The Red Hunting Hat

The red hunting hat made appearances throughout The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger. At the beginning of the novel, we first learn about the Red Hunting Hat that Holden bought in New York. At the beginning it did not really seem relevant to the novel and to Holden as a person, but as you read on you begin to understand. The first point where I began to see the red hunting hat's importance was when he picked it up from the hat-check girl.  I learned that the hat really became a part of him. After Holden picked up his hat, he stated, "She [the hat-check girl] was very nice though. I showed her my goddam red hunting hat and she liked it. She made me put it on before I went out, because my hair was still pretty wet" (Salinger, 153). At this point in the novel, I realized what the red hunting hat symbolized: individuality. When the hat-check girl made him put it on before he left, she was really saying to be yourself when you leave here and not the person that other people want you to be. Since no other person in the novel owned a red hunting hat, it was a symbol of who Holden was. Even though it may have looked weird and ridiculous he was proud to wear it because it was who he was. He learned that he maybe different but he should always be himself.