Symbolism In Catcher In The Rye

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The Catcher in the Rye is a book about a teenage boy during the 1950s, who was expelled from school because of his academic failure. The main theme in Catcher in the Rye is alienation because Holden seems not to want anyone to be in his life, he thinks that everyone is fake and dishonest,” Phonies” is how he describes most people that he interacts with. The Author uses the red hat that Holden wears as a symbol of alienation. An example of this is when Holden says “That hat I bought had earlaps in it, I put them on - I didn’t give a damn how I looked, Nobody was around anyway.” (pg 53 ) this shows how uses his hat to hide himself from other people. Holden believes that the hat gives him more of a sense of individualism but in reality he only