did not care for her analysis.
Syanteca 3 weeks ago
i am reading this book in my english class right now and honestly i do not really like it the way you seem to do but i guess i will try a bit more now...
Marcusvlogs 1 month ago
"There's a Holden who this story is happening to and there's a Holden who's narrating about it". For some reason that blew my mind a little
tapaddtiiiii 1 month ago 4
hehe... burger. :3
allthebrokenstrings 1 month ago
"It's not our fault that empathy is inherantly limited." I don't agree. Actually, I think not listening has less to do with empathy than it does that they just don't think we're worth listening to. Like I said below: They don't think we know what we're talking about because we're "too young" and all that nonsense. So they just don't listen. They don't have to, they don't want to, so they don't. They - adults - don't think that we - adolescents - can have inteligent ideas on what's going on. Urgh
theonewhoreadsalot 1 month ago in playlist Uploaded videos
Wow, I feel like I'd really like Catcher in the Rye because I REALLY like books with characters I identify with, and Holden sounds just as shunted by adults (with the not listening) as I do. Actually, it's very frustrating when all you want is for someone to listen to what you have to say and they think you're just...unimportant and don't know what you're talking about when really you know a great deal more than they do. Honestly, age shouldn't determine whether or not your voice is heard! Gosh!
theonewhoreadsalot 1 month ago in playlist Uploaded videos
@theonewhoreadsalot Oh, dude. I know we just met, but I think I love you.
ThingMaBobJimmy 1 month ago
Who the hell is Hank
susankohistany 1 month ago
I believe there are two kinds of people in the world.
Those who love catcher in the rye, and those who hate it. Those who hate it are usually the people who have always had a wonderful life, who have never really felt alone. Those who love it are those who know what Holden goes through and and understands.
hime368 2 months ago 4
@hime368 If I could like your comment 100 times, I would. It is so true.
NatalieBrianne 1 month ago
"SPOILER: life is hard... and sad." g p o y
16mockingbirds 2 months ago
Pay heed all you atheists and agnostics! Without God, there IS no meaning to life--we are all just a random accumulation of atoms swirling around on the great "carousel" of infinite space. Rather than going to the Zoo, Holden should have taken Phoebe to the nearest church!
happy543210 2 months ago
@happy543210 hold up. You seem grossly misinformed. I hoped that nerdfighter would feel like that, but okay. 1) Agnostics do NOT believe that there is no god, they simply believe that we as humans can never really know if there is a god or if there is not. I mean, come on. Someones beliefs are their choice. And I dont think anything other than Phoebe couldve made Holden happy at that point.
hime368 2 months ago
@happy543210 Please stop preaching to me. There can be a time and a place...and that is not when we are talking about the Catcher in the Rye with John Green.
Thelizzardcat 1 month ago
stop shouting..
OOOuise 2 months ago
HE. NEVER. BLINKS.
DannyDownNdirty 3 months ago 6
thank you John for interpretting that book for me in a way my english class did not. In grade 11 english, the end was biasically described as Holden 'giving up' his cause and accepting life's hopelessness. This interpretation, however, is so very much better.
raraavista 3 months ago in playlist More videos from vlogbrothers
All that English class stuff is actually what I was looking for...
rainbowbubblesXD 3 months ago
im doing a character analysis on my banned book essay for english on holden caulfield cuz i read catcher in the rye. and thank you for the red hunting cap-protective shield thing. i needed it! :)
msDFTBAnerdfighter 4 months ago in playlist More videos from vlogbrothers
I think carrousel was a symbol for unchanged. It just goes around, end up in a same place over again and that's what holden hoped to see , and phoebe was the only one left beside holden who would always be right beside him all the time, never changed. She is the one that helped holden to hold back his bad thoughts about never coming back to home and stuff so thats probably why she was on the carrousel
colly767 4 months ago
i just did a paper on peter berger. :)
fueledbyFOBx3 4 months ago
thanks to youI think i may actually pass my english paper tomorrow. WIN!
chelsy3331 4 months ago
i feel like the holden tht's telling the story is more depressing in a way than the holden it's happening to. it seems like he's teling the story while in a mental hospital and by his tone, it clearly is not where he wants to be, but that he's forced there. i feel like that is the worst possible situation one can be in: being forced to change yourself, for better or worse.
