Catcher In The Rye Natural History Museum Analysis

Holden is drawn to the consistency of the Natural History Museum because of the feeling of stability and security that it provides for him. For most of his life he has lacked a definite place where he felt like he belonged. In his life Holden has gone to 4 different schools and has lost his little brother to cancer which had fostered feelings of distrust and had made him feel like there is nothing in his life to rely on. A majority of the place and people Holden has encountered as well as the experiences he has had have only depressed him. So far, everything Holden has ever describe has made him angry or sad, but after an encounter with a little girl reminds him of the Natural History Museum, Holden reminisces about the elementary school

By using the word cosy to describe the Natural History Museum Holden conveys the comfort of it and how well he fits in. However “the best thing, through, in that museum was that...Nobody’d move. You could go there a hundred thousand times. And that Eskimo would still be just finished catching those two fish...the deer would still be drinking out of that water hole”(157-158). Holden’s favorite part of the Natural History Museum, as briefly stated before was the reliability of it. Holden’s life has been unstable understandably since the death of his brother. From then on, nothing in his life was constant especially the school he attended. The saying one want what they don't have ring true here where Holden is attracted to the stability of the Natural History Museum because it is the only source of it in his life. The language is this quote is interesting especially how Holden uses “would still be” as opposed to could still be. Using could leaves room for the possibility that they museun could change. Would ensure Holden that no matter how old he got he could return and find the same Eskimo and deer in the same spot they were in when he left them. “Still” also implies that time would pass and everything would remain the same,