[English Units 1&2] Context - Identity and Belonging: The Catcher in the Rye

[Stick]

During Unit 1 we mainly focused on expository and persuasive responses, so now we have to write three imaginative pieces before the SAC, in which we will be given the choice of what style to write in. As you will probably see, imaginative writing is not my strong point and I've somewhat written a hybrid between expository and imaginative. I'm looking for as much advice as possible, so please feel free to leave any comments.


Prompt: 'To belong is to be happy.'

Time: 55 minutes
Word count: 767 words

Dear Diary,

Why are some people so stubborn? It makes me so mad! In this instance, I’m referring to my roommates Holden Caulfield and Robert Ackley. If they stopped trying to find fault with everybody else around them and actually made a genuine effort to get along with others, like I do, they would probably be happy and nice people. They have to realise that we are all different, and that everyone has to compromise a little bit in order to fit in. But I guess that’s just too much to ask of some people – heaven forbid, it might mean doing something they don’t like. We can’t possibly have that happen!

As far as I’m aware, I don’t think Caulfield is part of many social groups. He might go out with a couple of acquaintances on a Saturday night in order to pass the time, but he always seems depressed. He wouldn’t dare say it to anybody’s face, but you can tell that he hasn’t found his sense of self yet. Consequently, the only way he knows to deal with it is to bring others down with him and accuse them of assuming false personas. It’s no surprise that he has been expelled so many times – he has isolated himself so much that he despises anybody else who actually fits in. He doesn’t even use the weekends to go and see his family anymore. Perhaps that is his problem: he doesn’t feel like he can open up to anyone to discuss his thoughts. I don’t know why he feels that way, because most would be obliging enough to listen; I know that if I didn’t have anything exciting to do that I’d probably sit down and hear him out. It would probably make him feel more positive too, knowing he has some sort of support network. Holden can be annoying at times, but I do pity him.

Ackley, on the other hand, can be a huge pain in the ass to the both of us, and that’s not just because of his personal hygiene (or lack thereof). At least he has some sort awareness for his identity, but unlike Caulfield, he doesn’t hold back when he puts others down. As you can tell, Ackley isn’t too fond of the other students here at Pencey Prep. He doesn’t have any good friends and he never goes out during the weekends. He clearly doesn’t fit in here, but he doesn’t seem too upset about it. Maybe he has a really good family relationship. I know he is a strong Catholic and attends Mass with his folks on a weekly basis so I guess that’s the environment that he best belongs in. Although, it does not justify his sour behaviour at school. I mean, he must be here whether he likes it or not, so he should make the most of it and at least try to make a couple of friends. Ackley isn’t the type of person to put others before himself in order to get along, however. He’s not like I am.

I’m not suggesting that I’m perfect, but I definitely think that being part of a group helps me to be more outgoing and self-confident. Whenever the opportunity arises, I always go out with my friends on the weekend to see the football game or go into town for dinner and a movie, or if I’m lucky, take a girl out on a date. Being a part of the athletics team is also great in that all of us squad members are able to express enthusiasm for a common interest. I even have a great family relationship – my parents come here every Sunday to visit me. I can’t really say that there’s ever been a time in my life where I haven’t belonged in some sort of social group, actually. Perhaps having a positive attitude and making an effort to connect with other people is a part of my personality, which I was born with. It would certainly explain why some people – such as Caulfield and Ackley – are simply unable to accept others for who they really are. I value the company of other people and I’m thankful that I am able to enjoy myself in the groups that I truly belong in.

A good way to think about it all is to compare life to a game. You’re only going to have fun – and succeed – if you actually put in the effort beforehand.

I’m tired and I still need to write a descriptive composition, so I’m going to leave it here for tonight.

- Ward Stradlater

[nisha]

Hmmm....I just finished reading this book.

I would not recommend going for the "Dear diary" approach, as it is very restrictive.
Reading the piece it looks to be quite persuasive( as you are trying to explore the ideas of belonging, but persuading me on who is really happy in response to this).
Good job for picking Stradlater as a persona, as it fits with the style, and his obsession with sports. To create depth, skim through the text and read what Stradlater says and how he pronounces this words...you can incorporate this in it too (for ex, Holden says "Goddamn, bloody..." alot). Going into Stradlater's character, I would have not explained myself completely. Maybe not connect the dots entirely? So that it appears more authentic as I doubt he would be able to express himself in a sophisticated manner.