24evanesce 4 months ago
seriously, this is really helping me with this speech i have to give on Holden's fear and insecurity. Thanks!
joswhatsernameS2 4 months ago
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Love this book even more after watching these videos!
iheartnerdiness 4 months ago
We're reading the book in school now and this was really interessting and helpful! =) Thank you! =D
IsmaProject 4 months ago
@IsmaProject Weell weell weell, I was like, wow someone else reading this book in school right now, and then I was like hi best friend :P Found the video all by my self, good job me, and I did gain new perspective on the book :) still dont care toooo much for it though ;) but i do empathize more with Holden now! Great video :)
ojskiipojski 4 months ago
I can't begin to explain how much I love this video.
thatnerdwithacamera 4 months ago
Honestly, if you had been the one who taught this book to not only myself, but all of my friends who had a terrible English teacher this past year, maybe I would have enjoyed it more.
DFTBA07 5 months ago
THE HOLDEN TO WHOM THE STORY IS HAPPENING!!! Gosh, John. I always thought I could count on YOUR grammar, at least. :(
Thisismyusername1010 5 months ago
Thank you John, My AP paper was missing something and it was John Green quotes about Catcher In The Rye. <3
Carliekinz 5 months ago
i just finished this book john literally a minute ago, and god it was great. i loved the symbolism and how it wasnt too specific on its ending and it wasnt all happy go lucky with dogs having puppies and all, but it was hopeful. i have to say it was so freaking sad how no one listened to him and the phoebe on the carousel and all but i think that was all the charm. i adored it.
HaRryPOtterUbSESSD 5 months ago
I love this book it helped me feel like there was still hope back in high school.
SO YAY FOR WEEPY TEENS. life wont suck for ever ^_~
ladynerdneedslove 6 months ago
I admire John's admiration of this book. However, I don't really see much hope in this. SPOILER: I saw the ending as more depressing than the actual book. He ended up in a mental hospital, which his meeting with Luce in chapter 19 seemed to foreshadow.
MsGetacar 6 months ago
If anyone doesn't like this book it is because they are a god damn phony
googoo120 6 months ago 45
John the way you ended this video, all earnest and everything, it killed me.
FRAYEDjade 6 months ago 8
I still found it sad, a story about a boy who is not yet a man and does stuff. He is seeking a purpose beyond the view that life is the process of getting by each day. The part that no one listens to him is interesting though. "Holden the story is happening to" is not good at communicating himself and his intentions well. If he could do something with his life rather than critique others for being "phony" it would strengthen his point. But he narrates a story of his struggle. Interesting...
faeryfiction 6 months ago
I talked to a Canadian dude when I was in Stockholm, and he thought that Holden was abused as a child and was sexually attracted to Phoebe.
Plottoberry 6 months ago
SPOILER: life is hard. and sad.
Aeropop11 6 months ago 7
We watched this in my English 3 class :D
jujubeeluvswrestling 6 months ago 2
I really wished he lived his Deaf mute fantasy
PoliticalWeekly 7 months ago
I wouldn't say Catcher is very subtle in its methods and concerns, but the ending is "heartbreakingly sad". For me though, in the final chapter, rather than giving up his dream, Holden becomes something better than it; like Mr Antolini quotes "the mark of a mature man is that he lives humbly for a cause". Instead of dying for the cause of being the catcher IN the rye, Holden becomes, by giving the us his narrative, the catcher BELOW the rye. He catches us and sets us down below the cliff gently.
