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Summary: The Symbols Of Holden Wright

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Recommended: How Salinger conveys the character of Holden in order to determine what sort of person Salinger is trying to create with these words and phrases

Zavion Fernandez Leigh English II 18 December 2017 The Symbols of Holden Wright In this world, symbols are everywhere. Whether it be a company logo, a crucifix, or a person, humans see symbols on a day to day basis. However, they often lack the understanding of the meaning behind these symbols. Throughout history, symbols such as a crucifix or religious text have sparked major conflict in groups. In a way, these symbols can represent conflict, and in some cases, even cause conflict. Much like many ideas in this world, wherever there is good, there is also a bad. Symbols work in the same way. In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, The three symbols that explain Holden’s feelings and conflicts about growing up are Holden’s …show more content…

Holden had a younger brother named Allie who “died of leukemia when he was eleven” (Salinger 38). Allie was a major factor in Holden’s life and development as a person in general. In a way, Allie is still alive in Holden and his actions, and Holden constantly thinks about him. When Holden felt that he was going to disappear whenever he crossed the street, he says, “Every time I came to the end of a block I’d make believe I was talking to my brother Allie. I’d say to him,‘Allie, don’t let me disappear. Please, Allie’” (Salinger 198). Here, Allie isn’t only a source of protection for Holden, but it also shows how much Holden loves and thinks about him. Holden attempts to find strength to overcome his fears through Allie, and is successful in this instance. When Holden first found out about Allie’s death, he recalls, “I was only thirteen, and they were going to have me psychoanalyzed and all, because I broke all the windows in the garage. I don't blame them. I really don't. I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the goddam windows with my fist, just for the hell of it. I even tried to break all the windows on the station wagon we had that summer, but my hand was already broken and everything by that time, and I couldn't do it. It was a very stupid thing to do, I'll admit, but I hardly didn't even know I was doing it, and you didn't know Allie. My hand still hurts me once …show more content…

Before he leaves Pencey, Holden mentions the ducks to his teacher, Mr. Spencer, for the first time. He says, “I live in New York, and I was thinking about the lagoon in Central Park, down near Central Park South. I was wondering if it would be frozen over when I got home, and if it was, where did the ducks go. I was wondering where the ducks went when the lagoon got all icy and frozen over. I wondered if some guy came in a truck and took them away to a zoo or something. Or if they just flew away” (Salinger 13) . Holden’s concern over the ducks is symbolic of his own situation. He, like the ducks, wants to know where to go; where to be lead. Holden feels lost in not only the world, but within himself as well. A few chapters later, Holden asks cab driver’s opinion about the ducks, but the cab driver gets annoyed with Holden and even asks, “How the [heck] would I know where the [darn] ducks go” (Salinger 60). Holden is very confused here, for the cab driver got irate with him. In a way, it shows Holden’s innocence and naiveness to adult situations. Later on in the book, Holden discusses the ducks with another cab driver (Salinger 81).These childish questions may seem odd coming from Holden, especially since he is a relatively smart man. These questions can be drawn back to the fact that Holden himself does not know where to

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Throughout the story, Holden struggles with the idea of growing up. He is scared to grow up, but ironically, he does many things that adults would or could only do, like go out to bars and drink alcohol. While reminiscing about home, Holden thinks about the lagoons in Central Park and what happened when “it would be frozen over.. and if it was, where did the ducks go?” (Salinger 13). This is significant because it is symbolic of Holden worrying about what will happen when he grows up.

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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.

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Holden did not know how to deal with his death and expressed it through wanting to harm himself. He did this to escape the pain he was feeling inside. Holden said that Allie was the most amazing, kindest, and happiest person. Because Allie died so young, Holden felt that his innocence was taken away from him. This was the “trigger” to many of Holden's actions.

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When the school is captivated watching the football game at the field, Holden refuses to mix with the rest of the student body and instead chooses to watch it from “...way the hell up on top of Thomsen Hill.” When in New York, Holden visits a lagoon in Central Park, which is mostly frozen over. He also ponders whether the ducks will be at the lagoon during winter. Holden “walked around the whole damn lake” (Salinger, 200) and to his detriment, “…didn’t see a single duck.” (Salinger, 200).

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After being kicked out of Pencey Prep, Holden decides to spend three days alone in New York before returning home to his family for Christmas break. While looking back into the past to narrate his life, at many times, Holden describes himself as feeling very depressed and lonely. As Holden roams the streets, he notices a young boy and points out by mentioning “He kept on walking next to the curb and singing ‘If a body catch a body coming through the rye.’ It made me feel better. It made me feel not so depressed anymore” (Salinger, 115).

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Symbols occur throughout the novel and represent aspects of Holden’s developing character. A symbol is a thing that represents or stands for something else, especially a material object representing something abstract. Pencey Prep and Elkton Hills are examples of institutions that serve as symbols. Allie's left-handed baseball glove is a physically smaller but significant symbol in the novel. Holden's red hunting cap is another small artifact of symbolic meaning.

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I was wondering where the ducks went when the lagoon got all icy and frozen over"( ). This is symbolism for Holden, the ducks representing his desperate attempt to cling to childhood. He, just like Craig struggles with this depression that he can't let go. This idea of fear can be related to

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J.D. Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye is considered a coming of age novel. Throughout the novel, Holden, a confused teenage boy, matures and understands more about himself. Salinger conveys Holden’s increasing levels of maturity by using a variety of symbols. The ducks in central park, the red hunting hat, and the carousel ring symbolize the the development of Holden’s adulthood.

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Again, he brings up the ducks in Central Park go in the winter to his ca driver, the driver thinks he is insane but the question of the duck make him think deeply. He runs into Lillian Simmons, one of his older brother’s former girlfriends, who invites him to sit with her and her date. Holden says he has to meet someone, leaves, and walks back to the Edmond. At demon, Holden meets Maurice, the elevator operator.

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Have you ever lost someone or felt utterly useless and helpless? Have you ever gone through a life-changing experience to reach a goal at the end. Well in J.D Salinger's Novel The Catcher in the Rye there there's a character named Holden that goes through these very things as in the big city of New York. There were many things that pushed him through this troubling experience and many symbols that helped us understand his life and past. There are three main symbols that hold meaning to the novel's overall theme which are the hunting hat, the Central Park ducks, and the Museum of Natural history.

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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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What are some solutions that he comes up with while thinking? Where the ducks go in winter, Whether the ducks have a permanent home Whether the ducks return to the park. Holden wonders if the ducks actually live like other beings and care for each other like some humans do. 3. When talking with Mr. Spencer, Holden reflects on a few reasons he hates growing old and old people.

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This shows that the Museum is a symbol of Holden’s reluctance for change, in himself and in the world. Central Park is the location where Holden goes in order to answer his question of where the ducks go in the winter. This question could represent Holden’s

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Holden becomes increasingly attracted to the idea and comes close to obsession, as his mind is flooded with thoughts of death and disappearance, as well as questions which are revealed throughout the novel. Holden experiences two deaths prior to the events in the novel that impact him profoundly. The most significant death was the death of his younger brother, Allie. Allie died of leukemia three years before the events of the novel.

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