Thetrio

==== 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? ==== ==== -This symbol comes up whenever Holden mentions he is putting it on. Whenever he is by himself, is when he would wear it. It would make him feel some sort of protection due to the loneliness he feels at the time. His reason for wearing it makes the reader understand what it is used for. When the hunting cap comes up, we know that no one else is there but him. ====

==== 2. What is the mood when this idea or thing is brought up? Would you associate this with times when Holden in content? frightened? frantic? confused? Is this mood consistent with ever incidence of this motif? ==== ==== - The mood that Holden is in when he puts on the red hunting cap, is loneliness. He doesn't like to be alone, so he puts it on to pretend and feel like he is someone else. The red hunting cap is like protection; if he's uncomfortable or lonely at the time, then he will put it on to make him feel better. ====

==== 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? ==== ==== - The red hunting cap symbolizes Holden's loneliness. Almost every time he puts it on, he is alone or feeling depressed. The only time he was not alone, and the red hunting cap came up, was when he was with Phoebe. He even gave it to her to wear. The last time the hunting hat was brought up, Phoebe put it on Holden. Holden is afraid of being himself, and he does not like who he is, so he tries to pretend like he is someone else. It is a security blanket for him. At the end of the book he says "my hunting hat really gave me quite a lot of protection, in a way..." (213). He feels that no one will like him either, so he tries to change who he is. Holden wants to run away from it all towards the end of the book (198), and he meets Phoebe to say goodbye to her (206). He decided that he doesn't want to go away anymore (212). When Phoebe puts the hat on him (212), he realizes that he can't stop what is going to happen and he needs to just be himself. ====

==== 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? ==== ====- Holden puts on his Red hunting cap when he is alone and scared to be himself. He is afraid of growing up. He is afraid of the changes to come. He doesn’t even want other kids to grow up. When he sees the ‘f’ bomb written on the walls of Phoebe's school, he tries to rub it off (201). He also wants to be a catcher in the rye. This job is to stop the kids from jumping off the cliff. The other side of the cliff is adulthood. He doesn’t want other kids, or himself, to have to go through the changes of growing up, and he wants to be the catcher for the children that don't know where they're headed (173). He puts on his hat as a security blanket. ==== ====- Then hunting hat is red. This happens to be the same color of Allie and Phoebe's hair. He holds both of them to a very high standard. He wishes he was like them. He is not comfortable with himself. ====

====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. ==== ====-A pattern did emerge with the red hunting cap. No one else knows much about his hat, except for his sister Phoebe. When he finally gets to talk to her and feel close to her before he was going to leave, he exposes the hunting hat. Holden seems to always be lonely and by himself when he puts it on, because it makes him feel protected from the world.====

**I.** **Introduction**
==== a. Hook: Imagine being a little kid again, and not having your favorite teddy bear to sleep with at night. You'd feel empty and lonely inside, and you wouldn't feel like yourself. As life goes on and children grow up, you start to get over those things. But that doesn't mean other special objects wouldn't make you feel lonely or depressed when it's not around. Holden Caulfield, an average teenager, wouldn't go through life the same way without his red hunting hat. It's interesting think how this one hat could affect someone's life so much. It boosts Holden's confidence when he needs it, provides protection when he is lonely, and convinces his mind that he has much more time to grow up. Holden wears the red hunting hat because it protects him from reality of his life, and it makes him feel distant from adulthood.====

**II.** **Body One (Avenue one/Main reason 1) linked with THESIS STATEMENT**
==== a. Holden's red hunting hat seems to be not only used for physical comfort, but for keeping him mentally sane as well. When he wears the hat, it seems that he doesn't care what other people think about him or his appearance. Surprisingly, a simple hat has the ability to boost up the self-confidence of Holden, who happens to be depressed most of the time, just by putting it on. After his argument with Stradlater, he searches around for the hat. "I put it on, and turned the old peak around to the back, the way i liked it, and then I went over and took a look at my stupid face in the mirror" (Salinger 45). As he makes his way over to the mirror with the hat on, his confidence slowly increases. "I had blood all over my mouth and chin and even on my pajamas and bathrobe. It partly scared me and it party fascinated me. All that blood and all sort of made me look tough" (Salinger 45). Holden knows he is not too tough, and doesn't get in physical fights too often, but with the red hunting hat on his mind keeps racing with different thoughts than usual.==== ==== i. He would never think that he looked tough in the mirror with all that blood on his face, if he weren't wearing the hunting hat. It boosted up his confidence and changed his perspective on the fight he got into. ====

