J.D. Salinger expresses the complex emotions of the teenage mind in The Catcher in the Rye. Holden Caulfield, the 16 year old protagonist, is an unreliable narrator that describes his lack of satisfaction in society. He describes his journey as he lies recovering from sickness in bed. This frame story structure immerses readers as he talks them through the journey from being kicked out of Pencey Prep all the way back to his own home. Throughout his journey, Caulfield keeps his hunting hat very close, wearing it to feel unique, but sometimes worrying about his appearance. Also, he describes very early in the novel of his curiosity of where the ducks in a pond go during the winter, introducing his desire for understanding. Finally, he describes …show more content…
Also, he receives much feedback on his hat, emphasizing his uniqueness, but also alienating him, causing discontent. Caulfield’s attachment to his hat shows his desire to stand out from society, but is also attached to anxiety. He wears his hat in harsh conditions like rain or snow, symbolising its protection from social judgement and ridicule. Caulfield also gives the hat to his little sister Phoebe when she is upset that he flunked out of yet another school. His desire is that the hat will comfort her, since it provides protection for him. Caulfield wants Phoebe’s innocence protected from society. The red hunting hat symbolizes protection through alienation, strengthening the theme of discontent with modern society through Caulfield’s attachment to …show more content…
He tells his sister that his dream is to catch playing children from falling off a cliff. The children of the dream symbolize purity and innocence while the cliff symbolizes modern society. Caulfield wants to keep others from the knowledge of society that blemishes human innocence and virtue. He believes that society is perverting children and turning them into “phony” adults. The thought of his sister becoming like those that he despise depresses him. Caulfield’s dream of being a “catcher in the rye” symbolizes a desire to preserve innocence and genuinity, emphasizing the theme of discontent with modern society through his refusal to let children be harmed. Caulfield overcomes a momentous journey featuring his red hunting hat, ducks in a pond, and his “catcher in the rye” dream. These important elements symbolize his unique character and desire to be apart from society. Caulfield is discontent with society and the fact that others are not greatly annoys him. He recounts traumatic experiences that shape him into the rebellious teen he is. His desire for protection, fear of change, and preservation of innocence reflect his frustration with society. Salinger’s theme of discontent with society is enhanced through the symbolism used in The Catcher in the
A baseball mitt from your dead brother isn 't something that you would usually carry around with you. It makes him feel better inside. As well, Holden’s red hunting hat is a representation of him and his qualities. The hat is its own and unlike everyone else. It symbolizes that holden is out of place, and that he is his own person.
Holden gets kicked of his school, Pencey, and goes to talk to his English teacher, Mr. Spencer. When he gets back to his dorm room after discussing that, he “put on this hat that…[he’d] bought in New York that morning. It was this red hunting hat, with one of those very, very long peaks” (21). After Holden and Mr. Spencer have the conversation about leaving Pencey and going through his school career and beyond, he puts on his hat. Because he is about to leave Pencey, a big change in his life, Holden puts on his hat as a sense of familiarity and is comforted in this moment by this motif.
He love his sister because she was not exposed from the ugliness of reality. Caulfield gave Phoebe his red hunting hat. Phoebe is the only person in the novel that is allowed to keep Caulfield’s hunting hat. Caulfield want his hunting hat to be wear by peoples who are not phonies including himself, and children. Caulfield wanted Phoebe to keep his red hunting hat because, he wants Phoebe to protect herself from the ugliness of real life.
In the story The Catcher in the Rye written by J.D. Salinger. This story is about a teenager who feels misplaced in life and is unhappy with his surroundings. The main character, Holden Caulfield, hops around from school to school taking us on his adventure from school in Pennsylvania to his house in New York City. If Holden, or a child like him were to attempt this by themselves today they wouldn 't succeed like Holden did. In the story Holden does many crazy things that a teenager wouldn 't be able to do .
Holden Caulfield, The main character of "The Catcher in the Rye" written by J.D. Salinger Often finds that he secludes himself from society. The 17 year old teenage boy is from a family that has "quite some dough" who lives in the wealthy side of New York. Although Holden has plenty of luxuries in life the poor soul just is not satisfied with any thing especially the gruesome society which he lives in. Through all the high's and low's the young man has endured Holden always had one special companion by his side, the red hunting hat. Ironically, Holden has access to the finer paraphernalia in life, but a red hat that only cost a dollar purchased near the subway station provides more comfort and indulgence to Holden than anything.
