《The Catcher in the Rye》(麥田捕手)，是J.D. Salinger(沙林傑)所寫的獨白式小說中。
小說的主人翁Holden 是16歲的少年高中生，在聖誕節假日前，被學校開除，然後短暫離家的故事。
這本小說的背景是二次大戰結束後的1940年代，和法蘭西斯·史考特·基·費茲傑羅(Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald)以1920年代為背景寫的大亨小傳(The Great Gatsby)，都可以說都是反應大時代變動的經典之作。
小說裏，把反叛的少年，對父母、對師長、對同儕，甚至對自己鬱悶的心情，可以說是描寫得絲絲入扣。
透過Holden的帥氣年輕老師Mr Antolini的行為，寫入了同性戀的情節，雖然今天看起來沒有什麼，而且只是輕描淡寫，但是那是在保守的1940年代，可是非常勇於突傳統的做法。
失意、失學而且感到憂鬱的Holden，就是徘徊在小酒館喝酒，煙一根又一根的抽。他甚至無聊到在酒店裏招妓，但又不敢做什麼，然後被皮條客訛詐了錢。
Holden到16歲還是處子之身，因為每當女友喊停的時候，他就都當真停了。
Holden 的善良，也展現在和別人的互動上，他再生氣，都會忍住而不出手和人打架。
他的哥哥D.B. 在好萊塢寫劇本，有個弟弟Allie 早逝，而他最鍾愛是小妹Phoebe。當最後Holden 決定往美西去流浪再也不回來的時候，也是因為Phoebe妹妹黏著他，才沒有去成的。
小說的原作中，有一些名詞在當下的語境中看來，十分不同，譬如：Phonies、 it kills me、yellow、…and all、dough等等。另外，有些口語的簡寫，譬如Willya、outa、C’mon，則讓小說的文體變得俗又有力。讀老小說的特點，就是打開一個時空的膠囊，看到語言的變化。
Holden 告訴他的妹妹Phoebe，他未來的夢想，是做一位在麥田中的捕手，拯救每個在麥田中走偏的孩子，不讓任何一位掉到附近的懸崖下面。這是讀這一本書，給我帶來最大的感動。
而Holden 自己，也不就也是一個在麥田中迷失的孩子。
以小說的文學性來看，我倒不覺得《The Catcher in the rye》(麥田捕手)有非常凸出的地方。我只能說，它深刻記錄了1940年代從少年的角度看到的社會的脈動，這也是一本簡單的小說在時間的長河中，可以變得不簡單的原因。
抄錄一些原文，如果大家沒有空像我一樣再重讀一次，就挑選一些段落，淺嚐一下1940年代高中少年的心情吧！
《The Catcher in the rye》(麥田捕手)精選段落：
正處在青春年少的Holden(當時16歲)，對父母的不耐煩。(他的父親是一位律師)
If you really want to hear about it, the first thing you’ll probably want to know is where I was born, and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don’t feel like going into it, if you want to know the truth. In the first place, that stuff bores me, and in the second place, my parents would have about two hemorrhages apiece if I told anything pretty personal about them. They’re quite touchy about anything like that, especially my father. They’re nice and all—I’m not saying that—but they‘re also touchy as hell. Besides, I’m not going to tell you my whole goddam autobiography or anything. I’ll just tell you about this madman stuff that happened to me around last Christmas just before I got pretty run-down and had to come out here and take it easy…
Holden是當掉4科之後，被有名的高中退學的。(這是他讀的第4間學校)
They kicked me out. I wasn’t supposed to come back after Christmas vacation, on account of I was flunking four subjects and not applying myself and all. They gave me frequent warning to start applying myself – especially around mid-terms, when my parents came up for a conference with old Thurmer – but I didn’t do it.
在離校時，Holden特地去拜訪了歷史老師。Holden心中毫不掩飾對年紀大的人的厭惡。(歴史也是他被當掉的一科)
“…It was pretty depressing. I’m not too crazy about sick people, anyway. What made it even more depressing, old Spencer had on this very sad, ratty old bathrobe that he was probably born in or something.
I don’t much like to see old guys in their pajamas and bathrobes anyway. Their bumpy old chests are always showing. And their legs. Old guys legs, at beaches and places, always look so white and unhairy. “
當歷史老師告訴Holden，人生要依照社會的規則來走。但Holden打從心𥚃不認同，他認為，人生的失敗組，無法依循勝利組的遊戲規則，而有任何勝算的可能。
Life is a game, boy. Life is a game that one plays according to the rules.”
