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Examples Of Phony In Catcher In The Rye

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“What I liked about her, she didn't give you a lot of horse manure about what a great guy her father was. She probably knew what a phony slob he was.” (Salinger 3) Throughout the novel, The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield is a sixteen-year-old boy living in a world full of ‘a bunch of phonies’. As he feels a lingering sense of loss over his life; he does not want to grow and be a complicated adult, acting like everyone else. Caulfield believes he lives in a ‘phony world’, and he does not understand why people act the way they do. Through his eyes, Holden Caulfield lives in an idealistic world of perfection, of childhood dreams and never growing up. As Caulfield tells his story, the reader comes to realize the adolescent way of Caulfield thinking the world and everyone living in it are phony. Holden Caulfield’s phony world is full of confusion and depression, loneliness, and emptiness, but as his story progresses, Caulfield has some genuine moments with himself and others around him. Within the novel, the reader learns about Holden Caulfield's phony world and genuine times …show more content…

Holden Caulfield despises his next door roommate at Pencey Prep, Robert Ackley, for his arrogance and bad hygiene. Considering this, Holden Caulfield invites Ackley out to the town with his buddy and him. (Salinger 36) “The reason I asked was because Ackley never did anything on Saturday night, except stay in his room and squeeze his pimples or something.” (Salinger 36) Caulfield is being a genuine friend towards Ackley and his feelings because he knows Robert Ackley would not be doing anything on that Saturday night, and he was taking his feelings into consideration, not wanting him to feel lonely like Caulfield can usually experience. As Caulfield begs, “Have one more drink,” “Please, I’m lonesome as hell.” (Salinger 165), this is where we can recognize Holden Caulfields lonesome

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Holden Caulfield, at first, seems to be a very pathetic, whiny person. He seems to hate everyone. He has an obsession with word “phony”, using the word numerous times in the book to describe anyone he dislikes. At many points in the book, I found myself questioning whether or not I liked him. But as I dove deeper into the book, I found Holden to be a sensitive guy who’s mind is plagued with troubles.

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One of the major aspects that shape one’s character, are their past encounters. Within the novel, The Catcher In the Rye, J.D. Salinger tells the story through the first person protagonist Holden Caulfield, allowing the audience a glimpse into this seventeen year old’s chaotic mind. It can be implied that as Holden tells his story, he is in a psychiatric facility due to the toll his past has taken on his mental stability. As the story unfolds, Holden seems to reveal he is just a lost boy struggling to find acceptance in an insensitive world of “phonies.” Throughout Holden Caufield’s teenage years, while the loss of his brother Allie has shone a negative light on his life, Holden’s experience with the carousel helps to impact his life in a positive way.

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