The rattle in the car and the baseball mitt have one
similarity. This similarity is that they both have a symbolic meaning. The
symbolic meaning of the baseball mitt is for Holden to always remember his
brother Allie who died. The symbolic meaning of the rattle in the car is it’s
just like a thorn in your side that only you can deal with.
In the article the author uses the rattle in
the newish car to show that if that was her biggest problem of the day then she
should be extremely fortunate. She goes on to say that this so called problem
is really just a small thorn in her side. The author explains that everyone has
a rattle, and that rattle provides you with comfort once you realize what it is
and can get over it.
The second half of this article can definitely relate to Holden
in The Catcher in the Rye because Holden’s rattle is Allie’s baseball
mitt. Allie’s baseball mitt is Holden’s rattle because it gives him comfort
because he understands everything about the mitt. Also, the mitt bring back the
memories that Holden made with his brother Allie. In the article the narrator
says “I hope this moment of understanding
and acknowledgement gives you some comfort” (Darynkagan). This shows that by
Holden being able to understand his rattle he is able to get comfort from it.
I like how you used Allie's baseball mitt as an example - I thought it was a good one. One quote that really shows how close Holden was to Allie is, "I slept in the garage the night he died, and I broke all the godd** windows with my fist..." (Salinger 50). This moment captures how strongly Holden felt for his younger brother. Do you think that Holden has any other rattles?
ReplyDeleteThank you for your feedback. to answer your question I do think Holden has other rattles. One of which includes his loneliness that he is currently experiencing. In chapter 9 Holden calls an old friend in the middle of the night. When she first picks up she says, "Who's calling me at this crazy god*** hour?"(Salinger 83). Holden has been so lonely that he called a girl he barely knows late at night just to talk. This absolutely shows how Holden has other rattles.
DeleteLogan, I loved the comfort aspect you incorporated within your blog post when relating to the baseball mitt. We are introduced to Jane and are told about how Holden thinks about her alottttt... he says, "Jane was different. We'd get into the movie or something and we'd start holding hands, we couldn't quit till the movie was over. All you knew was you were happy... Jane did something that just about knocked me out" (79)... do you think Jane is also a possible rattle in his life too along side his brother???
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you in the fact that Holden is constantly reminded by the baseball mitt. It's definitely the perfect analogy in relation to the rattle of the car, with the baseball mitt being a rattle. Is it possible that maybe Holden keeps the glove because it's the last thing that ties him to his brother? that maybe he doesn't want to lose his brother completely? though it might seem odd; the baseball mitt might be holden's rattle, but in this case it might actually be that holden has chosen to keep his rattle, because it helps him in some ways. What do you think?
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