==== b. Holden is very different from most people, and by wearing his red hunting hat, it shows his unique personality. It shows that he wants to be isolated from the rest of the world, and his own person at the same time. The hat brings back memories, and makes him think a little more. It has significance, and there has to be reasons why the hat is red, or why he wears it when he needs to think. "People with red hair are supposed to get mad very easily, but Allie never did, and he had very red hair" (Salinger 38). When Holden writes about Allie, and describes his red hair, he wears the red hat. But this hat is still a hunting hat, and there should be some explanation behind that. It seems that Holden is hunting for an answer, a reason, and self-confidence when he wears the hat.==== ==== i. The hat is not like a normal hat, and it provides a unique look for him. No one would decide to throw on a hunting hat one day and wear it to go out. Holden wants to be his own person, and he feels confident to do so as he wears the hat. ====

==== c. It might be concluded that Holden would wear the red hunting hat for confidence in the real world, but he does not wear this hat in public. He waits for the privacy of himself to put it on. It is important to notice when Holden wears the hat and when he doesn't. He has some gray hairs, and the hunting hat would cover that up. When he is in the bar, he feels like he fits in because of his hair color. At this time, he is not wearing the hat. When Mrs. Morrow questions his ability to order drinks, he answers with confidence. "Well, no, not exactly, but I can usually get them on account of my height. And I have quite a bit of gray hair" (Salinger 57). Since Holden does not necessarily need his hat in this situation, he doesn't bother to put it on. He probably feels a sign of relief from being able to do such a thing without the protection of his hunting hat. Since he was having a good conversation with Mrs. Morrow, he didn't need the hat for confidence either. Everything seemed to be running smoothly, except for the fact that he kept lying. ==== ==== i. The fact that Holden didn't need his hat in the bar, it made him feel confident as well. If his hair weren't gray, he would most likely need it to make him feel or look older, or to simply just use it as a disguise. He seemed to be acting much more confident when he realized he didn't desperately need it at the time.====

**III.** **Body Two (Avenue one/Main reason 2) linked with THESIS STATEMENT**
==== a. Living at a school and having no parents around, Holden is lonely most of the time. He has no protection from the world or people around him. Whenever he is feeling lonely, he will put on the hunting hat as a sign of protection. While he was talking to Ackley, he was wearing the hat. It seemed like he owned the place, and that he was much better than him. He was actually speaking down to him instead of respecting him. "Up home we wear a hat like that to shoot dear in, for Chrissake, he said. That's a deer shooting hat. Like hell it is. I took it off and looked at it. I sort of closed one eye, like I was aiming at it. This is a people shooting hat, I said. I shoot people in this hat" (Salinger 22). ==== ==== i. The hunting hat gives Holden a way of protection. It makes him feel like he is not alone. Holden talks to Ackley like he has nothing to hide and that he doesn't feel lonely when he actually does. He simply doesn't want people to see his weak side. ==== ==== b. After the football game, Holden puts the hunting hat on. He is standing alone on top of the hill, looking down at the football game, and is starting to feel lonely. After the game, he goes up to his room with no one in there except him. He puts on his hat and starts reading a book. The hat symbolizes someone being there with him so he doesn't feel lonely. "It was pretty nice to get back to my room, after I left old Spencer, because everybody was down at the game, and the heat was on in our room, for a change. I felt sort of cozy. I took off my coat and tie and unbuttoned my shirt collar, and then I put on this hat that I'd bought in New York that morning" (Salinger 16). ====

i. When he walks into his room and sees that no one is there, he puts on his hat. The hat is a sign of a comfort and protection. He didn't want to feel lonely, so he wore the hat while he read.
==== c. After being at the bar late at night, Holden walked back to his hotel by himself. Since it was late, he was feeling kind of scared. Therefore, he threw on his hunting hat and continued to walk back. It was his source of protection from anything that could have approached him or got in his way. "There was hardly any snow on the sidewalks. But it was freezing cold, and I took my red hunting hunting hat out of my pocket and put it on- I didn't give a damn how I looked (Salinger 88). ====

