Catcher in the Rye Symbolism
You can find this storyboard in the following articles and resources:
The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
Lesson Plans by Kristy Littlehale
J.D. Salinger described The Catcher in the Rye as a novel about “an individual’s alienation in a heartless world.” Engage students as they learn about Holden Caulfield's journey with our premade activities and storyboards!
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Storyboard Description
Catcher in the Rye Symbolism in the book
Storyboard Text
- RED HUNTING HAT
- RED HUNTING HAT
- DUCKS CENTRAL PARK
- PROFANITY
- @#&*%^#@#!
- MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
- "HOLDEN CAULFIELD"
- HOLD
- [TO THE]
- FIELD
- ON
- The red hunting hat that Holden purchases in becomes a source of safety and security for him. He keeps the hat on when he writes the composition about Allie’s baseball mitt, when he leaves Pencey Prep in the middle of the night, and when he is thinking to himself in private. It sets him apart, alienating him but giveing him a sense of security.
- Holden is concerned with the fate of the ducks in Central Park during the winter. He feels a kinship with the ducks, because it seems like they have nowhere to go, much in the way Holden feels lost in this world where he can’t seem to connect with anyone else. One promising thing about the ducks though is that they return every year.
- Holden sees the profanity scratched into the walls at Phoebe’s school, and later, on a wall at the Museum of Natural History. He observes that there are no nice and peaceful places left anymore because someone will always sneak in and write something that threatens the innocence of that place.
- The Museum of Natural History is one place that has remained the same since Holden was a little boy and took school trips there. There is no real change in the building, which Holden likes, because he doesn’t like change. Change reminds him of the inevitable transition he will make into being an adult, which he is avoiding
- “Hold on” [to the] “caul”, or hold on to the membrane that surrounds the baby in utero, which is expelled during birth. The “field” refers to the rye field, linking to the moment when Holden declares he wants to be a catcher in the rye, and to prevent other children from facing the same loss of innocence that he has.
- CAUL
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