Examples Of Being Different In Catcher In The Rye

Throughout life, the desire to feel accepted often causes people to form a herd mentality. By following the actions of everyone else, people feel more comfortable. Even though they may want to do something that no one else is doing, they may feel a bit fearful or nervous doing so. Being different can be difficult, because it takes courage. In Catcher in the Rye, Holden, a teenager at the time, spent some time on his own after being kicked out of Pency Prep. During his time alone, Holden often did not input his own thoughts into his decisions, rather he usually followed what others told him to do. Though, sometimes Holden showed some courage and did what he felt was right. These decisions often varied from being childish to being adult-like.

Salinger uses Holden's red hunting cap to reveal how much adolescents yearn for comfort and individualism as they transition into adulthood.
Throughout Catcher in the Rye, Holden, like most adolescents, seeks for comfort and protection during difficult times.

For example, when such as when Stradlater went on a date with Jane, Holden starts to get worried. Holden, even though he does not admit it, has some feelings for Jane, who is his childhood friend. However, he does not want to see Jane for the fear that she may be different now compared to before. As Holden was questioning Stradlater on the details of his date, he "...pulled the peak of my hunting hat around to the front all of a sudden, for a change. I was getting sort of nervous, all of a sudden. I'm quite a nervous guy" (Salinger 19). When Holden pulls the peak of his hunting hat towards the front, Holden gets a sense of comfort. In this situation, Holden is using his hunting hat to calm his nerves and to protect himself from reality. Holden knows that Jane must have changed, but he does not want to believe it. He continues to live in the past, which he feels more comfortable doing. When places in difficult situations, adolescents do things that will make them more comfortable to relief some stress from the situations. By relieving some stress, it temporarily makes the situation seem a bit better. Teenagers typically relieve stress by listening to music or talking to people, yet in this case Holden uses his hunting hat. Another situation in which Holden uses his hunting cap for protection is when he was walking in Central Park in New York after going

to Ernie's Bar. While walking in Central Park, Holden, "...was still shivering like a bastard, and the back of my hair, even though I had my hunting hat on, was sort of full of little hunks of ice. That worried me. I thought probably I'd get pneumonia and die" (Salinger 83). Even though Holden is using his hunting hat in hopes to protect himself from the cold weather, the hat isn't really protecting him. This shows that although Holden believes that his hat can protect him from everything, it really cannot. Often times, teenagers depend on people or things to be there for them all the time. However, because of circumstances, the person or thing might not be always there for them. Though, in the end, Holden is dependent on his hat for comfort and protection.
Holden, not only uses his hunting cap to protect and comfort himself, yet he also uses it to make himself confident enough to show individualism.

When Holden was leaving Pency Prep, "put my red hunting hat on, and turned the peak around to the back, the way I liked it, and then I yelled at the top of my goddam voice,'Sleep tight, ya morons!' I'll bet I woke up every bastard on the whole floor. Then I got the hell out" (Salinger 29). When Holden turned his hat backwards, he felt more confident. Holden has more of a shy and awkward personality. He typically does care about what others think of him. However, when he turned his hat backwards, he gains the confidence to be who he really is. As children transition into adults, they typically try to gain a sense of they really are. Sometimes, they will follow what the crowd does. Yet, other times they do what they want to do to be unique. For example, when Holden was on his date with Sally, he told her, "‘It's full of phonies, and all you do is study so that you can learn enough to be smart enough to be able to buy a goddam Cadillac some day, and you have to keep making believe you give a damn if the football team loses, and all you do is talk about girls and liquor and sex all day, and everybody sticks together in these dirty little goddam cliques'" (Salinger 70). Holden identifies a group of people and tries to not be like them which is why he is naming all the negative aspects of the people in Pency Prep. Holden does not

care about being reach or being popular which sets him apart from others. As teenagers try to figure out who they are, they try to figure out what sets them apart froms others. From there, teenagers typically figure out where they belong. Overall, Holden uses his hat to gain confidence to show who he really is.
As Holden began to move into the next phase of his life, he felt the need to find his identity while seeking comfort in some situations which he acquired by using his red hunting hat. In Catcher in the Rye, Holden turns the peak of his hat a certain way depending on whether he wants more confidence or protection. While Holden was leaving Pency Prep, Holden uses his hunting hat to gain the courage to leave school early. While leaving, he even yells at the students sleeping. Sometimes, people need a little motivation to do something they've wanted to do for a while. Yet, then again, some people will follow what others are doing in order to fit in.