Motifs in The Catcher in the Rye Essay Sample

At one point in everyone’s lives, the idea of entering adulthood and becoming a member of society was an overwhelming - even scary thought. In The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, the main character Holden Caulfield, is often afraid and overwhelmed by growing up and becoming a member of society, to the point where he hopes to save younger children from growing up, too. Holden has gone through a lot in sixteen years when his brother Allie died of cancer at a young age, and he has struggled with fitting in. He has gone to many schools, including one where he witnessed a classmate commit suicide. These events have all given Holden a skewed view of what adulthood is. Having gone through so many adult experiences has convinced him to romanticize childhood, which he imagines is full of innocence, which he sees as a shield from the pain and unfamiliarity of adulthood. This makes Holden want to protect other young children from going through the hurt and pain he sees adulthood to be. Holen uses motifs, such as the carousel and the imagery of falling, as a metaphor for his fear of entering adulthood and how he eventually overcomes it. 

Holden uses the imagery of falling as a metaphor for his dread of eventually entering adulthood. After being expelled from his fourth school, Holden secretly returns home to see his sister Phoebe. Although being much younger than Holden, Phoebe is concerned to see him again under these circumstances. She tells Holden that he does not like anything and maybe this is why he is struggling so much at school. To prove her point, she asks him to name one thing he enjoys. Holden struggles to answer, but eventually says, “...I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all...And I’m standing on some crazy edge of a cliff...I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff,” (191). Out of anything in the world Holden could like, or want to do with his life he chose to be “the catcher in the rye” and to save kids falling from “some crazy edge of a cliff”. This motif is powerful because it speaks so much to Holden’s fear of adulthood. Holden believes that he would be saving these children by catching them and therefore holding them in childhood forever. Towards the end of Holden’s journey in New York City, he is running on barely any sleep and is crossing the street. With each step he feels that he will  “...Just go down, down, down and nobody'd ever see [him] again,” (217). Holden believes that growing up and becoming an adult means to lose his individuality. He believes falling into adulthood means “no one will see [him] again”.  The metaphor of falling stays consistent, as he’s worried he will fall “down, down, down”, further into adulthood where he will eventually lose himself. This gives readers insight into how Holden is feeling, as one can imagine how scary it could feel to be slowly falling. Each time Holden crosses the block, symbolizes the further Holden is getting in his journey, and the closer he is getting to adulthood. Each time Holden reached “ the end of a block [he’d] make believe [he] was talking to [his] brother Allie”. When he would step off the curb he would say to himself  “Allie don’t let me disappear...Please, Allie,” (218). Holden’s brother Allie died at a young age, freezing himself in his childhood. Holden asking Allie “...Please don’t let me disappear” suggests that Holden is asking to cling to his childhood, just as Allie had. His fear that he could “disappear” once again symbolizes his fear of losing himself and his individuality, both things he believes are consequences of becoming an adult. 

Holden uses the motif of the carousel to symbolize him slowly coming to terms with adulthood and what it means. At the end of the novel, Holden and his younger sister Phoebe go to a carousel at Central Park. When Phoebe gets up to get onto the carousel, Holden thinks “I was sort of afraid she’d fall off the goddamn horse, but I didn’t say anything,” (232). At various times throughout the novel Holden feels the need to shield or protect Phoebe from mature things, or growing up in general. Again, Holden acknowledges his fear of Phoebe growing up, but he decides to say nothing. This shows development towards Holden’s past fears associated with him, and other children growing up. The imagery of falling is used once again, except this time about Phoebe. This signifies that Phoebe is growing up, and Holden decides to do nothing to prevent this. Holden then says “The thing with kids is, if they want to grab the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off” (232). Once again, Holden reinforces the imagery of falling when he says “if they fall off, they fall off”. This is almost unrecognizable to the Holden who wanted to be the catcher in the rye, saving children from growing up. If a child wants to reach for the “gold ring, you have to let them do it,”. This could mean if a child wants to reach for growing up, there is nothing you can do. When Phoebe asks Holden if he wants to ride the carousel with her, he just says “No, I’ll just watch ya. I think I’ll just watch,” (232). Holden is showing a lot of development from his old self who wanted to save and prevent others from growing up and losing their innocence. By finally deciding to “just watch”, Holden has entered into adulthood. No longer does he want to protect Phoebe from growing up, but instead takes the more mature option and decides to sit back, and allow Phoebe to grow up and mature. 

Through the use of motifs, J.D. Salinger has been able to show Holden’s growth. At the beginning of the novel, Holden was terrified of him and others growing up. He did not want to become a member of society as he assumed it meant being exposed to pain and losing individuality. At the peak of the novel and conflict, readers witness Holden struggle the most, as he fears he is constantly falling into adulthood. Then, there is a shift, where Holden recognizes there is nothing he can do to prevent adulthood, and instead he decides to sit back through the motif of the carousel. As a young adult, Holden copes with a lot of common fears surrounding adulthood. He worries about losing his childish innocence and becoming subject to a world of hate and unfamiliarity. Holden’s character is very relatable to those about to become adults, but still want to hold on to pieces of their childhood.