Holden

Holden Caulfield - I was talking with Josh about him last night (he's the protagonist from Catcher in the Rye). The reason the book is so interesting to me is that 200 pages are just Holden talking about stupid things -- mostly stupid things, that is. Every once in a while, you get a sense that Holden is really brilliant for his age. For Example: Writing the paper for his roommate about a baseball mit his (Holden's) deceased brother had written poetry on. For Example: His admiring Mr. Antolini for picking up and carrying a dead kid when nobody else would even go near. It's like the first 200 pages (roughly) are Holden trying to explain his thoughts on life. Then the last 80 (roughly) pages, Holden tells us about interactions with his sister and Mr. Antolini. It's in these interactions that we discover Holden for who he is and the potential he holds. Mr. Antolini's big piece of advice was this: Many men contribute to the world due to a natural gift of intelligence, wisdom, knowledge etc. But pair any one of those gifts with an education, and that same man has potential to do much more good. Why? First, education in this context means, in Holden's case, applying himself in school so he can take advantage of opportunities to attend the best schools in the country. The process of his education forces him to cross paths with brilliant minds who are able to communicate at a high level. They would be directly teaching him 'subjects' while indirectly and somewhat directly teaching him how to better communicate his ideas. Mr. Antolini wants Holden to get an education not for Holden's own benefit, but for the benefit of the world -- so Holden can share his unique point of view effectively and efficiently with the world.
I love the book! Holden's one desire is to be a Catcher in the Rye... brilliant. I could go on... and probably should to make this a complete thought, but it's all in my head... and it would take me another 3 hours to really finish this thought.
Bottom Line: The book speaks to me about: Seeking education as a means to better communicate my gifts and wisdom and feelings to the world, for the world's benefit, not mine.

The Big Kahuna -- gotta watch this movie again.

Jason Jaggard -- what an interesting guy... hope I can meet him.