In chapters 9 through 12, I feel that a lot of my strengths of my journal are identifying symbols and their meanings for Holden. There are quite a few examples in these four chapters; for example, the ducks in the pond, Phoebe, and not calling Jane. However, I struggled with finding out why Holden keeps mentioning ducks and the pond; I have not yet found out by my own yet, but I think I’m getting close. From class discussion, it seems that some people think that Holden can be the duck. He can be seen as the duck in which ducks migrate when it’s winter. In this case, the duck is Holden and the winter is growing up. He is purposefully isolating himself, so that the winter/ adulthood doesn’t get to him. I will try to build more on the theme of isolation and symbols in the next few chapters.…
In the quote,Mr. Spencer lectures Holden about the importance of in life and how life is a game. The conversation demonstrates key aspects of Holden’s personality. From the quote, we can see Holden’s contempt for adults, which he shows by silently insulting Mr. Spencer. He also illustrates this personality by calling adults phonies. Mr. Spencer can also have the Mentor archetype because he tries to help Holden prepare himself for the…
In the context of this quote, Holden is referring to his red hunting hat. I have realized, as Holden consistently wears it and mentions it, it is clear that the red hunting hat symbolizes two things. First, Holden’s hat has a very distinct and unique style, qualities that most people wouldn’t be attracted to. I think this represents how Holden is different and likes things most people wouldn’t usually find interesting, for example all the blood (from when he got in a fight with Salinger). Second, Holden wears his hat the same way a catcher would. Towards the end of the novel, Holden tells his younger sister how he would like to save children if they would ever be falling off a cliff, he would be “the catcher in the rye.” Holden’s red hunting…
After a catastrophe for the fencing team Holden goes on to talk about the hat he bought and not just only then but he tells everyone about it and is quite proud of it. Holden bought his hat while he's in New York after he left the fencing equipment on the subway. As Holden is undressing he brings up the hat, “I put on this hat that I'd bought in New York that morning. It was this red hunting hat”(Salinger 38). After rereading and looking closer to the meaning of each line it's almost as if he want to divert the embarrassment of his mistake. The next lines of text after he continues to talk about how he lost the equipment. “I saw it in the window of this sports store when we got out of the subway, just after I noticed I'd lost all the goddam foils”(Salinger 38). Holden’s hunting hat helps him to divert the mistake he made to the hat itself. Thinking about the position Holden it it's very easy to understand what he was trying to do when he decided to get this hat. He had just made a very bad mistake forgetting the foils but at the same time he just got kicked out of school and doesn’t have a lot to turn to at the…
Atticus Finch shows this by teaching Scout that sometimes, to realize what the actions of an individual is to think about what they could have been exposed to in life. This is how Atticus says to scout when she ask why the actions of people are different for everyone, this quote is Atticus explains it so that Scout can understand, “ until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” (Lee, pg. 39). Atticus may not show this physically but mainly through the way he speaks to others which is shown through the text, in which the reader would be able to paint a picture in there mind to see…
Abraham Lincoln once said, “You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.” Atticus Finch, in many ways, lives this quote everyday by understanding what has to be done today in order to avoid future consequences of today’s mistakes. Atticus is a kind-hearted, slow-tempered, wise man, who always knows the right thing to say.…
Holden has been through many difficult times in his life, especially after he lost his little brother Allie Caulfield who had pneumonia, but there are these main symbols that describes Holden as a person, his past and most importantly these symbols gives special meaning to his life. In the Catcher of the Rye, J.D Salinger highlights Holden’s journey of growing up by showing the three symbols and they are the lake, Carossel and the red hunting hat.…
Holden Caulfield writes his story from a home to that he has been sent for medical care. He refuses to speak concerning his formative years, mentioning solely that his brother D. B. may be a Hollywood author. He hints that he's bitter as a result of D. B. has sold resolute Hollywood, forsaking a career in serious literature for the wealth and fame of the films. He then begins to inform the story of his breakdown, starting along with his departure from Pencey school assignment, a known faculty he attended in Agerstown, Pennsylvania.…