RhapsodyForYouBlue 7 months ago 116
@RhapsodyForYouBlue that is an interesting concept. I guess I never thought of him that way. That Holden could set you down below the cliff gently. It sort of opens an entirely different discussion to the meaning of the book that I hadn't thought of before. I guess it all depends on what the cliff is supposed to represent, when you think of it. Thank you :)
Aeropop11 6 months ago
@RhapsodyForYouBlue Yet Mr. Antolini is also a pedofile
Bmichigan7 4 months ago
@Bmichigan7 I think the text is a bit more ambivalent than that. But essentially, yes. However, that's surely a testament to how the almost Waste Land-esque environment in which Holden finds himself is so corrupt that the person who gives him the best advice in life is also the person who wants to harm him the most.
RhapsodyForYouBlue 4 months ago
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RhapsodyForYouBlue 4 months ago
@Bmichigan7 I think the text is a bit more ambivalent than that. But essentially, yes. However, that's surely a testament to how the almost Waste Land-esque environment in which Holden finds himself is so corrupt that the person who gives him the best advice in life is also the person who wants to harm him the most.
RhapsodyForYouBlue 4 months ago
@RhapsodyForYouBlue Thank you for addressing the title (because that's probably the reason I love this book) and making me see it in a new way. I also think it's worth mentioning that he mishears (or hears correctly and changes) the lyrics to the song, which to me reflects the lack of empathy within his relationships with others. He wants to be that catcher for people coming through the rye, and he sees himself as that, not realizing that others are simply "meeting" him and moving on.
2gigapuppies 3 weeks ago
Awesome vlog, Jon. Your intellectual commentary validates my perspective on the world on a regular basis. Keep vlogging.
vasalmon 7 months ago 6
And all the dogs in the world laughed at our inadequacy.
Autohypnotic 7 months ago 4
you'd be a great english teacher. probably because you are a nerdfighter. :)
crazycookie76 7 months ago 3
This is my favorite book of all time!
dropmolly143 7 months ago
I'm sorry but i really hate that book, you do make it sound a lot better then when i was FORCED to read it, but it still sucks.
alexisdgls 7 months ago
My sister, Phoebe, was named after Phoebe Caulfield.
lcarver909 7 months ago 8
@Shagyfull0vsuga That was great and made me happy.
Candypirate11 7 months ago
I'm in love with this man.
AnnieAlwaysFalls 7 months ago
i can connect to holden
sucks
blissout1 8 months ago
I liked the book, but I don't understand why it's so famous!
lydz25 8 months ago
DID U USE THT BOOK FOR ROACHES!!!!
BJeldiabolo 8 months ago
Phoebe wasn't self involved at all - I almost felt like she was too "perfect" in a way, although I think her character did a lot for the story/themes
halmjamin 8 months ago
@halmjamin The books about her, look at every chapter, she gets brought up all the time, well not nessicarilly about HER life but about he cares about her for being INNOCENT
ScreamFlip 8 months ago
I wish you were my dad. And I want a hug.
miapiapizza 8 months ago 2
totally used part of this video in my multi media project for this book :)
ciccarello 8 months ago
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My english teacher sent us this link (as well as part one) to study for exams!!!!!!!!!!!! NERDFIGHTERS FTW
littlemsperfect123 8 months ago
Nooo, I don't get the carousel bit at the end. I never did. >_>
Veeolinxalto 8 months ago
umm whos hank
Shaggyfull0vsuga 8 months ago
@Shaggyfull0vsuga Hank is a fictional character from a "sci-fi-Western" TV show that was canceled from Fox after one season. He was formerly a seargant in a war, but after his side of the war lost, he bought a spaceship and became a goods smuggler to spite the winning side. He has a small crew who becomes more close-knit and trusting of one another as the series progesses. He is also known as Hankcolm, Mr. Green, and Cap'n Nerdpants.
(I am lying to you. Look Hank up, he's awesome.)
TheWarnerSister 8 months ago
@Shaggyfull0vsuga Are you kidding?
MidniteishBlue 8 months ago
why didnt i know about this before?
Your explanations for things are much better than my teacher's!!
juststephyeah 8 months ago
fuck dude, im gonna watch this after i read finish reading it.
