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Holden Caulfield Symbolism Analysis

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In Westport, Connecticut, in 1951, The catcher in the rye was written by J.D. Salinger. This story revolves around a teenage boy who is deeply afraid of change. Holden Caulfield is a 16-year-old boy, recently expelled from his fourth school. Salinger uses symbolism and motifs to display Holden's thoughts and emotions throughout the story. Salinger does this because of Holden's lack of stability and immature nature. In the story, Holden is going through tough times, amplified by his decision to go to New York City alone. While many symbolic presences recur in the story, Holden's fascination with animals transcends any existing symbols. Holdens contemplation of where ducks go during migration highlights the uncertainty of his future that …show more content…

While in New York City, Holden takes a taxi when he asks the driver about what fish do in the winter. The driver responds with the simple answer of hibernation:" The fish don't go no place. They stay right where they are, the fish. Right in the goddam lake." (Salinger 45). Because of Holden's inability to fit in with social norms, he often feels excluded from society. He can easily relate to fish because he often feels stuck with nowhere to go. It also symbolizes him being stuck in childhood, often using exterior appearances to make himself feel like an adult. Rather than maturing and realizing one's appearance does not make them an adult. Later in the story, Holden takes his younger sister, Phoebe, to a carousel in Central park. After arriving, Holden made one very close observation: "Anyway, we kept getting closer and closer to the carousel and you could start to hear that nutty music it always plays. It was playing "Oh, Marie!" It played that song about fifty years ago when I was a little kid. That's one nice thing about carrousels; they always play the same songs." (Salinger 210). Holden's keen observation of the carousel's song choice shows the timelessness of the carousel. Viewing how changeless the horses of the carousel have stayed for over 15 years, allowing kids to live uninterrupted in their adolescent world. The carousel acts as a physical object. Holden can see its stillness and reflect that not all stillness is

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