Allie Died: What Did He Stand For?

Allie died of cancer at age eleven. Other than innocence, what did he represent?  Both he and James Castle could symbolize innocence sacrificed on the alter of adulthood. Though Castle died violently, an apparent suicide, neither boy was guilty of some egregious wrongdoing. Religious rituals have involved the taking of innocent life, with Jesus being a prominent example. Through his poetry, Allie stood for art. And James Castle, by refusing to submit to fascist bulling, stood for freedom of the human spirit.

People always seem reluctant to talk about the ones who have died. People die and everyone's in a big hurry to forget about them. "Put it behind you," they say. "Let bygones be bygones."

No one talks about the dead and what their lives meant, what they stood for, or failed at while striving for something. But not Holden. Holden is haunted by the deaths of James Castle and Allie.
Innocent kids aren't supposed to die, but they do all the time and when they do it raises the ante on the bet made each time a child is born. Life means something. And when it stops we need to park the car, turn off the radio and think.

There were two alcohol-related death during my kids' high school years and nobody wanted to talk about it. Grief counselors should have been brought in at school. Nothing. Kids just went on with their cheerleading and football games and pep rallies and two kids' lives got brushed under the rug. Detritus on the soles of restless Reeboks and Nikes.

Holden Cauflield was profoundly affected by the deaths of Allie and James. He can't move on. He didn't cry at Allie's funeral. He's a basket case because he needs to grieve. He is forced to face what these two lives mean to him.

Allie speaks to us through Holden's "madman stuff" and the poems he wrote on his baseball glove. The deaths of Allie and James could represent not just the metaphoric death of childhood on the odyssey toward adulthood, but the deaths of all innocent people.

Holden still has the glove. He's holding onto it. He can't let go. A physical treasure of leather anointed with Allie's sweat and creativity.

If there were a sequel to Catcher in the Rye, what do you think Holden will do with Allie's glove?

When we die we leave a legacy, of things and of memories. The grim tally at Gettysburg gave Abraham Lincoln ample reason to give the value of life considerable thought: "...that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion --that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain."

What is a life worth? It's a question that each of us in our own individual way, moment by moment, lives into an answer.

Catcher: The Red Hat and Names

I have covered the Central Park ducks in a separate post, but symbolism can be a matter of how far you want to take it.

The red hat could be just a way for Holden to have fun with something as functional as head protection during cold weather. It's probably something Salinger actually did as a kid at Valley Forge Military Academy, a gesture of defiance and independence or a way to get attention. It also serves as a gesture of intimacy when he and Phoebe swap it back and forth. There may be some significance to her slapping it back on Holden's head at the end, perhaps signifying he's been claimed as Phoebe's trophy for being rescued.

Or if you want to take the red hat thing deeper, Holden says it's "a people hunting hat." It's red. Allie's hair is red. Holden has Allie's baseball mitt. Holden wears the hat  backwards, like a baseball catcher. Holden wants to be a "catcher in the rye" for children. Red and backwards are also signs of rebellion or defiance.

Either way, the red hat stands out. It makes us sit up and think. Any kid wearing a red hunting hat in the city, you'd think he'd just come from a sporting goods store. Or he was being silly or was a tad bit off-kilter, both of which apply to Holden.


The only name of outright significance to me is Ed Bankey, who is possibly named after WWII fighter pilot Ernest Bankey, famous for becoming Ace-in-a-day during the horrific Battle of the Bulge in which Salinger fought.

The name "Holden" could imply holding back from growing up, holding on to innocence, holding onto sanity, stopping time, although that seems rather weak.

If you're into Greek mythology, Phoebe was the Titan goddess of "bright" intellect, which resonates ironically with "Sunny," the child prostitute, tarnished, so-to-speak, by her profession, a shining example of the tarnished innocence Holden wants to protect. Seeing Sunny within the context of his own precious sister Phoebe could have erased any sexual desire Holden had after Maurice's proposition.

Relying on symbols that refer to Greek mythology is risky proposition because the meaning is lost on the vast majority of readers who are unfamiliar with Greek mythology. It can also be seen as elitist and alienate some readers. It can also be a crutch. An author who relies heavily on external works can be seen as either lazy or lacking imagination and ingenuity.



(My thanks to my lit-chums at Goodreads for pointing out some of this.)