Description of Holden's Red Hunting Hat
- “I put on this hat that I’d bought in New York that morning. It was this red hunting hat, with one of those very, very long peaks....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.” (17-18)
After visiting Mr. Spencer, Holden returns back to his room and puts on the red hunting hat he bought that afternoon in New York. This is after he left the fencing team equipments on the subway. - “”Up home we wear a hat like that to shoot deer in, for Chrissake," he said. "That's a deer shooting hat.”…I took it off and looked at it. I sort of closed one eye, like I was taking aim at it. "This is a people shooting hat," I said. "I shoot people in this hat." (22)
Holden talks about how he “shoots people” in this hat. The hat allows him to imagine and escape reality. - “I was out of breath anyway, so I quit horsing around. I took off my hat and looked at it for about the ninetieth time.” (29)
Holden mentions about how he really likes the hunting hat, and that he “looked at it for about the ninetieth time”. Even Stradlater compliments about his hat. - “I pulled the peak of my hunting hat around to the front all of a sudden, for a change. I was getting sort of nervous, all of a sudden. I'm quite a nervous guy.” (34)
Holden is really nervous and worried about Jane and Stradlater’s date. He turns his hat to the peak and wears it. - “I couldn't find my goddam hunting hat anywhere. Finally I found it. It was under the bed. 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.” (45)
After losing the fight to Stradlater, Holden feels embarrassed, and he puts on his hunting hat. - “I was sort of crying. I don’t know why. I put my red hunting hat on, and turned the peak around to the back, the way I liked it, and then I yelled at the top of my goddam voice, "Sleep tight, ya morons…” (52)
Holden decides to leave Pencey Prep earlier and go to New York. He wears the red hunting hat with the peak at the back. - “…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.” (88)
While Holden is on the way back to his hotel in New York, it is snowing. So he puts on his red hunting hat. - “Then I took my red hunting hat out of my coat pocket and gave it to her. She likes those crazy hats.” (180)
Before Holden leaves, he gives Phoebe his red hunting hat. Although Phoebe doesn’t want to keep it, he still makes Phoebe hold on to it. - "Then what she did--it damn near killed me--she reached in my coat pocket and took out my red hunting hat and put it on my head..." (212)
When Holden and Phoebe goes to the zoo, Holden takes Phoebe to the carousel. Then it started to rain. Phoebe reached into Holden’s pocket and grab his red hunting hat, and put it on his head. - "My hunting hat really gave me quite a lot of protection, in a way, but I got soaked anyway." (213).
After Phoebe puts on the red hunting hat for Holden, he mentions about how he feel protected with the hat, and that he is happy about what Phoebe did for him.
Significance of Holden's Hunting Hat
In The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, the red hunting hat is really significant to Holden. From Holden’s perspective, we can tell that the red hunting hat means a lot to him. He always wears it “the way he likes” (with the peak at the back) when he is feeling down and lonely. The hat allows him to imagine and escape reality. It basically comforts him whenever he feels bad. For example, when Holden heard that Jane and Stradlater are going on a date, he mentioned, “I was sort of crying. I don’t know why. I put my red hunting hat on, and turned the peak around to the back, the way I liked it… (52)" This shows when Holden is sad, he “turns the peak (of the hat) around to the back”, the way he likes it. The hat comforts him when he turns the peak around to the back. “My hunting hat really gave me quite a lot of protection, in a way... (213)." Holden mentions how the hat gives him protection when Phoebe puts it on him while it was raining. This shows that Holden feel protected when he puts on the hat. Which is also why this hat plays a significant role to Holden. Also, Holden calls his hat a “people shooting hat” (22). This is because when he wears the hat, he gets into his own little world where he can escape reality and his depression. In the imaginative world (with the hat on), he feels protected, and he can shoot people that he does not like. He can basically be himself when he puts on the hat. He don’t need to face his depression and reality so this is why he always feel comforted wearing the red hunting hat. At the end of the book, Holden gives the hat to Phoebe. “Then I took my red hunting hat out of my coat pocket and gave it to her. She likes those crazy hats (180)." To Holden, the hat gives him protection, and he wants Phoebe to feel protected as well. But later on Phoebe returns the hat to Holden because she believes that the hat will preserve her innocence, and she won’t be able to grow up. However, at the end of the story, Holden realises that the hat will stop protecting him one day. Finally, Holden understands that one day in the future, he will need to face the problems that he have been avoiding in the past.