In the Catcher of in the Rye chapter 16 The main character, who is going to Central Park to find his sister Phoebe, whom he loves very much, says a famous remark explaining what he does to help himself feel less depressed. He follows her to the mall in the park since that’s where she usually goes when she’s in the town center.
“It made you depressed, and every once in a while, for no reason, you got goose flesh while you walked. It didn’t seem at all like Christmas was coming soon. It didn’t seem like anything was coming” (Pg 128).
At this time, Christmas was approaching, and it seemed like the core town was not prepared for Santa to arrive. It seems to me that he is persevering in this quote for his sister. To get to his sister, he has stroll through the depressing town that lacks Christmas decorations and cheer. Given that Holden is a helpless young man who only persists for his sister because she is his “Hope,” I think there is a deeper significance to all of this that goes right to the core of the character’s ideas and traits. You can tell by the way he describes how the landscape makes him feel as though he has lost hope for his current situation and is unable to discover the positive aspects of his life.