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This is a good example of what I picture when I think of Ackley’s stinky socks.

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I think this would be similar to the coke Holden would’ve had at the bar. The vintage look of this Coca-Cola poster makes me think of America in the old days.

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The Catcher in the Rye Chapters 8-11

Quote: “Do I look like I’m under 21?” “I’m sorry, sir, but we have our-” “Okay, okay, bring me a Coke.” (P.69) Context: When Holden left the school and checked into the hotel in New York, it was still early. He didn’t feel like sleeping so he decided to go out to the bar. He chose one called the “Lavender Room”. He wanted to order some alcoholic drinks, but he was under age. He wanted to order a Scotch and soda, but he was denied. The server asked if he was under age. He tried to play it off but he ended up settling with a Coke. Connection: This reminds me of the time I treated Marzuk for his birthday. We went to Jack Astor’s, where they have the regular restaurant and a bar as well. We sat down and started ordering our food. We came across a bunch of alcoholic drinks in the drinks menu, but neither of us could try one. I ended up ordering a non alcoholic drink that was supposed to resemble a drink that was originally meant to be alcoholic. We got a good laugh out of that.  Synthesis: My experience was quite different from Holden’s. He had the guts to actually ask for a alcoholic drink, but I didn’t. I knew if I asked, I would’ve gotten in big trouble. Possibly being in the times Holden lived in, it was easier to order a drink when you’re underage. Quote: “Where? Where?” “Aw, you just missed him. He just went out. Why didn’t you look when I told you?” (P.74) Context: While Holden was dancing with the 3 ladies at the “Lavender Club”, he tricked one of the ladies into thinking that Gary Cooper was in the bar. When she turned to look for him, Holden said that he just left. Gary Cooper was never in the bar. It was easy for Holden to trick her because she and her friends always hope of seeing celebrities in public. Connection: The connection I can make relates to the real world. There are always die hard fans of celebrities that would do anything to see them in real life. I read online of many cases where groups of fans search in public to find their favourite celebrity. I was watching a YouTube video of someone pretending to be Conor McGregor, and as soon as people found him, the streets were already packed with people. Synthesis: The connection I made is similar to the situation in the text. Wherever you are, in real life or in a story, there are always people who idolise celebrities and other people. It also shows that the connections between fans and celebrities haven’t changed much throughout the years. Quote: “I can’t turn around here, Mac. This here’s a one-way. I’ll have to go all the way to Ninetieth Street now.” (P.60) Context: Holden told the taxi driver that he gave him the wrong address because he accidentally told him to drive to his house. He forgot that he wasn’t supposed to be home until Wednesday. The taxi driver said that it was a one way and that he had to drive all the way down. He said that probably because he could charge Holden more for the ride. Holden is rich so he said okay. Connection: This scene reminds me of the time when I was in Guangzhou, China for the first time. I had no idea where any of the places were, and I couldn’t read a lot of the signs since they were written in Chinese. It was my first time in Guangzhou too. I took a taxi to a newly opened museum. I saw it online, and it looked pretty nice from the outside. When I got in the driver probably knew I was a tourist. He took me a really really long way to the museum. I could tell because he kept making these random turns. I might not be familiar with the place, but I’m not stupid. Synthesis: I feel like situations like this happen all the time in real life. People working in the tourist industries are always trying to scam more money out of people because they aren’t familiar of what’s going on in the place their visiting. Luckily Holden probably knows around New York, so he was prepared to be charged extra for the ride.  

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The Catcher in the Rye Chapters 3-7

Quote: “This sentence I’m reading is terrific.” (P.21) Context: This quote was said by Holden when Ackley asked if the book he was reading was any good. Holden was being really sarcastic because he was a bit irritated when Ackley came in and started touching his things and distracting him from his reading. Ackley is an usual kid. He never leaves his room and he’s always in his own world. When people tell him to do something, he never listens. Him and Holden are quite different people. When they were interacting for the first time in the book, it was mostly Ackley doing all the talking, and Holden seemed like he really didn’t want to talk to him. I can make a personal connection with this quote because my friend and classmate Marzuk is sarcastic all the time, even when he isn’t annoyed or mad. He just says sarcastic things because it’s funny. For example, when we talk online and I say something, he always says something sarcastic in reply and I would pretend to be sad. What’s going on in the quote is somewhat similar to what I experience in real life because in the text, you can tell that Holden is a bit annoyed and doesn’t really want to keep talking to Ackley. For my situation, Marzuk would be sarcastic but I know that he’s still my friend. 

Quote: “You got robbed.” (P. 22) Context: While looking through the things in Holden’s dorm, Ackley came across the hat he bought while in New York. When Ackley asked where Holden got his hat, he said he got it in New York for one dollar. In response, he said, “you got robbed”. I assume that he means that Holden paid too much for the hat. I can make a personal connection to this quote because last year, I had a friend whose family also got “robbed”. He was also supposed to come to AY, but his family wanted to move to a house in Ajax. Due to some complications however, his family didn’t get to move but they already sold the house they previously lived in. Since the school year was starting soon, they didn’t have the time to buy a new house, so they had to rent a condo near Seneca Hill. Now he goes to Georges Vanier. I feel like he got robbed in a way because he has to go to a new school and he has to make a new friends again, and he downsized his house to a condo. The quote really isn’t that similar to my connection, but when I read it in the book, it immediately reminded me of what happened to my friend. My friend Marzuk and I still laugh about it to this day.  Quote: “This room stinks,” I said. “I can smell your socks from way over here. Don’tcha ever send them to the laundry?” (P.48) Context: After getting into a fight with Stradlater, Holden crosses to Ackley’s dorm and asks if he could sleep there. Ackley was suprised to see the amount of blood on Holden’s face. He says that his roommate might not like it if he slept there, but Holden lied down on his bed anyway. He then smelled the smell of Ackley’s stinky socks. This quote reminds me of myself because at home, I have a bad habit of leaving my socks everywhere around the house. My parents complain and they say that I’m like snake; I shed my “skin” everywhere. I feel like I have a similar kind of trait to Ackley. I feel like the he seems like a person who isn’t really independent and can’t take care of himself. I think I can relate a lot back to the quote because if no one told me it was from a book, I’d assume that such a thing happened to me in real life as well.

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