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Quill and Feather Pub [Public] / Re: "Decline by 9" - Kids don't read
« Last post by R. C. on May 12, 2024, 11:29:52 PM »I remember we had to read The Catcher in the Rye and I still believe that is one of the most overrated books of all time. I mean, were we supposed to identify with the protagonist because he was a teenager? I didn't. I just longed for him to get hit by a bus so the book would be over.
You and I share a brain when it comes to this book.
The only time I was ever really into it was when it looked like the elevator pimp was going to beat Holden to a pulp. That would have been a great way to begin the upward phase of the character's Harmon Circle: have him wake up in the hospital, reevaluate his life in something like a "Come to Jesus" moment, and then set himself to making amends and developing virtues and whatnot.
(For those who aren't familiar with the Harmon Circle, I'm referring to Step 5.)
Agreed, it is aggressively overrated. As are many other “must read” or “mandatory reading” assignments. I don’t want to start a fight, so I’ll keep my “that was not good” list to myself.
R.C.