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How Does Holden Caulfield Red Hunting Hat Symbolize

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The repeating symbols of The Catcher in the Rye

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger shows many ways that J.D. Salinger and his Characters are trying to convey in the themes of Keeping innocence of his sibling and objects and people in general character shows. The way he gets through this is by using his red hunting hat as a security blanket. J.D. Salinger uses many and symbols and actions of the main character, Holden Caulfield, to convey his main repeated symbol of innocence and attempting to keep it and making Holden's red hunting hat to be a big part of preserving innocence in the younger characters in the novel.
Holden caulfield uses his red hunting hat as a sort of security blanket that allows him to do thing he would not normally do himself. Including when he is leaving his school he puts it on and screams “"Sleep tight, ya morons!"(68) he uses his hat to be as a reassurance and allows him to change his attitude and become almost a different person. He Uses it as protection figuratively and literally in one of most emotional moments in the novel“My hunting hat really gave me quite a lot of protection, in a way; but I got soaked anyway. I didn't care, though. I felt so damn happy all of sudden, the way old Phoebe kept going around and around. I was damn near bawling, I felt so damn happy, if you want to know the …show more content…

Holden's attempt to justify himself is unfair to himself but this best describes Holden's personality.

The Catcher in the Rye Many symbols is the utmost example of a novel with innocence struggles inner and outer.using the Red hunting hat , Innocence of Holden's siblings And Holdens Preservation of objects he is close to.repeating of symbols is the way J.d. Salinger creates a novel that makes the main character struggles.Creating a novel where the main character continuously has troubles brings light of real world struggles of people in daily

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Salinger does a phenomenal job developing the red hunting hat into a symbol by emphasizing how important it was to Holden throughout the novel. When Holden is leaving the hotel, whilst walking out the door he grabs his coat from the hat check girl. He then proceeds to show her his hat. “I showed her my goddamn hunting hat and she liked it”(169).

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Holden Caulfield, The main character of "The Catcher in the Rye" written by J.D. Salinger Often finds that he secludes himself from society. The 17 year old teenage boy is from a family that has "quite some dough" who lives in the wealthy side of New York. Although Holden has plenty of luxuries in life the poor soul just is not satisfied with any thing especially the gruesome society which he lives in. Through all the high's and low's the young man has endured Holden always had one special companion by his side, the red hunting hat. Ironically, Holden has access to the finer paraphernalia in life, but a red hat that only cost a dollar purchased near the subway station provides more comfort and indulgence to Holden than anything.

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