His concern is symbolic of the fact that he cannot save all of the children in the world from danger. He sees that the phoniness around him and the faults within him are irremovable, and that he will just have to manage to live in the flawed society as it is. So the two sides of Holden are protection and violation of innocence. He tries to preserve innocence in others, and then to appreciate people’s independence in exploring the world. He says “The thing with kids is, if they want to grab the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but it’s bad if you say anything to them” (211). The quote means that people learn from experience. So he is saying maybe the only way people will learn is by facing the harsh truths of society. His realization is significant because Holden himself needs to face the harsh truths of…
Holden spends a lot of time in Central Park, wondering where the ducks go in the winter when the pond freezes over. Initially one might think that Holden is concerned for their wellbeing however on a deeper level, he is wondering about himself and where he will eventually go given that his pond of childhood has already frozen over. This also has references to Holden’s dream of being the Catcher in the Rye, where he can stand by the edge of the cliff and save the children from falling off, symbolically referring to protecting them from the dangers and hardships of adulthood. This further establishes the difference between Holden and society in…
"It is not what an author says, but what he or she whispers, that is important."…
Holden knows that his plan is impossible, it is a comforting daydream born out of desperation; Holden resorts to fantasy because his desires ultimately contradict. Holden begins this passage gripped by paranoia that he will “never get to the other side of the street”(217) and that “nobody’d ever see [him] again”(217). Sweating through his shirt, he becomes so distressed that he begins to plead with Allie to save him, despite the fact that he considers the interaction “make believe”(218). Although Holden does not believe that Allie can really help him, he is driven to praying to him out of lack of better options. Holden is “still sweating”(218),meaning that his anxiety persists, as he decides to “go away”(218).…
It’s easy to call them annoying, rude, mean, or foolish, just because you don’t like them, but not many will believe you because you’re biased. For Holden, Ackley is one of those people who Holden “wasn’t too crazy about” (19). Ackley “could get on [Holden’s] nerves sometimes,” because “he always put [Holden’s picture] in the wrong place…on purpose,” “always [told] Holden [he] was a goddam kid,” and “didn’t care if [Holden had] packed something or not and had it way in the top of the closet” (22-23). Holden did not just make a claim, he also provided examples to illustrate what he said, based on his own experiences. Holden doesn’t just belittle Ackley because Holden doesn’t like him, Holden has actual proof of Ackley’s actions. He shows, not tells, much “like a novelist” to paint Ackley’s…
At this point in his life, Holden is becoming slightly suicidal and his headmaster slowly becomes to take notice of his contemplation of this, so he decides to give him these words of wisdom as a way of encouragement. However, subconsciously he’s been doing this throughout the novel because he’s found his cause to try and save the children, but he hasn’t accepted the idea of just living for the sake of being a humble and happy man."Some game. If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then it's a game, all right – I'll admit that. But if you get on the other side, where there aren't any hot-shots, then what's a game about it? Nothing. No game" (5). Here, it becomes clear that Holden obviously doesn’t refer to himself as a “hot shot” and thinks less of himself. He does this as he is cursing which, again, is an effect of being an adult. Holden adds on to this helpless persona by feeling “victimized and alienated.” “The best thing, though, in that museum was that everything always stayed right where it was...The only thing that would be different would be you” (66). There’s so much truth in this quote and it makes him vulnerable to the audience, while he does seem content in the museum because it makes him feel protected, it is clear that he tries to make genuine relationships with…
I feel as though the hunting hat became a symbol of innocence only after Phoebe had placed it on his head because in his eyes she is very innocent and practically represents innocence for him. Salinger subtly shows us this by saying “My hunting hat really gave me quite a lot of protection, in a way, but I got soaked anyway" (213). In the novel Holden is saying that his hat helps him deal with the rain and snow that falls while he is walking about the streets of New York City. However, I believe that Salinger intended this quote to have a much deeper meaning constituting his mind within a wrapped shield on all sides of his head. The hunting cap is his shield which protects his spiritual innocence the shield is needed to protect him from the actuality of becoming an adult. Holden realizes that children have a special way of life that distracts them from the truth of the world that we know…
