Does the song "The Boxer" relate to the book The Catcher in the Rye?

[ohitsjustme]

I am just a poor boy.<br />
Though my story's seldom told,<br />
I have squandered my resistance<br />
For a pocketful of mumbles,<br />
Such are promises<br />
All lies and jest<br />
Still, a man hears what he wants to hear<br />
And disregards the rest.<br />
<br />
When I left my home<br />
And my family,<br />
I was no more than a boy<br />
In the company of strangers<br />
In the quiet of the railway station,<br />
Running scared,<br />
Laying low,<br />
Seeking out the poorer quarters<br />
Where the ragged people go,<br />
Looking for the places<br />
Only they would know.<br />
<br />
CHORUS<br />
Lie-la-lie.....<br />
<br />
Asking only workman's wages<br />
I come looking for a job,<br />
But I get no offers.<br />
Just a come-on from the whores<br />
On Seventh Avenue<br />
I do declare,<br />
There were times when I was so lonesome<br />
I took some comfort there.<br />
<br />
CHORUS<br />
<br />
Then I'm laying out my winter clothes<br />
And wishing I was gone<br />
Going home<br />
Where the New York City winters<br />
Aren't bleeding me,<br />
Leading me,<br />
Going home.<br />
<br />
In the clearing stands a boxer,<br />
And a fighter by his trade<br />
And he carries the reminders<br />
Of ev'ry glove that laid him down<br />
Or cut him till he cried out<br />
In his anger and his shame,"I am leaving, I am leaving."<br />
But the fighter still remains<br />
<br />
<br />
Why do you think so?<br />

 

[Karen]

Well, on the surface, there are many parallels NY, lies, railway station, leaving home and family, whores, feeling lonesome, etc. But this song is arguably about a poor immigrant seeking success and a new life in an unfamiliar city definitely *not* Holden's situation.

Therefore, underneath -- thematically, that is -- I question the connection. Holden is not "just a poor boy," he's not a fighter, he's not looking for a job, he can't follow through with the one prostitute he engages, NY *is* his home (not a place to run from, as in this song), he doesn't seek out the poorer quarters, etc.

Other songs have a greater connection to Catcher look at The Who's "Behind Blue Eyes" and, to a lesser degree, "Baba O'Reilly." Even check out Trent Reznor's "Hurt." (Those are the songs I use to teach Catcher.)