**IV.** **Body Three (Avenue one/Main reason 3) linked with THESIS STATEMENT**
==== a. Holden wears his hat when he horses around. When he is reading a book and Ackley comes in the room, he starts horsing around. "Then i started horsing around a little bit . Sometimes I horse around quite a lot, just to keep from getting bored. What i did was, i pulled the old peak of my hunting hat around to the front, then pulled it way down over my eyes, that way i couldn't see a Goddamn thing. 'I think I'm going blind,' i said in this very hoarse voice. "Mother darling everything getting so dark in here" (Salinger 20). ==== ==== i. He says people tell him he doesn't act his age, but that's want he wants. He doesn't want to grow up. He wears the hat when he horses around, because it protects him for growing up and having to act his age.====

i. His hunting hat provided protection from growing up and facing reality. He gave it to Phoebe because he wants her to stay young forever and he thinks giving her this hat will help.
==== c. He realizes you cant stop adulthood no matter how hard to try. "All the kids kept trying to grab for the gold ring, and so was old Phoebe, and i was sort of afraid she'd fall off the god damn horse, but i didn't say anything or do anything. The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, the fall off but its bad if you say anything to them" (Salinger 211). "She reached into my coat pocket and took out my red hunting hat and put it on my head" (Salinger 212). ==== ==== i. He realizes then he cannot stop kids or himself from growing up. He was saying how you can't tell kids not to do certain things because they will never learn. Learning is just on part of adulthood. When phoebe puts that hate on him he knows that she wants to grow up and he can not stop that from happening. He also realizes he needs to do some growing up himself. ====

i. Avenue one (Main reason 1): Confidence
==== 1. He does most of his thinking while wearing the hunting hat, and it boosts up his self-confidence when he needs it. He feels protected from everyone's thoughts when he wears the hat, and acts like a different person.====

Imagine being a little kid again, going through a sleepless night without your favorite teddy bear. You'd feel pretty empty and lonely inside, or simply just not yourself. As life goes on and children grow up, they start to get over those things and realize depending on a toy to get by won't get you anywhere. But that doesn't mean other special things won't make someone feel lonely or depressed when it's not around for protection. Holden Caulfield, a teenage boy unlike anyone else, wouldn't experience life the same way without his red hunting hat. It boosts his confidence when he needs it, provides protection when he is lonely, and somehow makes him believe that he has much more time to grow up. Holden wears the red hunting hat because it protects him from reality of his life, and it makes him feel distant from adulthood.

Holden's red hunting hat is not only used for physical comfort, but for keeping him mentally sane as well. When he wears the hat, it seems that he doesn't care what other people think about him or his appearance. Surprisingly, a simple hat has the ability to boost up his self-confidence when he needs it most, like after his argument with Stradlater. "I put it on, and turned the old peak around to the back, the way I liked it, and then I went over and took a look at my stupid face in the mirror" (Salinger 45). As he makes his way over to the mirror, his confidence slowly increases. "I had blood all over my mouth and chin and even on my pajamas and bathrobe. It partly scared me and it party fascinated me. All that blood and all sort of made me look tough" (Salinger 45). Holden knows he is not tough and doesn't get in physical fights too often, but with the red hunting hat on his mind races with different thoughts than usual. Holden isn't the average teenager; he is very different from most people and this hunting hat gives everyone some input on his unique personality. But there is one problem with that, because he doesn't wear it in public; he waits for the privacy of himself to put it on. Holden wants to be his own person, and isolated from the rest of the world. There are some unfamiliar reasons behind why his hat is red, or why he wears it when he needs to think or bring back memories. "People with red hair are supposed to get mad very easily, but Allie never did, and he had very red hair" (Salinger 38). When Holden writes about Allie and describes his red hair, he wears the hunting hat that just so happens to be red as well. Holden may be wearing a hunting hat, and not a normal hat because it makes him feel like he's hunting for an answer, a reason, or self-confidence. It is important to notice when Holden wears the hat and when he doesn't. When he is in the bar, he feels like he fits in because of his gray hairs. At this time, he is not wearing the hat because it would cover it up. When Mrs. Morrow questions his ability to order drinks, he answers with confidence, but with quite a lot of nerve. "Well, no, not exactly, but I can usually get them on account of my height. And I have quite a bit of gray hair" (Salinger 57). Since Holden does not necessarily need his hat in this situation, he doesn't bother to put it on. Since he was having a good conversation with Mrs. Morrow, he didn't need the hat for a boost of confidence or something to change his look. Everything seemed to be running smoothly, except for the fact that he kept lying. Holden would not be able to do half the things he does without his precious red hunting hat.

