Sheela's Interpretive Essay
From English 194 Wiki
Beyond the Rye
In the English 194 research workshop, teams were assigned to design a project based on a literary work through an alternative paradigm of interpretation, beyond literary criticism. After much consideration regarding text and medium, the Catcher Team created a prototype for a web-based, interactive comic called “Beyond the Rye,” which is based on excerpted chapters from J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. The Catcher Team aspired to analyze the novel in this new medium visually, textually, and technologically, without losing its original essence. Seeking to explore the possibilities of forming an understanding of the text, the Catcher Team adapted components such as creating images and producing captions for a model of the original text, while maintaining some of Salinger’s fundamental elements.
The team chose to work with the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, for this project due to its acclaim as a classic American novel and its status as a well-known literary work throughout the world. While there were thousands and thousands of literary works to choose from, the Catcher Team made their decision based on a various factors, including controversy. Salinger is known for his insistence on retaining complete control over his works. For the Catcher Team, the fact that Salinger is still alive and would likely not approve of the project, tiptoeing along the border was a daring—but tempting—risk to take. Furthermore, the group believed the more familiar the audience is with the text, the more interesting the interaction and sequence of events would be for them. Keeping the audience in consideration, the group selectively focused “Beyond the Rye” on Chapters 12-14 of the novel. These chapters are the most action-packed of the novel, and are often the most risqué. Although not all the scenes of the project are in the exact consecutive order as the text, the selected chapters serve as a good basis for a storyline for the project of an interactive comic, and, additionally, are exciting and appealing.
In the initial stages of modeling and interpreting the book, before setting it to a new medium, literary analysis was essential. After a basic storyline for the project was established, the team members re-read the selected chapters and the entirety of the book, keeping a detailed record of significant conversations, scenery descriptions, thematic symbols, and more. Close reading and further research on The Catcher in the Rye was conducted. Aspects of the novel that seemed to be significant, including the themes and the mood, are emphasized throughout the project, “Beyond the Rye”. It is important to acknowledge that the team members’ personal interpretations of what may be significant are portrayed throughout the final project. As discussed in the English 194 workshop, with any kind of modeling, complete authenticity can never be achieved. If it is authentic, then it is simply the original and therefore not a model. In addition, as depicted through this project, personal interpretation and representation is inevitable. Thus, the project embodies the Catcher Team’s perception of the story. Besides the slightly altered sequence of events, the captions and visuals allowed the Catcher Team to create their own rendition of the novel, while staying somewhat true to the text.
Visuals are the primary technique the Catcher Team used to represent The Catcher in the Rye in “Beyond the Rye”. Keeping consistent with the novel, the interactive comic is expressed in the first-person point of view, supposedly from Holden’s perspective. For this reason, the player in “Beyond the Rye” sees each scene as though he or she was seeing it through Holden’s eyes. It is never directly stated that the player is experiencing the story from Holden’s standpoint. This allows a player who is unfamiliar with the text not to feel restricted by a specified role. In the beginning, the Catcher Team contemplated what the presentation of the images would look like; debating on whether to use genre of photographs, drawings, or simulated images. For the project, the team ended up using a diverse collection of photographs—some taken before the project and others taken specifically for the project—as a source for scenes. In order to create an atmosphere representative of the novel, techniques in Adobe Photoshop were used to modify the photographs. As the overall mood in The Catcher in the Rye is dreary and depressing, a yellow tint was given to the all of the photographs. The sickly yellow color embodies Holden’s disdain and disgust towards the phoniness of society, as well as his overall unfulfilled life.
All of the scenes were also treated with a level of distortion, which reflects the surreal ambiance depicted by Salinger. This attribute was achieved by heightening brushstroke levels in Photoshop, giving the photographs a hazy yet animated texture. As Salinger places emphasis on Holden’s troubled state of mind, his continuous frustration, and the swelling corruption of modern day existence, the Catcher Team used the scratched-out-looking technique to exemplify those elements. There is also a sense of looming tragedy throughout the book that this quality of imaging serves to express. Not all of the photographs are transformed in the same way. A great deal of analysis of the original text was done in order to determine the appropriate atmosphere and features for each scene. The particular scene at Ernie’s bar that depicts the conversation with Lillian Simmons and her sailor friend is different than the others, and as the images for this scene progress, Lillian and the sailor become increasingly blurred. While the entire image remains constant, only Lillian and the sailor become increasingly blurry and indistinct. This blurriness conveys how Holden would perceive these characters in the novel. To him, they are “phonies”, and as the conversation continues, they become phonier. The members of the Catcher Team employed this technique in hopes of the player being able to understand and acknowledge Holden’s feelings towards society. The group agreed upon other such stylistic decisions throughout the project. Another variation of visual style is seen as Horowitz, the cab driver, is featured in the same animated way, but in bold colors. The Catcher Team considered the conversation about the ducks very significant. The representation of Horowitz in such a way, despite his haggard appearance, signifies how this conversation and Horowitz are symbols for this important feature of the book.
