In "The Catcher in the Rye," Holden wonders on several occasions where the Central Park ducks go during the winter, when the lagoon they usually live in is frozen over. The first time he thinks of this, he is being lectured by Mr. Spencer after failing in his class, and the two other times he is trying to strike up a conversation with taxi drivers. When Holden is with Mr. Spencer, we are shown that he is rather absent-minded (he is thinking about ducks while his teacher is talking to him). When he is in the taxis, he is obviously very lonely, and tries to keep himself occupied with something very trivial to help him forget about his solitude.
For most of the book, Holden is like a grumpy old man, complaining about this and that and angry at the world for a number of reasons. But when he thinks about the ducks in the Central Park Lagoon, he is showing us what's left of his infantile side. He is genuinely curious about what happens to the ducks, something seemingly irrelevant and unimportant. The ducks represent what little youthful curiosity there is left in Holden.
For most of the book, Holden is like a grumpy old man, complaining about this and that and angry at the world for a number of reasons. But when he thinks about the ducks in the Central Park Lagoon, he is showing us what's left of his infantile side. He is genuinely curious about what happens to the ducks, something seemingly irrelevant and unimportant. The ducks represent what little youthful curiosity there is left in Holden.
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