Symbolism and Motifs in "The Catcher in the Rye"

Adolescence is a time of change and confusion. It is also a journey that we each take on our own road to self discovery. This time between childhood and adulthood is often a tough transition because the sugar coated world we live in as children becomes a dangerous, unknown abyss in which we much leap into and continue our journey through life. Perhaps one of the greatest novels that feature the journey through adolescent life is "The Catcher in the Rye." In this story, an adolescent named Holden is going through his own road to self discovery. His observations and peculiar attitude leads to Holden into problems as he transitions from a child to an adult. In his book, "The Catcher in the Rye", author J.D. Salinger uses a series of motifs and hints of symbolism to illustrate Holden's difficulty growing up due to his own isolation and cynicism of the world.

The Catcher in the Rye show cases the narrator, an adolescent boy named Holden Caughfield steering his way through life. Holden lives his life in his own isolation and cynicism to protect himself from the world he views as "phony." There are many motifs throughout the story that help the reader get a grasp on to Holden's perspective of life. One example of a motif throughout the story is the sense of loneliness. Throughout the book Holden cradles himself in his own loneliness. It appears as if he desires to remain alone in order to detach from society. An example of his desired solo status is when Holden scores a date with the character Sally Hayes, he deliberately sabotages it with his outrageous and inappropriate behavior towards her. The date ends with Sally Hayes being surprised and scared off by Holden's behavior and thus illustrates Holden's constant need to remain alone.

Another motif in the story is that of deception. Deception is one of the larger elements of the story that builds up to Holden's belief that the world is phony. Holden's view of the world as "phony" is the source of his problems and inability to face the world.