Final words to Mr. Caulfield is he will have a rough life when he finishes school, socially and mentally. In addition, he will be deprived of his goals in life due to his mental illness called depression and symptoms accompanying like loss of interests, hiding depression by using comfort items, and personality disorder within
The Catcher in the Rye Thematic Essay Imagine living a lonesome life, full of fear and little hope of better days to come. Imagine the toll this would take on a person’s life and how they develop as a person. For Holden Caulfield, the main character of J.D Salinger’s classic The Catcher in the Rye this, is his reality. Holden is a sixteen year old troubled boy suffering through major mental issues and living a rather a depressing life for a teenager. Throughout the novel he goes through many hardships that only worsen his depression making him feel hatred towards his seemingly hellish world.
Holden thinks about the new happiness the hat brings him, “One day when Holden was walking through New York, depressed and feeling lost, he came upon a store window. Inside the store window he saw this bright red hunting hat that he immediately felt a connection to” (10). Holden cares for this hat. Holden is having a rough time before he saw the hat, he had just gotten off the subway in New York and realized that he had lost his foils, or fencing swords. This is the
The Catcher in the Rye is an important classic exploring struggles we all face in youth from growing up to the pressure from our peers to have sex. The novel explores these things in a safe way where readers never have to step outside of their room to experience the downfall of the abuse of alcohol. At worst the readers know exactly what Caulfield is talking about, is having someone you can identify with in a novel the worst thing
From the outset, I have to say that “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger has been one of the most important and influential pieces of literature I have ever read. At its core, the book is a superb coming of age novel which discusses several extremely powerful themes such as the difficulties of growing up, teenage angst and alienation and the superficiality, hypocrisy and pretension of the adult world. These themes resonated deeply with me and were portrayed excellently through the use of powerful symbolism and the creation of highly relatable and likable characters. One such character is Holden Caulfield whom the story both revolves around and is narrated by.
The Catcher in the Rye In the novel The Catcher in the Rye J.D Salinger writes about a teenager struggling to find his place within the existence of the reality of others. Salinger creates shocking events that lay out the foundation of the the main character Holden Caulfield’s life in the novel. Salinger uses Holden’s characteristics throughout the novel such as Holden’s stubbornness to establish a much bigger theme in the book along with many other symbols.
While many argue that Holden Caulfield from The Catcher in the Rye does not deviate from the traditional anti-hero attributes and, therefore, does not display any prominent change, an argument can be made to the contrary. Holden Caulfield goes through some noticeable character development and is in a better place emotionally at the end of the book because he speaks with Phoebe. His meeting with Phoebe and Phoebe’s message to him shows him a youth’s perspective on his world, rather than the superficial sincerity of his elderly professor and his favorite teacher that makes advances on him. Additionally, him being able to successfully communicate with a member of his own family puts him in a better place. His time with her lets him see his own self-image of a “catcher in the rye.”
Because of Holden’s reluctance to fit into society, Holden wears a red hunting cap that symbolizes his difference from the people around him. This hunting cap is a symbol in multiple ways. Instead of describing the hat as a deer hunting hat, Holden calls it his “people shooting hat”. Even though Holden would not physically harm other people, the fact that he jokes about shooting people shows how deep his hatred is of the human beings around him. The reason he hates other people so much is because he views them phonies.
Holden Caulfield’s story traces psychological/moral development and maturation. The conflicts that Holden deals with, shape him into a new adult. Holden learns so much on his journey, and finally accepts what society has to offer him. Society accepts him back, and Holden is rebirthed into an adult with new knowledge to benefit society. First off, Holden is portrayed as this terrible delinquent.
As the title emphasizes, the theme that dominates throughout the novel is the protection of innocence. Holden is obsessed with the innocence of children in particular and this highlights his struggle against growing into adulthood. Innocence, in Holden’s eyes, is the experience of childhood without the intrusion of the adult world. He feels that a child’s innocence is the good qualities that he/she possesses as a child.