What Does Holden Symbolize In Catcher In The Rye
Just like many men in the 1940’s, the famous author J.D. Salinger was drafted into the United States Army. Salinger was placed in one of the most bloody battles in the war, Battle of the Bulge. Salinger did not escape the war without trauma. He suffered a nervous breakdown, and during that time period, he created the character Holden Caulfield. Salinger’s emotions and attitudes were projected onto his character, Holden who suffers with mental health issues and projects his emotions on innocent ducks that live in Central Park. In “The Catcher in the Rye,” there is a great deal of symbolism used. Salinger uses the ducks throughout the novel in order to symbolize and foreshadow how lost Holden Caulfield is, and to showcase his given mental state. …show more content…
Holden has a conversation with Mr. Spencer, his history teacher, and they discuss why Holden failed. Mr. Spencer asks Holden how is he going to tell his parents, instead of answering, Holden drifts off into another thought, “I live in New York, and I was thinking about the lagoon in Central Park, down near Central Park South. I was wondering if it will be frozen when I got home, and where did the ducks go” (Salinger 16). Just like the ducks are frozen off from their home, when Holden uses the term frozen, it signifies the overarching question for Holden if he will be frozen out from his family when he gets home and shut out for flunking out of school again. His daydream is a break into thinking about going back and having to face his parents. Holden continues to daydream about the ducks and thinks “if some guy came in a truck and took them away to a zoo or something” (Salinger 16). The guy and the zoo represent how his parents repeatedly sent him off to boarding schools and was always distanced from him. Holden lacks the same amount of attention his other siblings received. His lack of attention and isolation away from his family creates a barrier between Holden and his parents explaining his fears and avoidance of telling them he flunked out. To add on to Holden’s avoidance and his panicky attitude toward telling his parents, the ducks also represent Holden’s coping mechanism for his ever-changing mental
Similarities Between Catcher In The Rye And It's Kind Of A Funny Story
1077 Words | 5 PagesI was wondering where the ducks went when the lagoon got all icy and frozen over"( ). This is symbolism for Holden, the ducks representing his desperate attempt to cling to childhood. He, just like Craig struggles with this depression that he can't let go. This idea of fear can be related to
Holden Caulfield Setting
644 Words | 3 PagesHolden being sent out in an unfamiliar world, without help, is like having to play a board game without knowing how to play. His name relates to him being a player in this game called life because to field means to send a player out into the game. IN this case, Holden is the player, and life is the game. When Holden arrives home to talk with Phoebe, he brings up how he wants to be the “catcher in the rye,” and do nothing but that all day (p. 93).Through this entire story, Holden has been struggling to transitions from a child to an adult and wonders how ducks know to leave the lagoon in the winter and fly south.
Examples Of A Rough Draft For Catcher In The Rye
606 Words | 3 PagesHolden thinks about the ducks in Central Park because he wants to be free, he does not want to stay in Pencey and live with phonies. He wants to move out and live on his own, to be independent and free. This allows Holden to change dramatically throughout his adventure. He sees the world more closely than he ever did before, he sees the behaviors of phonies and people who are actually honest. These are the changes Holden makes while traveling into the adult world and it allows him to become a mature teenager.
How Does Holden Affect The Catcher In The Rye
590 Words | 3 PagesHolden Caulfield is a sixteen-year old boy that hates a lot of things. He attends a school named Pencey where he got kicked out because he had very poor grades. The only class he actually likes is English class. He doesn’t care that he got kicked out because he thinks that a bunch of “phonies” go to that school anyways. In J.D Salinger’s novel the Catcher in the Rye, Holden is affected by his two brothers Allie, and D.B.
Why Does Holden Is Not Going To Tell Readers His Life Story
809 Words | 4 PagesThese quotes show a contradiction between what Holden outwardly claims and what he genuinely believes. In the first quote, Holden openly admits that he is "illiterate," suggesting that he lacks literary knowledge and thinks he is not smart. 2. During his conversation with Mr. Spencer, Holden gets distracted thinking about ducks in Central Park in New York City. What are some things he wonders about them?
What Are Holden's Struggles In Catcher In The Rye
858 Words | 4 PagesThe idea of having a character that struggles to find themselves is quite a common idea in many books. This is seen in the Catcher in the Rye where JD Salinger puts Holden the main character through different struggles throughout the book to finally realise what his purpose is and what he aims to be. There are many different situations that Holden is put through but they all aim to the same purpose, being a catcher in the rye. Two of the main struggles are his journey into adulthood and to retain his innocence. The second is how he is almost alienating himself from others and very rarely opens up to anybody, and his relationships with people are not great because he thinks of many of the people he meets are phony.
