Merry Go Round Symbolism In Catcher In The Rye

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Exploring Interpretation of Symbolism

In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and The Merry-Go-Round by Rainer Maria Rilke, the speakers take on the role of the observer but seem to be affected by their surroundings, relentlessly commenting on universal observations. In the coming of age novel, J.D. Salinger self-inserts his own past into the protagonist, Holden Caulfield. Promptly at the beginning of the novel, Holden warns the reader that his intention of the novel is not to serve as his life story but proceeds to tell his life story. It begins with Holden at one prep school, and ends with him being “[mentally] sick” optimistic for his next journey to another school. The reader is exposed to Holden’s relationships, failures, schemes, …show more content…

In The Catcher in the Rye, the carousel circles round and round, representing a stagnation in childhood. It remains the same as the children who ride it continue to grow older. When on the carousel, the goal is to reach for the gold ring with passed on the horse. If obtained, the rider could get a free ride. Holden says, “The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it. If they fall off, they fall off…” (Salinger 114). He may be admitting to himself that growing up and taking chances is necessary. He realizes by watching Phoebe and not riding the carousel himself that he has to let Phoebe experience her own failures. If she falls, then she falls, but he has to let her and he cannot protect her forever. Similarly, he has to face the idea that every child will eventually “fall” out of innocence and into adulthood. Holden cannot prevent this or save himself from becoming an adult; which scares him and as everyone around him hides from the rain, Holden stays watching the merry-go-round go round and round, and begins to cry. The phoniness of adulthood is unavoidable. The symbol of the merry-go-round in The Catcher in the Rye emulates the loss of innocence throughout a lifetime; and that people have to be able to fall to learn from themselves. In The Merry-Go-Round by Rainer Maria Rilke, the speaker is observing the merry-go-round and all aspects of life surrounding it. The ride itself represents life and how it continuously keeps turning no matter who is on it. The ride is too short – but the experiences that are made out of it define who someone is. Throughout the entirety of the poem, there is a conceit for life. Similar to Holden, Rilke writes, “A boy in white leans on the lion’s mane… as the lion shows its fearsome teeth and bite. And now and then an elephant, all white” (Rilke). The white elephant

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