This phrase
comes up whileis describing to Stradlater how he used to play checkers with Jane over the
summer. The entire passage reads as follows:
She wouldn't
move any of her kings. What she'd do, when she'd get a king, she wouldn't move it. She'd just
leave it in the back row. She'd get them all lined up in the back row. Then she'd never use
them. She just liked the way they looked when they were all in the back row.
Holden idealizes Jane. He is horrified that someone as sneaky as
Stradlater is going out on a date with her, so he begins babbling about her. Jane's keeping all
her kings in the back row while she plays checkers is afor how Jane is quiet and reticent about
her power as she plays the game of life. Kings are powerful pieces in checkers, and Holden is
saying that Jane has powerthat she is a strong personbut that she prefers not to show it. The
metaphor also suggests that she is an artistic person first and foremost, because part of her
rationale for not...
No comments:
Post a Comment