Chapter 9 Practice Quiz — The Catcher in the Rye
by J.D. Salinger — tap or click to flip
Practice Quiz: Chapter 9
Where does Holden arrive at the beginning of Chapter 9?
Penn Station in New York City, after taking the train from near Pencey Prep.
Who does Holden consider calling from the phone booth at Penn Station?
D.B. (his brother), Phoebe (his sister), Jane Gallagher, Sally Hayes, and Carl Luce -- but he talks himself out of calling every one of them.
Why doesn't Holden call Phoebe from Penn Station?
He reasons that she would be asleep at that late hour, and his parents might answer the phone, which would reveal that he has left Pencey early.
What address does Holden accidentally give the cab driver?
His parents' home address. He catches himself and redirects the driver to the Edmont Hotel.
What question does Holden ask the cab driver?
He asks where the ducks in the Central Park lagoon go in the winter when the water freezes.
How does the cab driver respond to Holden's question about the ducks?
The driver is annoyed and dismissive, thinking Holden is joking or being ridiculous.
What does Holden do with his red hunting hat before entering the Edmont Hotel?
He takes it off because he does not want people to think he is crazy, though he immediately notes the irony since the hotel is full of strange characters.
What kind of hotel is the Edmont?
A cheap, seedy hotel. Holden describes it as being full of 'perverts' and odd characters.
What does Holden see from his hotel room window?
In one room, a man dressing in women's clothing; in another, a couple spitting mouthfuls of their drinks into each other's faces and laughing.
How does Holden react to the scenes he witnesses from his window?
He is simultaneously repulsed and fascinated, admitting that part of him is aroused even though he finds the behavior bizarre and disturbing.
Who is Faith Cavendish?
A woman whose phone number Holden got from a Princeton student named Eddie Birdsell, who described her as promiscuous.
Why does Holden call Faith Cavendish?
He is lonely and restless in his hotel room late at night and hopes to arrange a date or find some company.
How does Holden try to sound older when calling Faith Cavendish?
He deepens his voice to sound more mature and sophisticated on the phone.
How does Faith Cavendish respond to Holden's call?
She declines to meet him that night because it is too late, but she offers to meet the following day for a drink.
Why does the meeting with Faith Cavendish never happen?
Holden lies and tells her he is leaving town, too impatient to wait until the next day. He immediately regrets the lie.
What do the Central Park ducks symbolize in Chapter 9?
The ducks represent vulnerability and displacement. Like the ducks, Holden has lost his familiar environment and does not know where he belongs.
What theme does the phone-booth scene at Penn Station illustrate?
Isolation and the failure of communication -- Holden desperately wants to connect with someone but finds an excuse to avoid calling every person he thinks of.
How does the Edmont Hotel function symbolically in Chapter 9?
It represents the corrupt, seedy adult world that Holden is simultaneously drawn toward and repelled by, serving as a contrast to the innocence he values.
What does Holden's accidental slip of giving the cabbie his parents' address reveal?
It suggests that beneath his rebellious independence, part of Holden simply wants to go home to the safety and security of his family.
What literary device does Salinger use in the phone-booth scene?
Interior monologue (stream of consciousness) -- Holden's internal reasoning about each potential call reveals his relationships and insecurities more effectively than external action.
What is ironic about Holden removing his red hunting hat at the Edmont Hotel?
He removes it to seem normal at a hotel he immediately recognizes is full of bizarre and perverted behavior, suggesting that genuine strangeness hides behind respectable appearances.
How does Holden's call to Faith Cavendish connect to his broader character pattern?
It shows his habit of reaching out for connection and then sabotaging the opportunity before it can develop, driven by impatience and fear of genuine intimacy.