Holden Caulfield Phony

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"The Catcher in the Rye" is a 1951 novel by J. D. Salinger. Although it is a very controversial novel originally published for adults, it has since become popular with younger readers for its themes of teenage problems and alienation. Holden Caulfield is a 17-year-old narrator and protagonist of the novel. He speaks to the reader directly from a mental hospital or sanitarium in southern California. Throughout the story Holden has his own idea of phoniness. Holden believes that phoniness is anything hypocritical, shallow, superficial, inauthentic, or otherwise fake. He sees such phoniness everywhere in the adult world, and believes adults are so phony that they can not even see their own phoniness. He believes that once you are an adult every piece of innocence you had is gone and you become phony. Although Holden himself is a phony because he tells pointless lies, claims to like or agree with statements or ideas he hates, and goes out with girls he does not like, he still points out everybody else's phoniness. In the book "Catcher in the Rye" Holden Caulfield has his own idea of phonies biased on his …show more content…
Holden meets three Seattle girls in the Lavender room in his hotel. The Seattle Girls were three girls that visited New York as a trip away from Seattle. When Holden first meets these girls he knew something was fake about them because of their appearance."They didn't invite me to sit down at their table--mostly because they were too ignorant" says Holden when he first meets the girls. He later finds that all of them are fake and that their main goal of being in New York is to see and meet celebrities. When Holden danced with the blonde girl all she was concerned with was looking around the room to make sure she did not miss anything or anyone. "After tolerating him for a while, they began to laugh at him."(3). This shows how truly rude adulthood made them and that Holden was right about their

Holden Caulfield Phony

In J.D. In “The Catcher in the Rye”, Holden Caulfield is not just a naive and rambunctious teenager, but overall an unreliable narrator of the novel. This idea is represented through Holden’s perspective on life, as well as his mental illness. This belief is shared by literary critic and author Susan K. Mitchell, as she explains that Holden’s view on society being “phony” would make Holden a phony as well. She writes that “Holden is an unreliable narrator not only because he is a self-proclaimed…

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How Is Holden Caulfield Phony

In J.D. Salinger's novel, The Catcher in the Rye, the protagonist Holden Caulfield frequently uses the term "phony" to describe the people he encounters. To Holden, a phony is someone who is insincere, fake, or pretentious. He believes that almost everyone he meets is a phony, and this perception is a recurring theme throughout the novel. Holden's obsession with phoniness stems from his desire for authenticity and genuineness in others. He is disillusioned with the superficiality and hypocrisy of…

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Essay On Holden Caulfield Phony

Phony friends, phony words, and phony movies, this is the way that J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye character Holden Caulfield sees the world. In Holden’s journey from Pencey Prep to his home in New York he talks about many people some of whom he met on the journey and others he had met during his time at previous preparatory schools. The one thing that almost everyone he talks about has in common is that according to Holden they are all phony. This includes teachers, friends, acquaintances, and…

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Holden Caulfield Phony Analysis

In The Catcher in the Rye Holden Caulfield isolates himself from everything and everyone. Holden encounters many people throughout the book but he pushes them away, he does not go to certain places because he wants to isolate himself from people who are “phony” which is why he did not go the football game at his school “Anyway, it was the Saturday of the football game with Saxon Hall. The game with Saxon Hall was supposed to be a very big deal around Pencey. It was the last game of the year, and…

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Holden Caulfield Character Analysis

Holden Caulfield is the main character and protagonist of the novel The Catcher in the Rye. The sixteen-year-old, who’s demeanor suggests further maturity then others his age is thoroughly convinced that an exceeding amount of people he has interactions with are phonies. In appearance, Caulfield has gray hairs on the right side of his crew cut, and he is six foot two with a lanky stature. Caulfield also possessed a red hunting hat that he bought when he was in New York, and wears constantly throughout…

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Caulfield And Phoebe's Phony In Catcher In The Rye

Holden Caulfield is depressed, unquestionably judgmental of everybody around him, antisocial, and a compulsive liar. Holden’s judgmental attitude towards people made him leave most of the schools he was attending, “One of the biggest reasons I left Elkton Hills was because I was surrounded by phonies. That’s all,” (Salinger 13). Holden hated phonies. Phoebe Caulfield is very intelligent for her age, a joyful person, and she is stable. Holden was going through all of the books on D.B.’s desk when…

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Essay about Symbolism and Holden Caulfield, The Catcher in the Rye

AND HOLDEN CAULFIELD By Luka Vukovic Mr. M. Dempsey ENG2DE-04tygh December 18, 2013 The novel “The Catcher in the Rye,” revolves around the protagonist Holden Caulfield as the story is told from his perspective. J.D. Salinger constructed Holden Caulfield as a cynical person who cannot accept to grow up. Throughout “The Catcher in the Rye,” J.D. Salinger uses symbolism to reveal and reinforce critical aspects of the protagonist Holden Caulfield. Three important aspects Holden acquired…

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CATR ESSAY

III 30 March 2015 The Catcher in the Rye Holden Caulfield is a young boy traveling in and out of schools with a questionable mind. He particularly posses a negative mindset towards the world and the people in it. In the novel Catcher and The Rye, J.D. Salinger utilizes past events to reflect Holden Caufield's present state of being to express how he must contend with different aspects of the past contributing to his negative approach towards life. Holden attended many different schools and always…

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Essay On Holden Caulfield's Relationship

is a story that explains events in the life of the main character, Holden Caulfield, while also exposing his thoughts and the inner workings of his mind. Throughout the novel, Holden expresses multiple different emotions while the author explicates his relationship with his younger sister Phoebe Caulfield. Is it easy to tell by the way Holden describes her, that the two have an extremely close relationship. We constantly find Holden affectionately referring to her as “old Phoebe,” when he thinks about…

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How Does Holden Lose The Innocence Of Children

about a boy named Holden Caulfield who believed in the innocence of children and would do anything to protect it. Holden has a younger sister(Phoebe), a younger brother(Allie) who died of leukemia, and an older brother(DB) who is a writer in Hollywood. Holden has a unique and different personality; he finds himself lonely and depressed most of the time. Holden is always moving from school to school and the last school he is at in the novel is Pencey Prep. At Pencey Prep, Holden is bullied a lot;…

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