Another instance of symbolism is exposed when the Holden exits the elevator, after either accepting or declining Maurice, the elevator pimp’s, offer to the idea of the prostitute. Despite the decision the player chooses, the following scene is of the hallway back to his hotel room. The entire color tone of the hallway is yellow, and in this instance, the color represents an upcoming fearful moment for Holden. Another interesting style approach within this image is the fact that the hallway is, indeed, upside down. This is a symbolic illustration of how the follow scenes represent a turnover in Holden’s life and everything is turned upside-down. While this characteristic of the image is subtle, one must be perceptive to recognize and understand its significance in the context. The last image of “Beyond the Rye” shows an untouched image of what would exemplify Holden looking out the window. For the time being, the prototype of this project leads to a specific ending that is very divergent from the actual novel. Unlike the novel that has Holden in a constant state nearing mental breakdown, this last scene of the project reveals that Holden’s experiences have actually accomplished a sense of understanding about the world. The scene also shows how Holden may have learned to appreciate what the world has to offer, instead of fighting himself and never finding a place to fit in, and he can finally be at peace.
The Catcher Team visually interprets the book as successfully as possible in their prototype. Specific images such as the crowded tables at Ernie’s, the young-looking sonny, Maurice sitting down on the big couch in hotel, lighting a cigarette, getting punched in the stomach, lying on the floor, and even the knocks at the door are all captured and featured in “Beyond the Rye”. These images are also visually stimulating, which is crucial for maintaining the attention of the audience and/or player. Without interesting and carefully thought-out images, the entire storyline would become lost, and the project would ultimately lose it value.
Complementary to its aesthetic components are the textual captions of the project. The Catcher Team rewrote the storyline and exemplified a tone similar to that of Salinger, using similar syntax and terminology. While the opening line is a direct quote from the book, when the narrator says, “But I don’t feel like going into it if you want to know the truth,” (Salinger 1) there are no other quotes included. Words such as “phonies,” “crummies,” and “goddam” are repeated to maintain a pitch consistent with the text. Despite the lack of direct quotes, many key terms are incorporated to encompass important elements of the novel. The Catcher Team employed a strong understanding of Salinger’s writing in order to mimic his unique and powerful writing style.
The textual content in “Beyond the Rye” is represented through thought boxes and caption bubbles. The thought boxes represent Holden’s state of mind in the presented scene, and are intended to provide the player with information about the scene at that moment. These thought boxes were mostly written in present tense to induce the feeling for the player that he or she is experiencing that moment. For the sake of maintaining a flowing storyline, there are some instances of past tense. The past tense is not overwhelming and should not confuse the audience/player. The caption bubbles are symbols for when others are speaking to Holden and vice versa. The caption bubbles are the most effective way to indicate conversation without having to place words between quotation marks.
Not all elements of the project are completely explained by either thought boxes or caption bubbles. As a representation of a literary piece, the text does not completely embrace the genuine beauty of Salinger’s work through words; however, “Beyond the Rye” simply condenses and intensifies some of the novels specific features. However, many instances of the project’s text hint to instances, scenarios, phrases, and symbols directly from the novel. The audience and/or the player would need to have read the novel to enjoy a full and complete understanding of the placing and purpose of these hints. For example, “It not hard for me to pass as an overage, on account of my white hair and all,” reveals that Holden is underage, in a bar drinking, and has some white hair, all characteristics derived directly from the book. A reader would have already known this information. Hints like this continue throughout the project, “…as my gloveless hands turn to ice;” here, one who has read the text would recall that Holden believes that someone, at school, stole his gloves. Another significant example is seen when Holden sees the prostitute and thinks, “She’s pretty. She’s not Jane, but she’s pretty.” Jane is a girl that Holden regards highly, and throughout the book, he contemplates calling her, though he never does. Subtle hints such as these allow a player who has read the novel to feel more connected to the project compared to one that has not read it.
Thorough analysis of the actual text of The Catcher in the Rye proved to be very important for the Catcher Team. Without any kind of textual inclusion, the images would not seem as comprehensible and as logical as they are. In addition, much of the essence and important aspects of Salinger’s work would become lost without the textual features of project.
