Dazedandconfused

Evan Reiff and Robert Ewing

Ducks in Central Park Chapter 9 pg 60 Chapter 12 pg 81 Chapter 20 pg 154

Prewriting

1) How does the symbol/motif come up in the novel, and how does it impact what is going on? What happens immediately preceding or immediately following a mention or discussion of this idea or thing?
 * The symbol comes up when Holden feels like running away. When this comes up, he is either drunk or going to get a drink. "I went down in the elevator again and got a cab and told the driver to take me down to Ernie's. Ernie's is this night club in Greenwich Village that my brother D.B. used to go to quite frequently before he went out to Hollywood and prostituted himself." ... "Hey Horwitz, you ever pass by the lagoon in Central Park?" "Yeah, What about it?" "Well, you know the ducks that swim around in it? In the springtime and all? Do you happen to know where they go in the wintertime, by any chance?" (pg 80 - 81)

2) What is the mood when this idea or thing is brought up? Would you associate this with times when Holden is content? frightened? frantic? confused? Is this mood consistent with every incidence of this motif?
 * The mood of the book when Holden talks or thinks about the ducks in Central Park is sad and depressed. I would not associate this with times when Holden is content, frightened, or frantic. I would associate with times when Holden is confused, because when he doesn't really know who he is, or what he wants to do next, he is sad and depressed. "So what I did, I started walking over to the park. I figured I'd go by that lake and see what the hell the ducks were doing, see if they were around or not. I still didn't know if they were around or not. It wasn't far over to the park, and I didn't have anyplace else special to got-I didn't even know where I was going to sleep yet-so I went. I wasn't tired or anything. I just felt blue as hell." (pg 153 - 154). The mood is consistent every time he thinks about the ducks.

3) Is Holden alone when this motif/symbol occurs? If not, with whom is he interacting? How would you characterize that interaction? Does this motif occur both when he is alone and when he is with other people? Is there a connection to be made?
 * Holden is mostly driving in a taxi when he asks about the ducks and he is almost always drunk or going someplace to drink.He is interacting with the taxi drivers.I would characterize this as being confused because he does not understand why no one knows what happens to the ducks also the taxi drivers are confused because they do not understand why Holden is asking such a strange question.

4) What does this motif/symbol tell you about Holden, in a “big picture” way - Does this suggest anything about his personality? His weaknesses or strengths? His sense of himself?
 * It shows that he thinks that life may be better as a duck. He feels that if the ducks were taken away in a truck in the winter they would be more like him because they do not have a choice of where they want to go. Holden thinks the ducks fly away or stay at the pond in the winter. If the ducks lived on their own he almost feels he would rather be a duck because then he would have freedom. Holden senses that he is not free and does not have the choice to do what ever he wants.

5) Tie it all together: Did any pattern emerge? Pick out other words or ideas used in conjunction with this motif. Look back on your investigation and come up with a single sentence that sums up what you’ve discovered.
 * Every time the ducks were mentioned, Holden was depressed and drunk. Other words used in conjunction with this motif are depressed and drunk. When Holden is depressed and wants to go away, he thinks about the ducks in Central Park and gets drunk because he wants be be like a duck and escape and make his own decisions.

> **I.** **Introduction** > a. Hook > Everyone has had those days when they are very sad and depressed, and all they want to do is run away.
 * **Project outline format**
 * **Directions: Use the format below to create the outline for your final essay. Each component of the outline should be completed in FULL sentences. Your supporting details should be specific and properly cited in MLA format (keep in mind, you cite quotes, paraphrases and summaries).**

b. thesis >>>>>> i. main 1 >>>>>> ii. main 2 >>>>>> iii. main3
 * Well, in the novel __Catcher in the Rye__ by J.D. Salinger, when Holden is depressed and wants to go away, he thinks about the ducks in Central Park and gets drunk because he wants be be like a duck and escape and make his own decisions.
 * Holden gets depressed a lot in the book which makes him think about the ducks in Central Park and what it would be like to fly away.
 * When Holden is depressed and/or lonely, he is drinking, which helps him escape reality.
 * Holden wants to make his own decisions, but sometimes, he still feels like a child and wants people to make the decisions for him.

> a. "The first thing i did when I got off at Penn Station, I went into this phone booth. I felt like giving somebody a buzz. I left my bags right outside the booth so that I could watch them, but as soon as I was inside, I couldn't think of anybody to call up" (Salinger pg 59). > i. This would make anybody sad because they can't talk to anyone. > b. "There was hardly anybody in the lobby any more. Even all the whory-looking blondes weren't around any more, and all of a sudden I felt like getting the hell out of the place. It was too depressing" ( Salinger pg 80). > i. Even if you are really happy at the time, if you walk into a place that is depressing, it can really bring you down and make you want to leave, and thats what Holden did. > c. "Have just one more drink. Please. I'm lonesome as hell. No kidding" ( Salinger pg 149). > i. Being alone can make you depressed and bring you down, and on top of that, he was really drunk. > > **III.** Holden wants to escape reality a lot, and he does this when he is depressed and/or lonely. > a. "I ordered a Scotch and soda, and told him not to mix it-I said it fast as hell, because if you hem and haw, they think you're twenty-one and won't sell you any intoxicating liquor. I had trouble with him anyway though" (Salinger pg 69) > i. Even though Holden didn't get his drink, he wanted to escape reality and be free. > b. "I ordered a Scotch and soda, which is my favorite drink, next to frozen Daiquiris" (Salinger pg 85) > i. Holden finally got his drink and can escape reality. > c. > i. > **IV.** Holden can't make up his mind if he wants to make his own decisions or not. He is told different things every time. a. " Listen, if you was a fish, Mother Nature'd take care of you, wouldn't she? Right? You don't think them fish just die when it gets to be winter, do ya?" (Salinger pg 83). i. The cab driver is telling Holden that the fish don't really make their own decisions. In a way, he is telling Holden, the duck, that he doesn't need to make his own decisions. b. "Here's my idea. I know this guy down in Greenwich Village that we can borrow his car for a couple of weeks. He used to go to the same school as i did and he still owes me ten bucks. What we could do is, tomorrow morning we could drive up to Massachusetts and Vermont, and all around there, see." ... "I have about a hundred and eighty bucks in the bank. I can take it out when it opens in the morning, and then I could go down and get this guy's car" (Salinger pg 132). i. Holden is convinced that he and Sally could make their own decisions and make it on their own for a while, but Sally doesn't. c. "Then finally, I found it. What it was, it was partly frozen and partly not frozen. But I didn't see any ducks around" ( Salinger pg 154). i. Holden finds out that the ducks do fly away in the winter, and to be like a duck in the winter, he would have to run away, which he eventually thinks of doing later in the book. He knows if he goes through with it, he would have to make his own decisions, which he has been doing for the past few days.
 * **II.** Holden is not the happiest kid in the world, but it seems like he is depressed a lot throughout the book and wants to run away.

