Catcher In The Rye
Symbols
Symbols
Symbols are objects, characters,
figures, and colours used to represent
abstract ideas or concepts.
The Red Hat
Pg 15 – ‘I put on this hat that I’d bought in New
York that morning. It was this red hunting hat with,
with one of those very, very long peaks…The way
I wore it, I swung the old peak way round to the
very back – very corny, I’ll admit, but I liked it that
way. I looked good in it that way.’
Find the next references to the hat on pages18, 19
and 29 (yellow book 21, 26, 38)
Note the quotes
What do you think is the significance of the hat at
this point?
Does Holden seem to use it in any specific way?
The Red Hat
‘She took off my red hunting hat – the
one I gave her – and practically
chucked it in my face. (pg 186)
‘then what she did – it damn near
killed me – she reached in my pocket
and took out my red hunting hat and
put it on my head.’ (pg 190)
What does the hat symbolise?
It is a symbol of his uniqueness and
individuality. The hat is outlandish, and it
shows that Holden desires to be different
from everyone around him.
At the same time, he is very self-conscious
about the hat—he always mentions when
he is wearing it, and he often doesn’t wear
it if he is going to be around people he
knows.
The presence of the hat, therefore, mirrors
the central conflict in the book: Holden’s
need for isolation versus his need for
companionship.
What does the hat symbolise?
It is worth noting that the hat’s color,
red, is the same as that of Allie’s and
Phoebe’s hair.
Perhaps Holden associates it with the
innocence and purity he believes
these characters represent and wears
it as a way to connect to them.
The Ducks
Pg 11 – ‘I was thinking about the lagoon in central
Park…I was wondering whether it would be frozen
over when I got home, and if it was, where did all
the ducks go. I was wondering where all 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.’
Watch out for other references Holden makes to
the ducks
You may begin to see a pattern in when or why he
mentions them – make a note of these moments
What do the ducks symbolise?
Their mysterious perseverance in the face of an
inhospitable environment resonates with Holden’s
understanding of his own situation.
The ducks prove that some vanishings are only
temporary. Traumatized and made acutely aware
of the fragility of life by his brother Allie’s death,
Holden is terrified by the idea of change and
disappearance. The ducks vanish every winter, but
they return every spring, thus symbolizing change
that isn’t permanent, but cyclical.
The pond itself becomes a minor metaphor for the
world as Holden sees it, because it is “partly
frozen and partly not frozen.” The pond is in
transition between two states, just as Holden is in
transition between childhood and adulthood.
Motifs
Motifs are recurring structures,
contrasts, and literary devices that
can help to develop and inform the
text’s major themes.