Mr. Antolini was the adult character in The Catcher in the Rye that was the closest to connecting with
Holden. The reason for this success was
that he was not afraid to show his true self and would treat Holden as an equal
rather than as an inferior. He
demonstrates his concern for Holden by answering the phone in the middle of the
night and letting him come over at that late hour. “Mr. Antolini was very nice. He said I could come right over if I wanted
to. I think I probably woke he and his
wife up, because it took them a h---luva long time to answer the phone. The first thing he asked me was if anything
was wrong, and I said no. I said I’d
flunked out of Pencey, though. I thought
I might as well tell him. He said ‘Good
G—,’ when I said that. He had a good
sense of humor and all. He told me to
come right over if I felt like it” (Salinger 174). Mr. Antolini’s kindnesses along with wisdom
were his dominate qualities. It is never
made clear whether Antolini was just overly affectionate of Holden or if there
was something else going on. Holden took
it to mean the extreme and left as soon as possible. Either way, Mr. Antolini’s previous acts of
kindness cannot be forgotten before he can be judged as a character. His wisdom is another quality that is apparent to
Holden. Antolini sees that Holden has
much more potential than what he is showing.
“He recognizes that Holden is different from
other students, and he validates Holden’s suffering and confusion by suggesting
that one day they may be worth writing about. He represents education not as a
path of conformity but as a means for Holden to develop his unique voice and to
find the ideas that are most appropriate to him.” (Sparknotes 1). The insight
that Mr. Antolini shows is very powerful, and if Holden were to listen, his
life would be drastically different.
"The Catcher in the Rye." Shmoop. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Aug. 2012. http://www.shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/.Salinger, J. D. The Catcher in the Rye. Boston: Little, Brown and, 1991. Print.
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