> a. Holden wants to become one of the ducks in Central Park when he is depressed and wants to escape reality. > i. In the book we see holden depressed a lot. This signifies that he wants to be like a duck and fly away > 1. This reaffirms the thesis because it is shows that he is depressed alot and says that he wants to be like a duck and fly away > ii. For Holden, drinking helps him escape reality, which he does when he is depressed or alone. > 1. This reaffirms the thesis because it states that drinking helps him escape reality.It says he does this when he is depressed,Holden thinks about the ducks when he is drunk and depressed. > iii. Holden does not know weather or not he if he wants to make his own decisions ,because he is told different things by different symbols/people. > 1. this reaffirms the thesis because he is always confused about what happens to the ducks and does not always know what to think about them. > iv. Concluding statement
 * **V.** **Conclusion**

  __The Ducks in Central Park__ Everyone has had those days when they are very sad and depressed, and all they want to do is run away. Well, in the novel Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, when Holden is depressed and wants to go away, he thinks about the ducks in Central Park and gets drunk because he wants be like a duck and escape and make his own decisions. Holden gets depressed a lot in the book, which makes him think about the ducks in Central Park and what it would be like to fly away. When Holden is depressed and/or lonely, he is drinking, which helps him escape reality. Finally, Holden wants to make his own decisions, but sometimes, he still feels like a child and wants people to make the decisions for him. Holden is not the happiest kid in the world, but it seems like he is depressed a lot throughout the book and wants to run away. "The first thing i did when I got off at Penn Station, I went into this phone booth. I felt like giving somebody a buzz. I left my bags right outside the booth so that I could watch them, but as soon as I was inside, I couldn't think of anybody to call up" (Salinger 59). This would make anybody sad because they can't talk to anyone. "There was hardly anybody in the lobby any more. Even all the whory-looking blondes weren't around any more, and all of a sudden I felt like getting the hell out of the place. It was too depressing" (Salinger 80). Even if you are really happy at the time, if you walk into a place that is depressing, it can really bring you down and make you want to leave, and that’s what Holden did. "Have just one more drink. Please. I'm lonesome as hell. No kidding" (Salinger 149). Being alone can make you depressed and bring you down, and on top of that, he was really drunk. Holden wants to escape reality a lot, and he does this when he is depressed and/or lonely. "I ordered a Scotch and soda, and told him not to mix it-I said it fast as hell, because if you hem and haw, they think you're twenty-one and won't sell you any intoxicating liquor. I had trouble with him anyway though" (Salinger 69). Even though Holden didn't get his drink, he wanted to escape reality and be free. "I ordered a Scotch and soda, which is my favorite drink, next to frozen Daiquiris" (Salinger 85). Holden finally got his drink and can escape reality. Holden can't make up his mind if he wants to make his own decisions or not. He is told different things every time. "Listen, if you was a fish, Mother Nature'd take care of you, wouldn't she? Right? You don't think them fish just die when it gets to be winter, do ya?" (Salinger 83). The cab driver is telling Holden that the fish don't really make their own decisions. In a way, he is telling Holden, the duck that he doesn't need to make his own decisions. "Here's my idea. I know this guy down in Greenwich Village that we can borrow his car for a couple of weeks. He used to go to the same school as i did and he still owes me ten bucks. What we could do is, tomorrow morning we could drive up to Massachusetts and Vermont, and all around there, see." ... "I have about a hundred and eighty bucks in the bank. I can take it out when it opens in the morning, and then I could go down and get this guy's car" (Salinger 132). Holden is convinced that he and Sally could make their own decisions and make it on their own for a while, but Sally doesn't. "Then finally, I found it. What it was, it was partly frozen and partly not frozen. But I didn't see any ducks around" (Salinger 154). Holden finds out that the ducks do fly away in the winter, and to be like a duck in the winter, he would have to run away, which he eventually thinks of doing later in the book. Holden wants to become one of the ducks in Central Park when he is depressed and wants to escape reality. In the book we see Holden depressed a lot. This signifies that he thinks about wanting to become to be a duck and fly away when he is depressed. For Holden, drinking helps him escape reality, which he does when he is depressed or alone. When Holden drinks, that is his way of becoming one of the ducks in Central Park. Holden does not know weather or not he if he wants to make his own decisions, because he is told different things by different symbols/people. Holden is always confused about what happens to the ducks and does not always know what to think about them.