This annoys Ackley, but he doesn’t make Holden leave. Holden wakes him and asks if he can sleep in the bed of Ackley’s roommate. Of course he does this very late at night, so Ackley is already sleeping or at least trying to sleep. After the fight, Holden decides to take refuge in Ackley’s adjoining room next-door. Deep down he likes the idea of being punished for the sins of Stradlater and Jane.Ĭhapter 7: Salinger’s seventh chapter serves as a transition from the fight with Stradlater to Holden’s departure from Pencey Prep. Although he doesn’t understand it himself, the reason he seems to find a morbid fascination in the sight is because subconsciously he sees himself as a martyr for Jane. He explains that the sight of so much blood and gore both scared and frightened him. The rest of the chapter deals with Holden’s reaction to his own bloody face. Yet at this point in the story even Holden doesn’t realize what has enraged him so. Although he can’t really explain to the reader why he is so angry, he is quick to judge Stradlater, calling him a "goddam stupid moron." But it’s not the kings in the back row that really concerns Holden, it’s the fact that he can’t protect the virgin innocence of Jane. To further anger Stradlater, Holden calls him names, acknowledging, "I told him he didn’t even care if a girl kept all her kings in the back row or not, and the reason he didn’t care was because he was a goddam stupid moron."Īgain, Holden’s mouth gets him in trouble. He just says that he knows he tries to punch Stradlater in the mouth but misses and soon finds himself on the floor. Holden admits that he doesn’t remember the following events too well. When Holden asks Stradlater if he gave Jane, his childhood sweetheart, "the time" (meaning did she lose her virginity to him), Stradlater shrugs it off by saying that it’s a "professional secret." This enrages the already annoyed Holden, yet he can’t articulate the anger he feels. The second factor which leads to the fight between the two teens is the "professional secret" comment by Stradlater. This encounter serves to further confuse Holden about who his role-models should be and extends his disillusionment with society in general. Holden is deeply hurt by this, and turns bitter toward Stradlater, feeling not only a rejection of the paper he wrote, but indeed a rejection of his brother, Allie. Stradlater reads the paper and quickly shoots it down, saying that a description of a baseball glove isn’t what the teacher wants. After Stradlater returns from his date with Jane, he asks Holden if he’s written his composition for him. This turning point is found in the physical struggle between Holden and Stradlater. Chapter 6: Chapter six marks a major turning point for Holden.