Symbolism In Catcher In The Rye

The phobia of growing old is prominent in society today. There are many reasons citizens fear leaving childhood, such as embracing the responsibilities of adulthood, giving up fantasy to accept reality, feeling one’s aloneness, and living life anxiously awaiting death. These terrors not only occur in society, but also appear in J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye. These ideas are thought by Holden Caulfield, the main character, who believes as one grows older they lose innocence and become “phony.” An initial reading of the book The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, suggests that the text focuses on the theme of vanishing and transitioning to maturity, and that he is concerned with its effect on the loss of innocence. The author

The question of where the ducks go when they migrate reveals a curiosity within Holden. This interest suggests that, since the ducks represent people, it would be possible for him to catch them before they fly, lose innocence. For example, he is extremely persistent with a cab driver when he repeatedly asks, “‘The ducks… I mean does somebody come around in a truck or something and take them away, or do they fly away by themselves - go south or something?’... ‘I’m talking about the ducks’” (Salinger 82). Holden is perplexed and continues to ponder with uncertainty where they go, as he does not want to accept that he cannot control the ducks leaving. Another instance is when Holden smashes the record into pieces by the lagoon. It is at this moment he realizes that all of the innocence is gone and that he was not able to catch the children. He drunkenly explains, “But I didn't see any ducks around. I walked all around the whole damn lake- I damn near fell in once, in fact- but I didn’t see a single duck” (154). There is an urgency in Holden when he frequently looks for the ducks in hopes that they still remain, yet discovers they have already left. By finding the ducks have disappeared, he also learns that he has lost all chance to be the catcher in the rye. In conclusion, the author symbolizes the ducks as the struggle for Holden to prevent change and the maturing of other

Throughout the novel Holden is aware of the fact that he is no longer innocent, but he will not fully transcend into adulthood. The ducks show that Holden is stuck in between the two phases. This is made evident when the author describes the pond, “What it was, it was partly frozen and partly not frozen” (Salinger 154). This describes Holden in the sense that he does not want to be phony, yet is already partially there. Secondly, the ducks are leaving as a result to the seasons changing. In turn, this symbolizes that Holden’s life is changing and he cannot control it. He realizes that the ducks leave and return in the same seasons during every cycle, his knowledge of this is shown when he questions the first cab driver where the ducks go when it is frozen over (60). This change, when seasons switch and the pond freezes, represents an environment where the pressure in Holden’s life is closing in on him and forcing him to find a solution. Similarly, Holden’s inability to adapt to hostile surroundings hinders him from ascending into adulthood. He escapes all situation he is not familiar with and makes an excuse to leave. It is clear to the reader when Holden begins to ask the second cab driver about the ducks, “‘...the fish is different. I’m talking about the ducks.’... ‘They live right in the goddam ice… the got their pores open the whole time’”