The novel “The Catcher in the Rye” revolves around the protagonist Holden Caulfield and the story is told from his point of view. JD Salinger built Holden Caulfield as a cynical person who cannot accept growing up. Throughout "The Catcher in the Rye", JD Salinger uses symbolism to reveal and reinforce the critical aspects of the protagonist Holden Caulfield. Three important aspects that Holden gained through Salinger's use of symbolism are: his stubborn and uncompromising mentality; his softer, more attentive and respectful side; Holden's cowardly way of acting and thinking. An important trait of Holden's character is stubbornness. Holden is unwilling to accept his problems and let others help him. It is equally important to realize that Holden's stubbornness is fatal to change, if not development. One of the first symbols introduced is Holden's red hunting hat. “It’s a shooting hat for people. I photograph people with this hat. (3.31)” gives signs that this hat is a way of distancing oneself from the world. When Holden explains that it's for shooting people; shooting actually means calling them fake to stubbornly protect themselves from the outside world. During Holden's visit to Phoebe's school, the f**k you signs on the wall are a way of representing negative influences on children. Holden's stubbornness is shown when he attempts to erase them from the wall, although he states "you couldn't even erase half the 'F**k You' signs in the world." (25.18).” The meaning of the symbol in relation to history is understood. that it would be pointless to even erase all the negative influences from the world because they would simply reappear, except that the protagonist cannot accept the reality of the situation. Jump directly to the end of the novel, when Phoebe...... middle of paper ......e/http://flavorwire.com/308969/http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/ tag /holden-caulfieldhttp://www.shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/mummies-symbol.htmlhttp://www.shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/james-castle-mr-antolini -quote-more-about-death- symbol.html http://www.shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/phoebe-notebook-even-more-about-holden-narrative-technique-though-we - everything-thought-it-was-not-possible-symbol.html http://www.shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/phoebe-carousel-gold-ring-symbol.htmlhttp:/ /www. shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/fuck-you-signs-on-walls-symbol.htmlhttp://www.shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/little-shirley-beans-record- symbol.htmlhttp://www.shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/museum-indian-room-symbol.htmlhttp://www.shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/ducks-fish- other-wildlife-symbol.htmlhttp://www.shmoop.com/catcher-in-the-rye/holden-red-hunting-hat-symbol.html