Holden's Suitcases Analysis

Though Holden’s interactions with Dick Slagle is for a short amount of time, Salinger shows how class differences can lead to conflicts over small things such as suitcases. When Holden observes that Slagle does not take his suitcases out from under his bed because they are cheap, he recognizes that Slagle is ashamed of his suitcases, which is why he responds by putting his suitcases under his bed just like Slagle. After Holden puts his suitcases under his bed to make Slagle more comfortable, Slagle takes Holden’s suitcases out and puts them back up on the rack, to show the rest of the school that he owns “bourgeois”suitcases (121). Holden’s attempt to conceal the class difference between Slagle and himself proves ineffective. This attempt

does not work because Slagle is not trying to hide the class difference, but actually wants to show he is rich just like Holden and the other boys in the preppy school. Holden gets annoyed when he recognizes that Slagle’s intentions were for the other boys to see him as affluent because he realizes that Slagle is basically using him for his own social advantage. Slagle uses Holden’s suitcases or wealth to make himself seem rich, which contrasts with Holden’s belief that people should act genuine.
Slagle’s belief that wealthy people are superior than poor people is shaped by society’s impression that it is better to have more money.

Since they were in a preppy school Slagle, knew that he would not fit in because he was in a lower economic class. To impress the other boys, Slagle takes out Holden’s suitcases and puts them on the rack near their window. Although Slagle is trying to impress the others, he is actually showing how he is a “phony”(120). By putting the suitcases there Slagle proves how he only cares about what others think about him rather than trying to improve himself. In addition, Slagle always used to say “snotty things”(121) to show how he was rich. By saying things like “my suitcases” about Holden suitcases it shows another instance where Slagle is making an attempt to captivate the other boys by showing how he also has expensive suitcases (121). However Slagle’s original thought that rich people are better than others comes from “hearing it somewhere”(121). This shows how society also promotes the idea that rich people are preferred over poor people. Through Holden and Slagle’s short interaction at Elkton Hills, Slagle shows how he is a person that only cares about the opinion of others, while Holden is looking for a legitimate friend. Within this scene, Salinger reveals that society revolves around material goods rather than focusing on creating relationships with

others.