The complex character of Holden Caulfield is what I love the most about this book. He is very unpredictable and spontaneous. I never know what he is going to do next. He is truly a free spirit with a lot of troubles weighing him down. He has an interesting …show more content…
He uses it constantly. The reason that he does this is because he admired his deceased younger brother Allie so much. He compares everyone and everything he encounters to this little boy's sincerity and compassion. Holden thinks everyone is phony because he does not see Allie's traits in them. Allie is Holden's role model because he was so innocent and loving to people. I think Holden envies Allie in a way, and wishes he could be more like he was. So Holden's overuse of the word phony is due to his basis of comparison, his sweet, timid, caring, genuine brother …show more content…
Holden explains to Sally Hayes all of the different cliques at the private prep schools he has attended. Holden did not feel that he belonged to any certain clique or group. This saddened him and made him feel like an outsider. I can relate to this feeling. Many teens feel that they do not fit into the cool clique or group. Everyone yearns for a sense of belonging just like Holden. He also said all the people he went to school with were phony. That is also the way I feel at times. This was one opinion Holden expressed that I agreed with