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Duck Motif In Catcher In The Rye

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In The Catcher in The Rye by J.D. Salinger. Holden is portrayed at a curious struggling teenager. Holden starts a conversation with a New York cab driver about the fish and the duck in central park. He asks specifically about what do they do during the winter. This thought shows how he is trying to find answers concerning his own life and growing up. It also signifies how is struggling with growing up and trying to get answers for his life.
Once Holden got in the cab, he started asking the driver about the ducks again “Well, you know the ducks that swim around in it? In the springtime and all? Do you happen to know where they go in the wintertime by any chance? I mean, does someone come around in a truck or something and take them away (81,82). …show more content…

go south or something?” (99) this option suggests that he should go through his rough teenage years without anybody’s help and perhaps even escape till he is mature and responsible. Holden is trying to answers these question through comparing himself to the duck and how they overcome these challenges. The ducks flying south is the option that Holden is looking for in order to grow up and become mature and have a successful life. The duck motif is present throughout this chapter because Holden is using it to figure out what he is going to …show more content…

They stay right where they are, the fish. Right in the goddam lake. The fish--that's different. The fish is different. I'm talking about the ducks,” (00) the fish here can be interpreted as a metaphor to the life of normal people who are going through teenage years. However, Holden thinks that his life is different than other by saying “the fish is different I’m talking about the ducks” the ducks are a metaphor for his life because he has the option of either waiting for mother nature to help him or escaping. The cab driver gave Holden a better solution besides escaping or waiting for someone’s help. "If you was a fish, Mother Nature'd take care of you, wouldn't she? Right? You don't think them fish just die when it gets to be winter, do ya?"(99). Mother nature here is an allusion to Holden’s mother and how she loves him but she might not show it. She is letting him struggle so he can grow

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