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The Catcher in the Rye:1. What is the difference between a flat and a round character? Give
examples in the novel.
A flat character is a character with obious and predictable characteristics
that they can be recognised by
It doesn’t always mean that a character is boring or badly written
In many instances, an author will use a flat character in order to move
the narrative rapidly along, making the story more fast paced in order to
overcome the weakness of long, dragged out narratives that may bore
the reader
An obious example of a flat character is Holden’s sister, Phoebe
She is not flat in the sense of being boring but, rather, predictable and
reliable
She is a constant within the novel
She provides Holden with a sense of love and is a system of support for
him in the novel
A round character, in contras, is a more unpredictable character
They, in a sense, give life to the story as they are marked with the
characteristics of being many-faceted an having complex motives
The author may choose to use the literary tactic of not revealing
everything about a round character, as this sense of mystery creates the
complex and often hidden motives of the round character
This creates interest within the story, as the round characters are
capable of unpredictable behaviour
For a novel of development (also known as a bildungsroman), round
characters are essential as they are capable of development and change
An obious example of a round character is Holden
, 2. Does Holden grow over the course of the novel? Discuss in detail
examples of this from the novel
Indeed, Holden does grow from a young, immature character into a more
mature one
Even though the novel recalls only a short period of his life, he is an
adolescent and is in the stages of growing and developing
His ways of seeing the world and interacting with it changes as he
experiences more and more things
By very definition, this growth indicates a change and thus makes this
novel a bildungsroman or a novel of growth
This definition, however, may be undercut by Holden’s ansiety about
growing up and his childish behaviour throughout the novel
What is essential about this, however, is that we identify that despite
Holden’s ansiety about growing and maturing, change is inevitable in his
life
While acknowledging the paradox of his often purposefully childish
behaviour during his transition into maturity, it is necessary to
acknowledge that his maturity is inevitable and he does indeed grow
One good way to get into a discussion about growth is to look at the
various symbols that point towards growth
Holden’s red hat is one such symbol throughout the novel
Holden describes his hat as looking ‘crazy’ at one point in the novel
Despite how ‘crazy’ it is, when Holden puts it on, he has the notion that
he didn’t give a damn how he lookes
We find, however that he will not go out in public without wearing it in
case he runs into anybody he knows
He contradicts his earlier statement about not giving a damn by wearing
his hat backwards because he looked good in it that way
Here there is a tension between wat he thinks about ‘appearances’ in the
public eye and how he perceives himself in the hat
This inconsistency with his words and deeds shows us his immaturity
This need for maturity and change is a common trait in the
bildungsroman’s round characters
The paradox that Holden exemplifies within the novel, the on about
having anxieties about growing up yet lying to people about his age to
seem more grown, is also one of significance
It not only points to his immaturity and need for a growth into maturity
but also links to an example of literally growing up through the image of
the patch of grey hair on his head
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