James

Chapter Summary (20)
Holden keeps getting drunk. He makes a phone call late at night to Sally which angers her grandmother. Holden then tries to make a date with the hat-check girl. He drops Phoebe’s record. He went to the park to see if he could find any ducks but he couldn’t find any. He thinks about catching pneumonia, dieing and imagines his funeral, he missed Allie’s funeral but used to visit his grave but stopped. He then decides to go pay Phoebe a visit at home while he thinks he parents are sleeping.
Symbolism is used three times in this chapter. The first time is the “red hunting hat” which can be a symbol for Holden’s uniqueness and individuality as well as being red like Phoebes and Allie’s hair which can show that Holden looks up to them as they are not only his loved siblings but as they can be a sign of innocence to him. The second time symbolism is used is the ducks in the pond. The ducks can be a symbol of being a child which can mean that since they can’t be found, he isn’t a child anymore, or the ducks could be a symbol of the stableness of Holden’s mind and since they cant be found, it can mean that Holden isn’t very stable. The third symbol is the “Little Shirley Beans’ record” which can be a symbol of childhood for Holden, or for Phoebe. Since it breaks it can mean that Holden isn’t a child anymore, however it can also mean that he can’t stop Phoebe from growing up.
Repetition is used in this chapter several times. It is used to emphasis certain points but however it can also be used to show the fact that Holden’s mind isn’t very organized so he repeats himself a lot and doesn’t know exactly what he said. It also shows that he is rambling on about mostly minor things which can relate to how certain things affected his life, such as Allie’s death.
The motif of ‘death’ also appears in this chapter. Holden thinks about dieing from pneumonia and imagines his funeral; he also talks about Allie who is dead. This could be foreshadowing the fact that there is something in the ending that could be surprising, the fact that Holden is in an institution. The effect of this is that we can see him as more human and realize that he isn’t insane.
This chapter shows that Holden isn’t one with the society around him, and that he is an outcast. It shows us by showing us how unstable his mind is during the chapter by using repetition and symbolism such as the ducks. It also shows that Holden can be like a child at times.