While the juxtaposition of visual and textual components consummated the presentation of The Catcher in the Rye in a new medium, the Catcher Team furthered the project by using Dreamweaver to set it as a web-based project. This program established and finalized “Beyond the Rye” by completing its layout on the web, in its appropriate order. A benefit of making this project web-based is that it is easily accessible; a detriment would be that if Salinger ever finds the project, it would probably have to be taken down. Nevertheless, a player is able to access this interactive comic and go through it by simply clicking on each page. Each page leads sequentially to the next scene, and so on. The interactive element comes into play when the player is presented with an option to choose either “Sex” or “No Sex.” Based on this decision, the scenes continue correspondingly. This process continues until the player completes “Beyond the Rye” and arrives at the final scene.
The Catcher Team project, “Beyond the Rye,” even in its trial product stage, serves as a great model for the potential complete interactive comic. Because it is based on a popular and highly acclaimed novel, The Catcher in the Rye, this project could easily attain a large base of fans, or even the opposite—cynics. The interactive comic, “Beyond the Rye,” is also visually stimulating and pleasing, which is beneficial because its aesthetic aspect is appealing. Even if the audience is not looking to play it, the images are captivating and distinctive. As a general storyline, the character Holden is a confused teenager trying to find his place in the world, and he goes from place to place trying to find himself. This serves as a profound storyline because most media in the form of interactive comics are targeted to teenagers, and many of them may have similar concerns and feelings about the uncertainties and surprises that life has to offer. The teenage audience can easily relate to Holden as a character. The player in “Beyond the Rye” is presented with the opportunity to drink, have sex, and fight. Not only are these issues that teenagers face, but also they allow the player to make such choices based on questioning their moral beliefs or acting on impulse out of curiosity. These are all typical characteristics of interactive media aimed towards the masses, especially teenagers. Even so, the intended audience for “Beyond the Rye” is not restricted to teenagers. Anyone who has ever enjoyed Salinger’s work or has an interest in interactive comics could definitely be captivated by this project.
The Catcher Team has made simply a prototype for what could be a larger, more complex and sophisticated project. The initial objective for “Beyond the Rye” was to create a completely interactive comic, where every scene would present options, preferably at least three choices, which would result in the subsequent scenes. Other features that were discussed among the group included having audio instead of text. The group also considered including background music to accent the scenes, such as piano music for Ernie’s bar, elevator music for the elevator, romantic songs for the hotel room scene with Sonny, destructive music for the fight with Maurice, and so on. With a sufficient amount of time and effort, there would be endless possibilities to what “Beyond the Rye” could develop and evolve into.
As a member of the Catcher Team, creating this project has been a very valuable experience for me. It has forced me to consider the novel, Catcher in the Rye, in a way I would never have imagined. This project has presented many possibilities for the book. By meticulously analyzing and assessing the novel, the group was successful in grasping a deeper understanding of Salinger’s work. Considering the work in a medium beyond the norm allowed the Catcher Team to emphasize features of the text that would otherwise have gone unrecognized. Though much of Salinger’s detail may have been lost through the adaptation of the story, new opportunities have presented themselves.
Works Consulted
Carery, William B. “ShrinkLits I: the catcher in the rye.(Literary Quotes).” Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics 24.5 (2003): 358. Expanded Academic ASAP. Thomas Gale. University of California, Santa Barbara. 14 May 2007. <http://find.galegroup.com/itx/infomark.do?&contentSet=IAC-Documents&type=retrieve&tabID=T002&prodId=EAIM&docId=A110732214&source=gale&srcprod=EAIM&userGroupName=ucsantabarbara&version=1.0>
Kücklich , Julian . “Perspectives of Computer Game Philology .” Game Studies 3.1 (2003): 1-9. Google Scholar. 13 May 2007.<http://www.gamestudies.org/0301/kucklich/ >.
Salen, Katie, and Eric Zimmerman. Rule of Play: Game Design Fundamentals. MIT Press, 2004. pp.113-115.
Salinger, J.D. Catcher in the Rye. Boston : Little, Brown, 1951.
Wahlbrinck, Bernd, “The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and Related Matters.” 2007.. Retrieved 15 May 2007. <http://www.wahlbrinck.de/catcherintherye/index.htm>
“Sim Girl.” 2002. Sim Games. Retrieved 15 May 2007. < http://www.ebaumsworld.com/simgame.shtml >
