How Does Holden Dislike Phonies In Catcher In The Rye

Holden Caufield so passionately hates phonies because he believes they are ingenuine hypocrites who do immoral things to get what they desire and act or think according to the rules of society- which everyone does at one point. People often want what they can’t have or haven’t earned, and when circumstances don’t go their way, they pursue what they want in other forms. Maurice, described as the “pimpy elevator guy” (132), unjustly hurts Holden for money. When he offers Holden a prostitute in exchange for five dollars, Holden willingly takes the deal. A few minutes after the paid prostitute comes and goes, Maurice pays a visit to Holden and asks for five more dollars to which Holden refuses. Maurice then says, “Chief, you’re gonna force me inna

These uncompleted calls could symbolize Holden’s greatest dreams and hopes. When people dream, they need to be truly ambitious to go after what they want. In Holden’s case, he is all talk and no action. After getting off the train from Pencey, Holden, “felt like giving somebody a buzz” (77), but then “couldn’t think of anybody to call up,” (77). He then proceeds to think up possible people he could call, but follows each thought up with an excuse not to call them. Holden knows what he wants but he doesn’t go after it. Like an uncompleted phone call, he says it and acknowledges that he wants to do it, but never ends up carrying it

There are two way I can identify with Holden: the struggle of holding on to my innocence and growing up. In Catcher in the Rye, Holden has issues with growing up and protecting not only his innocence, but others’ innocence too. As Holden makes his way towards the the principal’s office to give a note to Phoebe, his kid sister, he gets dizzy and sits down. While sitting, he notices something and says, “I saw something that drove me crazy. Somebody’d written ‘F*** you’ on the wall. It drove me damn near crazy. I thought how Phoebe and all the other little kids would see it, and how they’d wonder what the hell it meant, and then finally some dirt kid would tell them- all cockeyed, naturally- what it meant, and how they’d all think about it and maybe even worry about it for a couple of days,” (260). Holden is genuinely concerned that someone had profaned the school’s wall. He doesn’t want any of the kids, especially Phoebe, to see the f-word, much less learn what it means. When babies first enter the world, they don’t know a thing. They don’t know anything about sex, drugs, or profanity. But things change as babies grow older. They learn things, and as they learn more and more, they inevitably lose more and more of their innocence. I have some difficulty growing up. Like many other kids, I don’t want to do it. Growing older means losing (more of) my innocence, bringing on more responsibilities, going into unknown territory and just not being able to be the naive kid I once