Holden lives on his own at Pency, without his family. He doesn’t get along with his roommates or the people there, so he will definitely get lonely sometimes. He has no protection from the world or people around him, so during those times he puts on the red hunting hat, which symbolizes his loneliness. Holden wore the hat while he was talking to Ackley. "Up home we wear a hat like that to shoot dear in, for Chrissake, he said. That's a deer shooting hat. Like hell it is. I took it off and looked at it. I sort of closed one eye, like I was aiming at it. This is a people shooting hat, I said. I shoot people in this hat" (Salinger 22). Another time when Holden wears the hunting hat is after the football game. When he was saying goodbye to Pency after he got kicked out, he stood on top of the hill looking down at the game. He started to feel lonely, so he went back to his room afterward. No one was in there except for him, and he put on his hat and started reading a book. In this situation, the hunting hat was taking the place of a friend being there with him. "It was pretty nice to get back to my room, after I left old Spencer, because everybody was down at the game, and the heat was on in our room, for a change. I felt sort of cozy. I took off my coat and tie and unbuttoned my shirt collar, and then I put on this hat that I'd bought in New York that morning" (Salinger 16). After Holden was at the bar late at night, there was no one to protect him if he were to be approached, or if another person did something to him. So he put on the hat and just walked back to the hotel alone. He felt safe and less lonely when he put it on. "There was hardly any snow on the sidewalks. But it was freezing cold, and I took my red hunting hat out of my pocket and put it on- I didn't give a damn how I looked (Salinger 88). Holden says he was cold, but it was most likely for closure and protection.

Holden wears the red hunting hat as a form of protection from the adult world and growing up. He wears his hat when he horses around, like when he is reading a book and Ackley comes in the room. "Then I started horsing around a little bit. Sometimes I horse around quite a lot, just to keep from getting bored. What I did was, I pulled the old peak of my hunting hat around to the front, then pulled it way down over my eyes, that way I couldn't see a Goddamn thing. 'I think I'm going blind,' I said in this very hoarse voice. "Mother darling everything getting so dark in here"(Salinger 20). He says how people tell him he doesn't act his age, but as a reader, we can tell that’s want he wants. He doesn't want to grow up. He horses around because it makes him feel like a kid again and it makes him feel protected or far away from adulthood. He doesn't want other kids to grow up either. “But while I was sitting down, I saw something that drove me crazy. Somebody’d written, 'fuck you' on the wall. It drove me damn near crazy. I thought how Phoebe and all the other little kids would see it, and how they would wonder what the hell it meant..”(Salinger 201). He does not want Phoebe or any other kid to know what this means and he wants them to stay innocent forever, to never grow up. He gives Phoebe the hat to wear when he is planning on running away. "Then I took my hunting hat out of my coat pocket a gave it to her" (Salinger 180). His hunting hat provided protection from facing reality and eventually growing up. He wants her to stay young and he thinks giving her his hat will keep her from growing up. Holden was ready to try to start a new life and get away from all of his problems. He wanted Phoebe to stay the same as she is now and not get caught up in all the changes you go through when you reach adulthood. At the end of the book, he realizes you can’t stop yourself or anyone else from growing up no matter how hard to try. "All the kids kept trying to grab for the gold ring, and so was old Phoebe, and I was sort of afraid she'd fall off the goddam horse, but I didn't say anything or do anything. The thing with kids is, if they want to grab fro the gold ring you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, the fall off but its bad if you say anything to them" (Salinger 211). "She reached into my coat pocket and took out my red hunting hat and put it on my head" (Salinger 212). He realizes then you can’t stop someone from growing up and becoming an adult, it's bound to happen no matter what. He was also saying how you can’t tell kids not to do certain things, because they will never learn. Learning is just one part of growing up and being an adult. When Phoebe puts the hunting hat on Holden, he knows that she wants to grow up and he cannot it that from happening. He also realizes he needs to do some growing up himself.

Holden wears the red hunting hat because it protects him from reality of his life, and it makes him feel distant from adulthood. He does most of his thinking while wearing the hat, and it boosts up his self-confidence when he needs it. He even feels protected from everyone's thoughts and acts like a different person. The hat also prevents him from feeling lonely. He doesn't show people his weak side when the hunting hat is on. Holden doesn't want to accept the reality of adulthood. He is afraid of growing up and the hat helps him feel like a young kid again. In the end, Holden learns that a hat wont stop you from feeling lonely, and it also can't stop a person from growing up; you just need to live life and let things happen the way they should.