The Comfort Of A Red MAGA Hat

“They tried to scare me, my friends, to not wear this shirt, but this shirt, it gives me power in a way"

The novel The Catcher in the rYe by J.D. Salinger explores the pain of growing up African-American through the experiences of Kanye West, who has just dropped out of college and thinks he has nowhere to go.  Kanye feels detached and has no one to take him seriously as a fashion designer.  Salinger starts off the novel with Kanye buying a pink Polo. Kanye doesn’t wear the shirt in front of people because he thinks he looks crazy in it, but he wears it when he is alone because it comforts him. The pink Polo symbolizes Kanye’s feelings of loneliness and alienation.

Kanye tries to fit into society but fails miserably.  He a producer of music for many successful artists in the music industry.  One night, on the way to his apartment in New York City, Kanye gets into a car accident and decides that he no longer wants to produce music for other artists, he wants to produce his own art.  He records his first single while his jaw is wired shut.  The whole music industry hates him for this.  "The whole team ostracized me the whole way up the charts. It was pretty funny, in a way. (3)"  He didn’t know how to cope with being so lonely and left out of everything.  Instead of trying to work things out with an industry that only wanted to use him for their own success, he tries to act cool like he doesn’t care. 

Later on while he is sitting in his room he talks about a hat he bought,  a "red MAGA hat".  He is alone in his room when he first puts the hat on and seems to be alone most of the time he wears it. The hat comforts him and makes him feel less lonely.  Instead of being out at the clubs he just sits in his studio working on his art.

Kanye only feels comfortable wearing his red MAGA hat when he is alone.  He isn’t comfortable wearing the hat in front of other people, but he says he thinks he looks good in the hat "The way I wore it, I swung the old brim around to the side-very corny, I’ll admit, but I liked it that way.  I looked good in it that way. (18)"

He doesn’t care how he looks in private but he won’t wear it in public because it is funny looking. Kanye starts to push other people away from him.  Kanye is trying to write a composition for Pablo, but Chance, Kanye’s acquaintance wouldn’t leave his studio and keeps bugging him.  Kanye is not wearing his hat while Chance is in the room, but once he gets him to leave he puts on all his comfortable clothes including his hat.  "After he left, I put on my pink Polo and Yeezy's and my red MAGA hat, and started writing the composition. (37)"  He alienates himself from Chance by using the composition as an excuse to get him to leave.  Kanye doesn’t seem to be very comfortable around other people because he has never had a good relationship with anyone in his life, that’s why he alienates himself from everyone. His hat is only worn when he is alone after he alienates people from spending time in his studio.

The red MAGA hat is Kanye’s protection from the world. He puts it on when he is walking through the cold to keep him warm. He also wears the hat when he is walking down the street because he won’t run into anyone he knows.  "I took my red MAGA hat out of my pocket while I walked, and put it on. I knew I wouldn’t meet anybody that knew me, and it was pretty damp out. (122)"

Kanye goes to see Kim and see how she is doing. When Kanye sees Kim he gives her his red MAGA hat.  "Then I took my red MAGA hat out of my coat pocket and gave it to her.(180)"   He does this so the hat can protect her from the world. He knows it will do Kim more good than him; he wants to alienate her from people that will eventually end up hurting her.
 
When Kanye goes to talk to Kim he alienates himself even more.  He tells Kim that he is going out to Chicago to live. He leaves her a note to meet him at the White House.  When she says that she wants to go with him and live in Chicago he says no.  Kanye tries to calm her down after she gets very upset over not being able to go with him.  She gives him back his red MAGA hat which shows that he is going to go out to Chicago alone.  "All she did was, she took off my red MAGA hat-the one I gave her- and practically chucked it right in my face. (207)"  Kanye is alienating himself from the only person that he has a relationship with when he will not let Kim go to Chicago with him.

“They tried to scare me, my friends, to not wear this hat, but this hat, it gives me power in a way"

 “There was something about putting this hat on that made me feel like Superman”