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Duck Motif In Catcher In The Rye

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In The Catcher in The Rye by J.D. Salinger. Holden is portrayed at a curious struggling teenager. Holden starts a conversation with a New York cab driver about the fish and the duck in central park. He asks specifically about what do they do during the winter. This thought shows how he is trying to find answers concerning his own life and growing up. It also signifies how is struggling with growing up and trying to get answers for his life.
Once Holden got in the cab, he started asking the driver about the ducks again “Well, you know the ducks that swim around in it? In the springtime and all? Do you happen to know where they go in the wintertime by any chance? I mean, does someone come around in a truck or something and take them away (81,82). …show more content…

go south or something?” (99) this option suggests that he should go through his rough teenage years without anybody’s help and perhaps even escape till he is mature and responsible. Holden is trying to answers these question through comparing himself to the duck and how they overcome these challenges. The ducks flying south is the option that Holden is looking for in order to grow up and become mature and have a successful life. The duck motif is present throughout this chapter because Holden is using it to figure out what he is going to …show more content…

They stay right where they are, the fish. Right in the goddam lake. The fish--that's different. The fish is different. I'm talking about the ducks,” (00) the fish here can be interpreted as a metaphor to the life of normal people who are going through teenage years. However, Holden thinks that his life is different than other by saying “the fish is different I’m talking about the ducks” the ducks are a metaphor for his life because he has the option of either waiting for mother nature to help him or escaping. The cab driver gave Holden a better solution besides escaping or waiting for someone’s help. "If you was a fish, Mother Nature'd take care of you, wouldn't she? Right? You don't think them fish just die when it gets to be winter, do ya?"(99). Mother nature here is an allusion to Holden’s mother and how she loves him but she might not show it. She is letting him struggle so he can grow

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Holden 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.

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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.

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The lagoon itself is symbolic of Holden’s longing for an eternal childhood, the frozen state representing a lack of change. The ducks represent the rest of society which Holden fails to assimilate with. Another symbol of this is the Museum of Natural History which Holden enjoys visiting, for similar reasons as the lake. He enjoyed going to the museum because “Nobody’d move.” and “nobody’d be different”. Holden visits this museum twice throughout the novel.

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Craig and Holden similarly struggle with depression and can create a deep connection with the reader. Overwhelmed by the world, these characters become unable to remain content with their lives. It is this that ultimately makes them relatable characters as they fight an internal conflict throughout the story. Holden’s struggle with transitioning into adulthood and Craig’s undeniable pressure from his surrounding circle are topics that many teenagers can identify with. When Holden is in central park and passes by a lagoon, he says, "I was wondering if it would be frozen over when I got home, and if it was, where did the ducks go.

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The 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

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Isolation and Depression: A Vicious Cycle Grief. Depression. Isolation. What do you think when you hear those words? Holden Caulfield has been through a lot, from being kicked out of several schools to being so depressed he wonders why he should go on living. Holdens family keeps pushing him away and that’s where he learns his tendency to push people away who he cares about.

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This 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.

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Catcher In The Rye Setting

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