“Yes, sir. I know it is. I know it.”
Game, my ass. Some game. If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then it’s a game, all right – I’lI admit that. But if you get on the other side, where there aren’t any hot-shots, then what’s a game about it? Nothing. No game…
Holden 有多酷呢？因為對歴史沒有什麼興趣，在試卷中寫了幾行他知道的埃及之後，就在試卷下緣，寫下他要告訴老師Spencer 實話，說當掉他也沒有關係。
That is all I know about the Egyptians. I can’t seem to get very interested in them although your lectures are very interest-ing. It is all right with me if you flunk me though as I am flunking everything else except English anyway.
然後，是他對學校Ossenburger 老先生的自吹自擂，是多麼地不屑。
Then, the next morning , in chapel, he made a speech that lasted about ten hours.
He started off with about fifty corny jokes, just to show us what a regular guy he was. Very big deal. Then he started telling us how he was never ashamed, when he was in some kind of trouble or something, to get right down on his knees and pray to God. He told us we should always pray to God – talk to Him and all – wherever we were.
He told us we ought to think of Jesus as our buddy and all. He said he talked to Jesus all the time. Even when he was driving his car. That killed me. I can just see the big phony bastard shifting into first gear and asking Jesus to send him a few more stiffs.
The only good part of his speech was right in the middle of it. He was telling us all about what a swell guy he was, what a hot-shot and all, then all of a sudden this guy sitting in the row in front of me, Edgar Marsalla, laid this terrific fart. It was a very crude thing to do, in chapel and all, but it was also quite amusing…
Holden 自認是家中四個小孩中，表現最差的一位。而其中妹妹Phoebe則是萬人迷(Holden 打算離家出走搭便車去美西流浪並打算永遠不再回來，就是Phoebe把他拖住的)
As a matter of fact, I’m the only dumb one in the family. My brother D.B.’s a writer and all, and my brother Allie, ,the one that died, that I told you about, was a wizard. I’m the only really dumb one.
But you ought to see old Phoebe. She has this sort of red hair, a little bit like Allie’s was, that’s very short in the summertime. In the summertime, she sticks it behind her ears. She has nice, pretty little ears. In the wintertime, it’s pretty long, though. Sometimes my mother braids it and sometimes she doesn’t. It’s really nice, though.
She’s only ten. She’s quite skinny, like me, but nice skinny. Roller-skate skinny. I watched her once from the window when she was crossing over Fifth Avenue to go to the park, and that’s what she is, roller-skate skinny..
You’d like her. I mean if you tell old Phoebe something, she knows exactly what the hell you’re talking about. I mean you can even take her anywhere with you. If you take her to a lousy movie, for instance, she knows it’s a lousy movie. If you take her to a pretty good movie, she knows it’s a pretty good movie…
Holden的女朋友之一，old Jane。
She was a funny girl, old Jane. I wouldn’t exactly describe her as strictly beautiful. She knocked me out, though. She was sort of muckle-mouthed. I mean when she was talking and she got excited about something, her mouth sort of went in about fifty directions, her lips and all. That killed me. And she never really closed it all the way, her mouth. It was always just a little bit open, especially when she got in her golf stance, or when she was reading a book. She was always reading, and she read & very good books. She read a lot of poetry and all.
經過那麼多年了，16歲的Holden 還是處子之身。
The thing is, most of the time when you’re coming pretty close to doing it with a girl – a girl that isn’t a prostitute or anything, I mean – she keeps telling you to stop. The trouble with me is, I stop. Most guys don’t. I can’t help it…
Hoden 的信仰是單一的主，耶穌基督。但對聖經上面的其他東西，大多不以為意。
I’m sort of an atheist. I like Jesus and all, but I don’t care too much for most of the other stuff in the Bible…
Holden 曾遇到兩位修女，好心幫她們提東西，還捐了錢。其中一位修女教英國文學，恰巧是Hoden 喜歡的科目，就問Hilden最近讀了什麼，然後他提到了羅密歐與茱莉葉。因為其中有激情的內容，Holden感覺和修女談，頗難為情。
To tell you the truth, it was sort of embarrassing, in a way, to be talking about Romeo and Juliet with her.
