Figurative Language In Catcher In The Rye

Holden Caulfield, in the novel The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, is an ideal transcendental hero. Though the question here is to what extent is Holden a transcendental hero. Holden’s way of being can be hard to understand, he has those “soft” moments where he seeks for his sister for comfort, or his red hunting hat, but most of all, a baseball glove that belonged to his younger brother, Allie who passed away. Other time, it’s the complete opposite, he goes for cigarettes, or alcohol. Another way that helps him with his moments, is going out into nature and relaxing. There is so much things that lead Holden to have a long extent of transcendentalism, but there is also things that pull him away from being a long extent in transcendentalism.

Holden often fantasizes about being “The catcher and the rye” this is because he does not want to have that responsibility of knowing that he’s going to be an adult, it’s more like he does not want to accept the fact that it is happening whether he likes it or not “Certain things, they should stay the way they are. You ought to be able to stick them in one of those big glass cases and just leave them alone.” This quote also gives us a hint because as holden was walking through the museum to find phoebe he began to remember when he was a child and that the statues of the indians huddling over the fire in the glass case fascinated him and he wished everything would just freeze in time and stay the same, he desires for that

How would you feel if you were outcasted by society, looked down upon by everyone else around you, never to fit in. This is the life that Holden Caulfield has to live. Holden Caulfield is a character in the book, The Catcher In the Rye, that is viewed as a misfit but assigned this label by society around him. Holden just has a different perspective on the world than everyone else, causing him to be seen as lower than everyone else. Holden doesn't believe in how materialistic things make you happy, he doesn't agree with people pretending to be someone that they truly are not, and he wants to protect children from the world and keep their innocence for as long as he can. It is not Holden Caulfield who is a misfit in our society, but society

Holden Caulfield has a Nihilist view on the world where he lives in the beginning of the novel but later develops a more ethical view. In the beginning of the novel, Holden believes that the world is out to get him, so he alienates himself for protection Holden brings forth his hunting hat as a method for protection, “‘This is a people shooting hat,’ I said. ‘I shoot people in this hat.’” (Salinger, 22) Holden’s hunting hat is the strongest symbol in the novel. It gives Holden protection from people who could be potentially harmful to him. Whenever he is afraid or anxious he regresses and puts on his hunting hat for comfort. This anxiety is triggered by memories from his past. The world has stepped on him and beat him down, so now he uses

When he is waiting to meet his sister Phoebe, he goes inside the museum to show two kids the mummy exhibit. In the museum, there are relics and old artifacts, like the mummy. This portrays something being preserved and unchanging. Holden finds the museum ideal because, “everything always stayed right where it was” (135). Since the museum never adapted into something new, this is the idyllic world Holden wishes he could stay in. Holden is terrified of the complexity of the outside world and dreams that it could be just like a museum that is frozen in time. Holden wants everything to be simple, understandable, and stay the same over the years, like a museum, even though that is an unrealistic

Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, and literary devices that can help develop and inform the text 's major themes. One of the recurring themes in the novel The Catcher in the Rye is the omnipresent theme of death. It could be argued that the novel is not only full of references to death in the literal sense, physical disappearance, but also in the metaphorical, taking the form of spiritual disappearance, something which Holden often focuses on, along with the actual theme of mortality. It is possible that this occurs because of his reluctance to interact with the living world. As his means of escaping from the reality he despises, his mundane thoughts and the “phoniness” that he is surrounded by. Holden becomes increasingly attracted

Furthermore, Holden also refers to his fears of disappearing as to not mention death, a term with which he has not fully come to terms with, “every time I came to the end of a block and stepped off the goddam curb, I had this feeling that I 'd never get to the other side of the street. I thought I 'd just go down, down, down, and nobody 'd ever see me again”. (Salinger 2010: 106) This is also what causes him to wonder if the ducks of the lake have vanished. In contrast to that come the mummies in the museum, whose death seems alright in Holden’s perspective since they did not disappear after it. One of the reasons that Holden feels so uneasy with the idea of death, is that he sometimes sees the matter bluntly without romanticising it, unable to feel comforted by a ceremony and flowers, knowing that no one is really there to appreciate them other than the living relatives, since the body eventually decomposes and disappears."People coming and putting a bunch of flowers on your stomach on Sunday, and all that crap. Who wants flowers when you 're dead?".