JMort95 9 months ago
Am I the only one who almost cried when Holden dropped the 'little shirley beans' record he bought for Phoebe?
SonniesOriginals 9 months ago 55
@SonniesOriginals I did cry when Phoebe asked to come with Holden out west. Tears flow like rain.
blondybash321 2 months ago
@SonniesOriginals that was also what i felt :P
wolfeman323232 2 months ago
You are a genius!
SuperMfisher 9 months ago
Vlogbrothers and Saturninefilms finally convinced me to read Catcher in the Rye... I did it in about 4 hours. The plot might not be the most driving thing in the world, it might not be the most descriptive or elegant book, but its blunt, childlike language combined with stark depression makes Holden one of the few literary characters I can find myself empathizing with. Amazing book.
Llawliet246 9 months ago
@Llawliet246 I also think that the way it is written although you hope you will never became like that there is still a part of you that sees that in yourself and sees that in other people. It is an amazing book with so many underlying symbolisms that all that 'English class stuff' brings out and makes you realise. Very good book! x
Allieissoawesomelike 9 months ago
@Allieissoawesomelike For me, actually, I'd much rather be like Holden than any of the other characters in the book. I saw a lot of him in myself... I find so many things about society phony and boring, and because of that I have few friends. Hard to find someone to talk to. But I know there are millions of other teenagers with this same plight... that's what Nerdfightaria is for <3 DFTBA!
Llawliet246 9 months ago
I'm in the process of watching every vlogbrothers video from the beginning, so I'm not sure if this type of video happens again, but I am SO glad they made this video. I read Catcher and the Rye as and adult and honestly didn't understand why Holden Caulfield was such an amazing literary character... and now I think he's, well, still a shitty person but now I understand why the book is awesome. Thank you John Green, you funny and amazing man.
Maliamoss 9 months ago
You have just inspired me to reread "The Catcher in the Rye" outside of English class to fully understand the wonder and amazingness of the book. For that, John Green, I thank you.
By the way, totally sorry if I spelled your last name wrong just then
justmemai 9 months ago
its not that english teachers are ruining literature, its the fact that they over think it. ex-- Is that hat really a security blanket? Or is it just something to protect himself from the rain? Is the rain the words of other people?
English Teachers over process the book to the point where you cant stand it anymore. Or..at least mines like that
randobanana 9 months ago
4/14/2011
3:10 A.M
I'm currently documenting this moment of recording, and soaking up as much catcher of the rye knowledge as possible to write my essay about it do tomorrow(or about several hours :L).
madskillzmz 9 months ago
That's pretty crap good!
Khornag 9 months ago
its crazy how ur voice is soo filled with enthusiasm and all and ur face look completely emotionless. lol
but anyways great vidd. u helped alot thankss :D
sakif7 9 months ago 5
I just read this book and thanks to these videos I get it a lot more. I loved the book.
SeanHalket1 10 months ago
The only thing i don't understand is the simbolism of the carrusel and the movies. Well, the movies are phony and too perfect in comparison to the real life that is maybe why Holden hates them.. i don't know. But what about the carrusell?
merymumu 10 months ago 2
@merymumu ahh the carousel. In another cover of that book, you can see a horse right? It is actually, related to the carousel. Now, at the end of the book, Holden told Phoebe, her sister, that he will no longer join her in the ride. Hence, the carousel is more like childhood. Where Holden has just finished, and Phoebe will now undergo with the help of his brother.
aLvintheanimator 10 months ago
Man, I wish they'd show these 2 videos in my English class. The whole book made so much more sense to me after seeing these, and I think it would really help all the closed-minded kids in my class to hear this.
ulookconfusedYAY 10 months ago 5
i want to be friends.
Sagwah42 10 months ago 2
All of my friends hated this book, but for some reason I really loved it. It's hard to explain why, but I think in some way I can relate to the story. Anyways, your videos helped me to better understand why I like it so much.
junebunnie94 10 months ago 3
... John, where were you when I had to read this book in middle school and couldn't get over the fact that it was depressing as hell and I just wanted to defenestrate my copy and be done with it?