I mean that play gets pretty sexy in some parts, and she was a nun and all, but she asked me, so I discussed it with her for a while. “Well, I’m not too crazy about Romeo and Juliet,” I said. “I mean I like them, but – I don’t know.“
和舊情人Sally的約會，碰上美麗的Sally 認識的老朋友，超不爽的。
Then he and old Sally started talking about a lot of people they both knew. It was the phoniest conversation you ever heard in your life. They both kept thinking of places as fast as they could, then they d think of somebody that lived there and mention their name. I was all set to puke when it was time to go sit down again. I really was. And then, when the next act was over, they continued their goddam boring conversation. They kept thinking of more places and more names of people that lived there. The worst part was, the jerk had one of those very phony, Ivy League voices, one of those very tired, snobby voices.
He sounded just like a girl. He didn’t hesitate to horn in on my date, the bastard. I even thought for a minute that he was going to get in the goddam cab with us when the show was over, because he walked about two blocks with us, but he had to meet a bunch of phonies for cock-tails, he said. I could see them all sitting around in some bar, with their goddam checkered vests, criticizing shows and books and women in those tired, snobby voices. They kill me, those guys. I sort of hated old Sally by the time we got in the cab…
Holden 認為就讀男校，就只會胡鬧，變成俗氣市儈，學不到東西。
It’s full of phonies, and all you do is study so that you can learn enough to be smart enough to be able to buy a goddam Cadillac some day, and you have to keep making believe you give a damn if the football team loses, and all you do is talk about girls and liquor and sex all day, and everybody sticks together in these dirty little goddam cliques. The guys that are on the basketball team stick together, the Catholics stick to-gether, the goddam intellectuals stick together, the guys that play bridge stick together. Even the guys that belong to the goddam Book-of-the-Month Club stick together.
醉中憶及早逝的弟弟Allie。
When the weather’s nice, my parents go out quite frequently and stick a bunch of flowers on old Allie’s grave.
I went with them a couple of times, but I cut it out. In the first place, I certainly don’t enjoy seeing him in that crazy cemetery. Surrounded by dead guys and tombstones and all. It wasn’t too bad when the sun was out, twice – we were there when it started to rain. It was awful. It rained on his lousy tombstone, and it rained on the grass on his stomach. It rained all over the place. All the visitors that were visiting the cemetery started running like hell over to their cars. That’s what nearly drove me crazy. All the visitors could get in their cars and turn on their radios and all and then go someplace nice for dinner — everybody except Allie. I couldn’t stand it…
Holden 告訴他的妹妹Phoebe，他未來的夢想，是做一位在麥田中的捕手，拯救每個在麥田中走偏的孩子，不讓任何一位掉到附近的懸崖下面。
I wasn’t listening, though. I was thinking about something else — something crazy.
“You know what Id like to be?” I said. “You know what I’d like to be I mean if I had my goddam choice?”
“What? Stop swearing.”
“You know that song ‘If a body catch a body comin’ through the rye’? Id like —“
“It’s ‘If a body meet a body coming through the rye'” old Phoebe said. “It’s a poem. By Robert Burns.”
“I know it’s a poem by Robert Burns.”
She was right, though. It is “If a body meet a body coming through the rye.” I didn’t know it then, though.
“I thought it was ‘If a body catch a body,” I said.
“Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody’s around — nobody big, I mean – except me. And I’m standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff – I mean if they’re running and they don’t look where they’re going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That’s all I’d do all day.
I’d just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it’s crazy, but that’s the only thing I’d really like to be. I know it’s crazy.”
Holden 的老師Mr Antolini 抄給他的一首心理醫生 Wilhelmina Stekel寫的一詩，勸他不要中綴學業~死得莊嚴不如生得謙卑。
The mark of the immature man is that he wants to due nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one.
Holden在三更半夜緊急借宿在年輕老師Mr Antolini 家中的沙發上，Mr. Antolini老師所展現的同志情結：
I woke up all of a sudden. I don’t know what time it was or anything, but I woke up. I felt something on my head, some guy’s hand. Boy, it really scared hell out of me. What it was, it was Mr. Antolini’s hand. What he was doing was, he was sitting on the floor right next to the couch, in the dark and all, and he was sort of petting me or patting me on the goddam head. Boy, I’ll bet I jumped about a thousand feet.
“What the hellya doing?” I said.
“Nothing I’m simply sitting here, admiring –
“What’re ya doing, anyway?” I said over again. I didn’t know what the hell to say – I mean I was embarrassed as hell.
“How ’bout keeping your voice down? I m simply sitting here –
” have to go, anyway,” I said…
2023/8/4 The Catcher in the Rye 麥田捕手 Damakey