Catcher In The Rye Existentialism
1468 Words | 6 PagesAs students analyze The Catcher in the Rye, they gain insight into the cultural environment at the time when it was written. J.D. Salinger was a soldier in WWII that saw some of the most combat, most notably fighting at the Battle of the Bulge, invading Utah Beach on D-Day, and liberating prisoners at Dachau. As a young man, Salinger saw the destructiveness of adult society. However, Salinger did not return from combat and write about war, he wrote about an adolescent wandering around New York City for a few days trying to cope with the “phoniness” of the adult world. Near the beginning of the novel, Holden states, “The one side of my head- the right side – if filled with millions of grey hairs…
Catcher In The Rye Diction Analysis
1198 Words | 5 PagesHolden says that he had a lousy childhood, and this shows that he is still dealing with and holding on to his past. He is trying to hold onto his childhood innocence, and does not want to enter adulthood. This is Holden’s way of saying that he feels as if he was neglected by his parents as a child. Another example of connotation in the novel is when Holden tries to explain to Phoebe that he wants to be the catcher in the rye. Holden remembers his time at Elkton Hills when a boy, James Castle, committed suicide, “instead of taking back what he said, he jumped out the window” (221).
Holden's Dream Of Becoming The Catcher In The Rye
129 Words | 1 Pagesin original). When Holden calls Carl Luce, an acquaintance whom Holden hates, as a last resort, he comes the closest to the truth about himself. By telling him “your mind is immature” (147), Luce acknowledges that Holden is in need of psychoanalysis or some such professional help, but, in true Holden fashion, he laughs it off. Instead, Holden starts formulating the idea that he will solve his problems by retreating to “a little cabin somewhere with the dough I made and stay there for the rest of my life” (199).
Catcher In The Rye Holden Motif
827 Words | 4 PagesHolden is so frozen that he has the need to ask strangers about where should ducks go, just because he is frozen and he needs to escape this frozen cold
Catcher In The Rye Setting
890 Words | 4 PagesThis 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
Theme Of Death In Catcher In The Rye
1120 Words | 5 PagesThis scene is exceptionally important, as it sets the entire tone for how Holden perceives adults and their attitude towards death, as something insignificant that doesn’t deserve closer inspection. Holden feels that death is being cheapened by who he deems to be the “phonies”. Another allusion to death is Holden’s frequent thoughts about the ducks in central park. He wants to know what happens to them during winter, asking the cab drivers in chapters 9 and 12. When Holden locates the lagoon and realizes that the ducks aren’t there, he starts thinking about suicide.
Catcher In The Rye Holden's Character Traits
767 Words | 4 PagesThroughout the novel, The Catcher in the Rye, Holden Caulfield is a deep character that shows(possesses) many personality traits. His character is what connects many readers to him and helps in understanding him. Some character traits Holden possesses are that he is generous, kindhearted, usually honest, very intelligent, makes quick judgements, speaks his mind, is anxious about change, and likes kids. Considering his many character traits, it is easy for the reader to understand and relate to Holden. There are many character traits that I share with him.
Coming Of Age Symbolism In Catcher In The Rye
464 Words | 2 PagesThe ducks in Central Park are first mentioned when Holden visits Mr. Spencer. As Mr. Spencer is discussing Holden’s failing grades, Holden thinks to himself, “The funny thing is, though, I was so sort of thinking of something else while I shot the bull… I was wondering if some guy came in a truck and took [the ducks] away to a zoo or something or if they just flew
Robert Bennett Catcher In The Rye Summary
213 Words | 1 PagesIn the article, “Overview of the Catcher in the Rye” by Robert Bennett argues that many interpretations of Holden can be taken away from the novel by providing literary interpretations, psychoanalytic analyses, and sociological perspectives of Holden. To introduce his argument, Bennett details on how the J.D. Salinger focuses more on character development of Holden, rather than the overall plot of the novel. To support this, the usage of literary interpretations comes into play. In which, the author provides examples from the text in order to accentuate the positive and innocent characteristics portrayed by Holden. Then, the author continues to support his argument by using psychoanalytic analyses developed by experts.
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