Hellooooo, run-on sentence of death.
NingenDemonai 10 months ago
I really loath Holden as a person, though he is an interesting character. I mean understandably, he has some issues because of his brother, but his lack of empathy is what makes the story have any plot at all. He refuses to feel any empathy for anyone which is why no one will talk to him. He makes me so angry with his hate of "phonies," when he himself is pretty much the same.
trumpetbeth 10 months ago
you are awesome, i have understood the book because of ur guide.
Thanks a lot!
ovidiomunizgrijalvo 10 months ago
Really helped me with my english homework!
One question though, you mention having hope for Holden, as he's writing this story a year later about the person he was at that time.
But in part one you mention the fact that Holden says some things in some kind of "you-perspective" when talking about memories that involve him, not the reader and that he does this to put distance between him and his past. Then why is Holden, who's, as mentioned before, telling the story a year later, still doing this?
DaanOFF321 11 months ago
@DaanOFF321 maybe he still obviously misses the girl
sillykitty500 11 months ago
John. You are my favorite person.
JagklikestheMacarena 11 months ago
who's hank?
TMack771 11 months ago
Beautiful.
jmd26 11 months ago
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jmd26 11 months ago
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jmd26 11 months ago
Just give me the goddamn hotline!
thomasbecketshatin 11 months ago
I know lots of people who hated the ending of "Catcher in the Rye", but I loved it. It fit Holden so perfectly- to just get bored and quit. It matched his personality perfectly.
When we read this last semester, I didn't think about the fact that there was an "old" Holden and a "new" Holden. I never thought about it. I'm ashamed at myself, but I'm also ashamed at my English teacher for never bringing it up.
beagle4864 11 months ago 3
I actually understand the real meaning of Catcher in the Rye now. Thankyou so much.
shellfish1010 11 months ago
Am I the only person who caught the Peter Burger line and immediately thought of the zombie apoc novella?
fullmetalchemy 11 months ago
Oh my GOODNESS! i need to read this! See, YOU make analysis and studying the book sound fun! Whereas some books we read in class make me want to headdesk.
JagklikestheMacarena 1 year ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
i took every las word u just said and wrote it down and returned it as my report on this book for collage.. i got a 9.5 out of 10.... i didn't even read to book
Bjarmi92 1 year ago
I seriously want one of those Holden hats now ^^ just to further express my nerdiness at school ^^
DFTBA John...DFTBA
(Daleks Fail. Tennant Beats All.)
Yesh...Dr. Who ^^ (slightly obsessed)
And my friend TheHanwen and I are planning on becoming your secret sibs...we actually have a group on Facebook called The Bow Nerdfighters. Because we're from NH. And we're Nerds. <-- (must be capitalized ) ^^
MyNameIsShayShay 1 year ago
I just quoted this in a bona fide academic paper. I feel slightly naughty.
RuleNr34 1 year ago 165
@RuleNr34 can u send it to mee??
eshiett2006 8 months ago
@eshiett2006 yeah, sure, but unless you really want to read an essay about the rewriting of a greek myth in east germany in german, I doubt you'll get much out of it. But gimme your email adress and I'll be happy to send it to you.
RuleNr34 8 months ago
@RuleNr34 alright thanks eshiett2006@yahoo.com
eshiett2006 8 months ago
@eshiett2006 Well, there you are. Hope you'll like it.
RuleNr34 8 months ago
@RuleNr34 100th like!!
MsImprovificationer 6 months ago
i have the exact same copy!
sportsluva156 1 year ago
Yeah so English sucks because we never learned ant if that
FangsUpCobraFans 1 year ago
so i just finished this book, and i kinda hated it till you talked about it, now i sorta like it slightly more.
