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Topic: Red Hunting Hat 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 Red hunting hat comes up in the novel when Holden went to New York City. Holden did not want to be all alone when everyone was out, so he went to the city to walk around to give him something to do. He ended up buying a red hunting hat that had a very long peak for one buck. This hat is goofy-looking but it represents Holden's personality and how he is different and does not really care what other people think. Right after Holden got back from the city he was interrupted while reading by Ackley, who was an irritating pimply boy who does not have a lot of friends.

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? -Holden feels depressed because he does not have a lot of friends at Pencey, or a group of friends that ask him to hang out. He bought this hat and he was happy because it gives him a memory of his times at Pencey, even if they were not good times but it gives a memory. His mood is the same throughout the novel because he was very affected by his brothers death and he never really lets out his feelings, he holds it in which makes him even more depressed.

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 alone when he buys the red hunting hat. When he gets back to Pencey, Ackley comes to his room so is he no longer by himself. Holden does not wear his red hunting hat when he is around people he knows, but he does wear it when he does not know anyone, he may be embarassed of the way it looks. When he does not know people I do not think he cares what they think because his personality is very different then others.

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? -Wearing the red hunting hat shows that Holden does not care what anyone thinks. The hat is very strange looking and that shows that Holden has a very different personality. It shows his strengths, because he is strong enough to ignore rude comments that people might say to him to make fun of the hat. He seems to always wear the hat in situations when he does not know anyone.

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. -The pattern that occurred was Holden never wore the hat around people he knew, but he always wore it when he was alone or out somewhere he knew people would not see him. He obviously does not want to get made fun of for his hat because it is so abnormal.

Outline

I. Holden buys a red hunting hat. a. Is there anything in your life that symbolizes you? b. Holden bought a red hunting hat in New York City for one dollar that represents him as a person. i. Holden does not wear the red hunting hat when he is around people he knows. ii. The red hunting hat represents Holden and his personality. iii. Holden wears the red hunting hat because it makes him feel connected to his brother Allie who died.

II. One morning, when Holden was out in New York City he saw a stand selling hats, he bought a red hunting hat. a. Holden bought the hat in New York. “It was this red hunting hat, with one of those very, very long peaks. I saw it in the window of this sports store when we got out of the subway, just after I noticed I’d lost all the goddam foils. It only cost me a buck. (J.D. Salinger, p. 17) i. Holden describes the hat like it is strange, so when he is around people he knows he probably does not want to get made fun of the way it looks. b. Holden wears the hat to show that he is an outgoing person and does not go along with the style everyone else has. i. He is not afraid to do something that is different. c. Holden lost his brother when he was a kid. i. The hat is red, just like the color of his brother Allie’s hair.

III. The red hunting hat symbolizes Holden’s personality. a. The way I wore it, I swung the old peak way around to the black-very corny, I’ll admit, but I liked it that way. I looked good in it that way.” (J.D. Salinger, p. 17) i. The hat means a lot to him so he enjoys wearing it when he is around unfamiliar people. b. The hat with the long peak is very unusual looking. i. Holden does not wear it in public to avoid embarrassment. c. Allie died as a kid. i. Holden needs to feel connected to his brother and the hair color and the hair are identical.

IV. Holden is a very depressed young boy. a. When Holden does not wear the hat, he probably is upset and empty. i. When Holden wears the hat, he feels like a part of his brother is with him. b. The hat is bright red like the color of Allies hair. i. Allie and their sister both had bright red hair, but Holden did not. He probably feels like one of them with the hat on. c. Holden cannot go a day without thinking about Allie. i. Holden misses Allie so much, and without him he feels lost so wearing the hat makes him feel like he has a piece of Allie with him.

V. Holden should do anything he can to make himself a better person. a. If the red hunting hat makes him happy then he should definitely wear it all of the time. i. Holden should not worry about what other people might think. b. If Holden wants to keep Allie in his life, then he should remember all of the memories of his brother. i. He should think of the memories all of the time. c. Holden should do everything that makes him happy. i. Even if Holden has to think of sad times with his brother, he will become a stronger person.

Essay- Red Hunting Hat The red hunting hat makes a difference in Holden’s personality. There is something in everyone’s life that symbolizes them. Holden went to New York City while he was at his school and he bought a hat that changed him as a person. Holden does not wear the hat when he is around people he knows. The hat represents Holden and his personality by him showing that he is not afraid to look different. Also, Holden wears the hat because it makes him feel connected to his brother Allie who had died years ago. One morning, when Holden was out in New York City he saw a store selling hats, so he decided to buy a red hunting hat. After he bought the hat, he started to wear it more often and he felt more comfortable with himself. “It was this red hunting hat, with one of those very, very long peaks. I saw it in the window of this sports store when we got out of the subway, just after I noticed I’d lost all the goddam foils. It only cost me a buck.” (Salinger. 17) Holden describes the hat as strange, so when he is around people he knows he probably does not want to get made fun of for the way it looks. Holden wears the red hunting hat to show that he is an outgoing person and does not go along with the style everyone else has. He is not afraid to do something that is different. Holden can be a difficult person to get along with. He has his own views on things in life, and anyone else’s opinion does not mean anything to him, so he does what he wants to do. When he bought the red hunting hat, Holden felt like a different person. He seemed to be confident. “The way I wore it, I swung the old peak way around to the back-very corny. I’ll admit, but I liked it that way. I looked good in it that way.” (Salinger. 17) Something about the hat changed Holden. He was happy wearing his red hunting hat. Holden also seemed to not care what strangers thought of him, but he did not wear the hat when he knew he would be around people that knew him. Holden wore the hat when he went to the bar and met the three older ladies, he wore it on the train when he met his classmates mom, and he also wore it when he went to the other bar Holden’s brother D.B. used to go to, before he moved to Hollywood. Even though it is not said, Holden is very depressed. Ever since his brother Allie died, everything seems to go wrong for Holden. Allie had bright red hair, along with their younger sister Phoebe. When Holden bought the hat, he immediately thought of Allie. So now, when he wears the hat, he feels connected to Allie- like he has the red hair too. Allie was loved by everyone especially by Holden, and wearing the hat makes him also feel that his brother is with him and still living life, but by Holden’s side. When Holden does not wear the red hat, he gets very upset because he thinks of Allie everyday and without the hat, he gets even more depressed. “Then I took my hunting hat out of my coat pocket and gave it to her. She likes those kind of crazy hats. She didn’t want to take it, but I made her. I’ll bet she slept with it on.” (Salinger 180) Holden says that he bets Phoebe slept with the hat, because along with Holden thinking Allie is with him, she probably feels connected to her brother and by wearing the hat, Phoebe feels like Holden is with her even though he left again. Holden should wear the hat twenty four-seven, if that is what makes him happy. Even though he has his own opinions, he should not even care about what people he knows think of him is he is wearing the stranger, red hunting hat. Holden loves wearing his hat, and it helps him not be upset about his loss of his brother. He feels connected to Allie by wearing his hat and he feels like he is still with him. It really does make Holden feel better. The red hunting hat does change Holden from a grouchy person, to a nice person. It is basically like Holden is looking up to Allie, since he was such a great person.