Loneliness is a state many have experienced, but it is scarcely felt to the point of insanity and utter hopelessness. In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield’s loneliness is a self-defense mechanism from socializing with others, making it the greatest source of his pain. Though his loneliness is caused by uncontrollable external forces, it is only overcome by his own choice of introspection.

In Catcher in the Rye author J.D. Salinger uses symbolism to emphasize the significance of Holden’s red hunting hat. Holden wears the red hunting hat to distinguish himself from everyone around. Holden bought the red hunting hat for one dollar in New York the same morning he lost the fencing equipment. The red hunting hat offers Holden protection from the outside world and it also of comforts him in real world situations. Obviously needing protection from the fencing team who ostracized him all the way back to Pencey. The red hunting hat represents Holden’s allure/endearment to unique qualities in objects and people, that normally go unnoticed by others. The hat also symbolizes Holden’s individuality and unwillingness to conform to society’s

Holden hangs on to the red hunter hat. The red hunter hat represents innocence, which is a way of Holden bonding with Allie and Phoebe and maintaining innocence. Holden asked about the pond and the ducks that lived in New York twice. He was bothered by their absence, Holden is in some way obsessed with mortality. Also, the idea of the museum changing bothers him. Evolving is a part of life. Yet, Holden doesn't want to accept that. He refers to an Eskimo that fishes through a hole in the ice. The same Eskimo was there when Holden was a child and will continue to be there for Phoebe when she visits. Holden would like for our lives to be like that too. "Certain things they should stay the way they are. You ought to be able to stick them in one of those big glass cases and just leave them alone." He wish we could be frozen in time. He would love to have spent more time with Allie and continue to make more memories with Phoebe.

Symbol- Holden’s red hunting hat is a symbol of Holden’s uniqueness and difference from the others in the book. It is also the same color as his sister Phoebe’s hair and his friend Allie’s hair which could help connect the important people in his life. Holden never wears the hat when he is around people he knows giving the reader insight that when he wears the hat he feels the need for his isolation.

Catcher in the Rye is Holden Caulfield’s recounting of the weekend after he gets expelled from the umpteeth time form another private school. His name can be broken down to reveal his struggle to retain his happier childhood memories and innocence, to grow up, and to protect others from the difficulties of life.

In the novel The Cather In The Rye, J.D Salinger implies that Holden a troubled adolescent can’t seem to find his place in society due to the loss of his brother Allie. Losing Allie made Holden give up on school, caused him to pick up unhealthy habits like smoking, and led him to be upset at the world. Since the death of Allie, Holden began to see the world as hopeless and corrupt. Salinger develops this idea from a first person point of view. With the use of diction, J.D Salinger is able to portray Holden Caulfield as a troubled teen who is facing tribulations after the death of his brother.

The main setting of The Catcher in the Rye is New York City, Holden Caulfield, the protagonist’s hometown. He decides to wander around the city before heading home, to prevent his parents from noticing that he’s been expelled from his school. Out of all the places he visits in NYC, the two most notable ones are the Museum of Natural History and Central Park. The museum is an illusion of how Holden wishes the world was. In the novel, he says: “Nobody’d be different. The only thing that would be different would be you.” (Salinger 123). This shows that the Museum is a symbol of Holden’s reluctance for change, in himself and in the world. Central Park is the location where Holden goes in order to answer his question of where the ducks go in the winter. This question could represent Holden’s

Nobody’d move..Nobody’d be different. The only thing that would be different is you.”(chpt.16) This shows Salinger use of Imagery where you can see Holden in the museum all alone wanting to go back to a time where he felt safe and happy and he longs for that. This is important because it shows Holden fear of growing up and changing because he feels alone and isolated because he is growing up and through growing up things change and he changes and he is lost now. Holden wants to join society but he is afraid of rejection, failure, and etc that all comes with growing up and figuring out who you