ExAxLxPx12 1 year ago
its the night before my final and im gooing off ur 2 videos i will let you no how we do
Dirtriderxr250 1 year ago
i learned more from you in 8 minutes than 2 months in english class
rokinseb 1 year ago
The clue made me literally laugh out loud XD
Tat2ice 1 year ago
These videos made me want to read the book again from a different frame of mind and perspective. Because I read Catcher a couple of years ago and just hated it. I don't know why I didn't reread it and try and understand it, because that's what I do with everything else, but maybe I just wasn't the right person then. Getting it from the library tomorrow.
friendofidiocy 1 year ago
This video is cool and all.
sorrycaps 1 year ago
ALL OF THESE CONNECTIONS I NEVER CAUGHT ONTO. For a person who used to consider herself relatively intelligent, you've sure usurped me. You killed me. You really did. :)
mmariissa 1 year ago
ur beast bro: ) thank u.
piedawg12 1 year ago
where were you when i was writing my literature assignment?? :D
hazza20082009 1 year ago
you explain books so much better than any english teacher in my school
TheWalkingDinosaur 1 year ago
s:s3, but why is he alone, and afraid and scared, and why did he get so mad at stradlater?
xKingPola3ux 1 year ago
3:11 you Forgot his brother's Baseball Glove..
98LetsWatch 1 year ago
so you make my life.
ashleylikescheetos 1 year ago
I'm so glad that you made these videos, John, because I wouldn't have read The Catcher in the Rye if I hadn't wanted to understand what you were talking about. And now I can understand why I felt so terrible when Holden left his teacher's house, and why I felt like I could relate to him uncomfortably well, and why I came out of reading the book with a bit of hope for what happened to him next. Thanks for that.
nathpollen 1 year ago 3
I like how this video was made. My teacher showed this video once everyone finished the book and really helped to tie in a group discussion. 5 stars. n.n
DeathBatAteMyCat 1 year ago
I enjoy the fact that John used paralipsis in the beginning of this video :)
Chelseeyuh 1 year ago
watching vlogbrothers at 1 in the morning. simply epic
TheGrandMasterOfECW 1 year ago
I think in a way the first Holden finally, after all that had happened, got the attention that he so desperately wanted and needed. He did need to speak honestly to someone(no phoniness), because he couldn't explain to himself what all these things he was feeling(childhood nostalgia, loneliness) were about, he couldn't completely understand it. He needed to tell his story, because when you keep everything to yourself you get stuck on your own ideas without little or no progress, just frozen...
niminonono 1 year ago
@niminonono He needed to fly away towards other people, to relate with them and let them relate to him, to better understand himself and learn to cope with the world around him. I think he couldn't bare to be by himself anymore, he'd driven himself mad with the same thoughts on repeat, never letting them out. When he was finally able to tell his story, to let his mind bounce on other people, then maybe he turned into the second Holden.....just my take on it
niminonono 1 year ago
I wish you were my goddamn English teacher ;)
No seriously :D
Thank you, I'm actually glad now that I picked this book out of many to read for American Lit :)
DFTBA
jellybeangravy 1 year ago
I wish you were my English teacher<3 I might've actually understood this book.
maximumride8 1 year ago
First video I've seen of yours. Very insightfull. It's really going to make me rethink what's going on when I'm reading books written in the first person
dacat 1 year ago
the Holden to whom the story is happening...
sorry, I had to :P
-grammar nerdfighter xD
ionlylikeoldmusic 1 year ago 3
I found it rather difficult to relate to Holden. Your analysis of the book helped me further understand what Salinger was trying to convey. Thanks.
PistolPacknBystander 1 year ago 5
This makes me want to read this book. Even if I really hate sad stories.
pienkunicorn 1 year ago
It's not that "English class stuff" kills books. Metaphors and symbolism are amazing tools of wonder and books containing these have affected me greatly as a person. However, being forced to find them for marks feels shitty. If I see a metaphor, it is because it means something to ME. Not to the teacher.
IVlogBecauseICare 1 year ago 242
@IVlogBecauseICare That is sooo true. And the teacher doesn't want to listen to the metaphors you find and how YOU see the characters and the story.