IMO, you need to embrace a wider creative approach. Creative/Imaginative USES THE THEMES of the text and incorporates them into a story-which explores (like expository) and challenges the implications as well as has an overall moral. Its a decent piece of writing though. Just learn to emphasise your opinion about the characters.

If i was going to write a prompt like this, I would write an account from the perspective of Holden's teacher (the one that asked him to come over to his place before he left? I forgot his name). Give a contrast of Holden's life to his. Or even take the example of Holden's mother? And give her view of why Holden feels isolated and completely alone despite being around so many people.
You need to explore the prompt more as well. Instead of writing about Holden's lack of belonging-example- and how he isn't happy, then Ackley's lack of belonging-example-but how he doesn't care, and then a comparison to Stradlater, search through the fundamental concept of how one can be happy, and why Holden isn't. Could it be because he just cannot be bothered trying for anyone anymore, as he  feels everyone is a "phony" around him,  and how this very decision makes him feel depressed and alone? Could it be because he rejects the rules of society to rebel and become an individual, but simultaneously feels the punishment of unhappiness due to this? Play around with it.
I hope I haven't criticised this too much. And I hope I make sense.

[Stick]

Thanks very much for your input, nisha. It is very much appreciated. I can totally understand where you're coming from and you obviously saw my highly structured response to the prompt. When it comes to the SAC, I will probably write in the expository/persuasive style but I had to attempt this method for the practice responses.

Unfortunately, our class wrote this piece after only reading the first 7 chapters so its quite clear I've missed some pretty major discussion points in relation to the prompt. We also HAD to write a diary entry from the perspective of Stradlater, so there wasn't much I could do there. :/

[pi]

I love this book, but in addition to what Nisha has said, I just don't think it's plausible that Ward Stradlater would write a diary, he just doesn't seem like that sort of person tbh :/

One thing I was told in yr12 context, was to give the pieces a sense of authenticity, and I just find it unrealistic in terms of the story that Stradlater would keep a diary, let alone one that is somewhat philosophical at times.

[Yendall]

I love this book, but in addition to what Nisha has said, I just don't think it's plausible that Ward Stradlater would write a diary, he just doesn't seem like that sort of person tbh :/

One thing I was told in yr12 context, was to give the pieces a sense of authenticity, and I just find it unrealistic in terms of the story that Stradlater would keep a diary, let alone one that is somewhat philosophical at times.

I agree, perhaps an internal monologue would have been a better approach to this task. Try to use appropriate language to his persona also, like nisha stated.

[Stick]

I think you should read the very last sentence of my last post. I agree that it really doesn't fit the scenario, but I had to meet the criteria. :/

[nisha]

Okay. Well you did what you had to do, I guess. Its just practise after all. Good Luck for your sac!

[Stick]

My teacher was fairly happy with this response as she knows I'm a more logical thinker who would gravitate to the expository/persuasive style. My main concern is the piece I submitted yesterday - frankly, it's a piece of crap. I was experiencing a mixture of burn-out and mindblock in the lead up to my 3/4 Further SAC while I was writing it and I'm not happy about handing it up at all. Once I receive it back from my teacher (I don't like to submit work here before it has been returned for plagiarism accusation concerns) I will post it up.

[Yendall]

I think you should read the very last sentence of my last post. I agree that it really doesn't fit the scenario, but I had to meet the criteria. :/

I know, but I was saying if you were to attempt something like this in a sac, an internal monologue would probably be a better approach to whatever question you're given. I wrote 'task', i meant 'sac', apologies.

[Stick]

No worries. I wrote a monologue for the 'crap' essay, so your input would be greatly appreciated on that one!

[Yendall]

No worries. I wrote a monologue for the 'crap' essay, so your input would be greatly appreciated on that one!

I'd be more than happy to give some feedback

[paulsterio]

Btw, you should write how you think Stradlater would write, you can't write in this sort of language and expect to be authentic, like I'm not saying "dumb your writing down" - but Catcher in the Rye is a book where it is very hard to write something authentic which would fit in, because you really have to use words like "phony"...etc. (I don't remember much else, it's been more than two years since I've read it) but yeah, you catch my drift.

[Stick]

Yeah I didn't realise I had to do that in Context responses. I'll make sure I do that in the future.