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What Does The Museum Symbolize In Catcher In The Rye

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Symbols can mean anything in a person's life; they are the language of mysteries. Holden Caulfield has many symbols representing different aspects of his life. J.D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye tells a heartbreaking story about Holden, a young teenager who struggles to fit in with the world and finding a place that he belongs. Holden seems to not realize that he is an adult now but is attached in this childish world. Holden likes the way things were the same in his childhood and desires to stop time and remain in his childhood. Therefore, the museum symbolizes childhood, Holden's world that he wishes to live in, and determination for his life not to change. The museum is Holden's way of saying that he does not want any change in his life because of the way things in the museum are the same from back when he was a child. Holden remembers everything in the museum which brings back the fun memories made going through the museum when he was just a child. Going through this is a reminder and a recollection for Holden that childhood was simple, innocent, and nothing needed change. “The best thing, though, in that museum was that everything always stayed right where it was. Nobody's move… Nobody’d be different” (Salinger 121). Holden is excessively afraid of …show more content…

For Holden that is what the museum symbolizes, his perfect, simple and genuine world that he urges to live in and does not want life to change. He wants his childhood back because of the innocence of it but is afraid of losing it. Holden is an adult now and changes need to happen but the thought of that is frightening for him. He can not accept that changes that are happening around him and sooner or later changes would need to happen in him also. Despite Holden’s challenging life obstacles that he had to go through he is ready to move on with life and be more adult

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