Also, to me stories are really personal. Some of them are almost sacred (that sounds weird but I don' t know how else to say it) You get to know the characters and the places and they become real to you. It's really hard to discuss. And to discuss it with teachers for grades feels like desecration.
pienkunicorn 1 year ago
@IVlogBecauseICare Amen to that. I want to find the clues and hidden parts because I want to, not because it's the sole boundary between getting me into college and not.
jellybeangravy 1 year ago
@IVlogBecauseICare Well said, my man.
hagonyourface 1 year ago
@IVlogBecauseICare but that's completely against the point! the symbols are easily connectible, well-known objects in life that allow something that happened to character that means something to them get through to us. its easy to look at literature as meant to be re-constructed for us and by us, and used only in the context of our lives, but Johns main point here is that the effort that it takes to find these symbols that we don't neccesarily connect with is what lets the book take more meaning
babablacksheep125 9 months ago
please be my APEL teacher :D
crazyking1325 1 year ago
You should still make a video about all of the stuff that you were going to talk about.
triplethreat789 1 year ago
This made me see the book in a whole different way, thank you =)
LilacLimeBabe 1 year ago
oh man
after watching this video i feel so...enlightened .....wow......wow...
goshiluvarchie 1 year ago
I would argue that symbolism and metaphor is an effective way into the reader's mind and heart when they are NOT focusing on its presence. For me, reading a book is enjoyable not because i can see the symbolism and go 'HA, that symbolism', but because that subconsiously i am living what i am reading. When critically analysing a book I don't enjoy reading it because i dont focus on the imagery, but the physical characters on the paper.
Rarefied100 1 year ago 4
@Rarefied100 everything you said was true. Books are meant to be read. Not analysed....
It's much more fun that way.
swantonist 1 year ago
@Rarefied100
What you have stated about placing your Consciousness onto a character is truth. It is also used for manipulation. Writers know that the reader/audience places their consciousness onto a character and compares themselves to that character. Whatever the character does, say, etc they believe is happening to them.
In cartoons they project "humaness" onto cartoon characters to do this for little kids.
IWantMyVisionBack 1 year ago
@IWantMyVisionBack That further supports my argument that metaphor and symbolism are not intended to be indentified while reading
Cheers mate =D
Rarefied100 1 year ago
idk how but watching these videos are blowing my mind when I thought I had picked up on most of the symoblic and metaphorical meanings throughout the book, please teach a class somewhere, you are my idol T_T
rampage597n 1 year ago
that was beautiful. i now understand why this book was so good
mystical413 1 year ago
who is Hank?
alabader741 1 year ago
@alabader741 johns brother
Guillermoismyname 1 year ago
The whole thing about the book is individuality. There was no individuality in the 50s, but the author knew it was coming and wrote a book about a weird guy, who today is normal
o0XxBxX0o 1 year ago
no interpretation of the ending?
Vidhole 1 year ago
I want to go back to my high school English class.
Frutella512 1 year ago
You have singlehandedly fixed English class for me just now.
FungusyHam 1 year ago
Goddam book
Hauris 1 year ago
Ahh! Gorgeous. So much. I'm just like... *chinhands*
Serialangel 1 year ago
you think you can only feel part of someone's pain? hmm.
greengirllover 1 year ago
I read Catcher in the Rye again...
Blew my mind
Joysy0602 1 year ago
how did you get so smart?
Spirit485 1 year ago 4
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amyjb 1 year ago
the way you talk reminds me of jessie eisenberg. hahaha
cgman04 1 year ago
love how the cover is somewhat condensed
Timtaminums 1 year ago
You depress me in a funny way you know?? I mean it's weird and your a phony.
F*** You
Unexpectthem 1 year ago
Great video
davidthrashdat 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
You'r a phony bastard, ya know?
jellywizardofgms 1 year ago
Youre a phony bastard, ya know?
jellywizardofgms 1 year ago
omg he has a lazy eye
jellywizardofgms 1 year ago