Blaise Engle English 9 CP Period 6 Mrs. Gowanlock Tuesday, December 21 CITR Essay Throughout the majority of the Catcher in the Rye J.D Salinger employs several different symbols that define Holden's personality. One particular object that set him apart from everyone else was his red hunting hat. It is brought up on several different occasions in the book and is often described as an article that reminds him of his brother Allie and sister Phoebe. Salinger furthermore develops the red hunting hat into a symbol by referring to it several times as Holden's own form of uniqueness, aiding in the theme of “ protection of the innocence” and the resistance of maturity.
Arrested development works in more than one fashion for Holden Caulfield, as not only does he desperately cling to the past, but his five stages of grief are similarly slowly processed—namely denial. J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye follows Holden as he adapts to life alone in the city, and is forced to deal with the consequences of living in the real world. After projecting his issues onto others throughout the novel, only by accepting his own shortcomings does Holden finally start taking steps towards changing his life for the better. Holden’s little brother, Allie, passed away some years before the story takes place, and is one of the biggest factors in his refusal to let go of the past.
Catcher in the Rye is the recounting of the weekend after the main character gets expelled for the umpteenth time from another uppity private school. The name of the main character, "Holden Caulfield," can be broken down in such a way that it reveals the character in question's tendency to hold onto and protect happier memories and childhood innocence from this big, unfair, scary game we call life, without realizing that he would be stunting the growth of those whom he is protecting. The character's first name, "Holden", can be interpreted as a pun for how he wants to "hold on" to better times. Throughout the story, Holden speaks fondly about his childhood summer memories, talking about when he used to play checkers with Jane Gallagher (p.17), or when he, his younger siblings, Phoebe and Allie, went to the park every Sunday (p. 37) to play, and often brushes the more serious moments he has experienced off, instead of going on a tangent like he usually does (p.21).
In this quote, Holden describes his younger brother Allie 's baseball mitt. The quote is significant to the novel because it provides context on Holden 's past and the reason for his behavior and apathy towards life. In the quote, Holden addresses Allie for the first time while discussing the details of his baseball mitt. Holden describes his brother 's baseball mitt as having "poems written all over the fingers and the pocket and everywhere",the quote shows the similarities they once had and their shared passion for reading and literature. Allie 's baseball mitt serves as a symbol of Holden 's love for his brother as well as the sorrow that he has experienced since his passing.
Holden Caulfield’s red hunting hat is one of the most recognizable symbols in the history of American literature. Statistics show that around twenty percent of American teens will experience depression before they reach adulthood. This statistic has a strong connection with the novel. J.D. Salinger published The Catcher in the Rye on July of 1951. Caulfield owned a very special item, which was his red hunting hat.
Like Holden’s red hunting hat, an item that serves a similar purpose to me is my pink jacket. In a literal sense, the hunting hat and my jacket are both alike in the sense that they both have a fuzzy inner lining to keep the user warm. Holden recalls that the events that occurred throughout the duration of the novel, “…happened to me around last Christmas” (3). Therefore, the weather in New York would be chilly enough for a fuzzy hat to be appropriate to wear when going outside. By coincidence, because of the fact that it is also around Christmas time, the temperature tends to plummet, and thus, my fuzzy jacket is suitable for me to handle being outside in the cold environment.
In the memoir, Brown Girl Dreaming by Jaqueline Woodson, a theme is dreams are achievable despite obstacles. Throughout the book, Jackie shows an interest in storytelling, and achieving her dream of becoming a writer. The first example of dreams can be shown when Jackie explains how she struggles when reading in class. She goes at a much slower pace than everyone else, and by the time she is done reading the class has already moved on to something else. In Woodsons poem, “gifted,” Jackie states that, “I am not gifted.
The Catcher in the Rye, written by J.D. Salinger in 1951, is the story of an angst-ridden sixteen year old Holden Caulfield as he learns to deal with growing up. The story follows Holden through his three day experience through New York as he learns about the truth about innocence, sex, and mortality, making The Catcher in the Rye one of America’s most notable coming-of-age stories. One of the largest influences on Holden’s life was his younger brother Allie who died from leukemia at age eleven when Holden was thirteen. The death of Holden’s brother had a profound effect on Holden emotional state, which eventually caused his complete mental breakdown by the end of the novel.
Holden Caulfield lives his life as an outsider to his society, because of this any we (as a reader) find normal is a phony to him. Basically, every breathing thing in The Catcher in the Rye is a phony expect a select few, like Jane Gallagher. What is a phony to Holden and why is he obsessed with them? A phony is anyone who Holden feels is that living their authentic life, like D.B. (his older brother). Or simply anyone who fits into society norms, for example, Sally Hayes.
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.
In Holden’s mind becoming “the catcher in the rye “means that he can still catch Allie from falling off the cliff. This is relevant to Holden’s depression because everything around him is telling him to grow up but instead he runs away from it in fear that is will pull him farther apart from his relationship with his brother Allie. Holden is on the edge of becoming an adult which creates more pressure and leads him to
The Catcher in the Rye Literary Analysis Essay In the novel The Catcher in the Rye Salinger the author uses lots of symbols to express who Holden is and how he develops throughout the novel. Salinger gives Holden some symbolic feelings towards some things and places to express a different side of Holden. Holden’s baseball mitten acts as a memory of his dead brother Allie. He wears a red hunting hat to express alienation to the real adult world.
Holden tries to prevent the inevitable, but one must move on with their life, and that is, contributed to the loss of innocence. His hat keeps him safe from the societal horrors that steal one's innocence. So when he has finally comes to grips with the fact that he must become older, and make grown up decisions, he gives his hat to Phoebe when, she takes it out of his pocket and offers it to him, since it was raining, but he says “You can wear it awhile” (Salinger 233), he does this because he wants to protect her now and stop running away from his
Holden responded with “Like hell it is... This is a people shooting hat” (Page 22). Holden, by saying it is a ‘people shooting hat’, symbolizes how the hat protects him from others and separates him from others by ‘shooting them down’ and detaching himself from others. While staying in New York, Holden would wear that same red hunting cap in order to feel fearless. He states that “I took my red hunting hat out of my pocket and put it on - I didn’t even give a damn how it looked” (Page 88).
He sees himself as the useless member of the family, and states that he’s “the only dumb one in the family” (67). The most heartbreaking cause of Holden’s loneliness is the death of his young brother, Allie, to leukemia. The brothers’ connection is shown through the symbol of Allie’s red hair, which Holden could have a “hunch” for even if Allie was sitting “a hundred and fifty yards” away (38). The cut of a bond this deep devastates Holden. Unfortunately, because of his inactive parents, he deals with it through anger and isolation that is symbolized by the red hunting hat he wears.
