Holden's Phoniness and Childish Immaturity in the Catcher in the Rye
*I think Holden is absolutely a phony, however I really think he is forced to be a phony. He cannot open up to any adult about his concerns because he probably feels they will simply tell him "that's life" and encourage him to just move on. They would most likely not understand the struggle he is feeling within. I do, however, also thinks he tries to have some fun with it, showing not a phoniness but a childish immaturity. He feels forced to be a phony regardless of anything because he has to pretend he is fine in front of adults. Therefore, he goes ahead and enjoys himself by making up intricate stories and lies to fool the adults he considers phonies already and thus perhaps worthy of being fooled.Holden is in fact more of a phony than the people that he accuses. Holden believes that all adults are phony because of the fact that they take responsibility for their lives, even when things don't go your way, adults have to cope. Holden finds it particularly difficult to accept that his parents are able to move on from Allie's death. His parents move forward, continue to live, to work to make money. Unfortunately for Holden, he does not realize that life requires the living to go on, even though you bear a deep sadness and loss in your heart.Unlike Holden’s brother he refuses to participate in being a responsible student and does not see his own faults.
His family is not pretending to live, they are not phony, what is phony is Holden's refusal to grow up. You can't stop the process. It is phony of Holden to pretend to remain a child, when he knows that, he is maturing into a young adult.
It is phony of Holden to say that he really cares about Jane Gallagher, yet he never calls her. Holden is a very depressed person, he is stuck in a grief cycle over his brother's death, refuses to accept responsibility and accuses everyone around him who lives their life of being a phony.*
*Holden has good memories about visiting the museum when he was younger. The thing
His family is not pretending to live, they are not phony, what is phony is Holden's refusal to grow up. You can't stop the process. It is phony of Holden to pretend to remain a child, when he knows that, he is maturing into a young adult.
It is phony of Holden to say that he really cares about Jane Gallagher, yet he never calls her. Holden is a very depressed person, he is stuck in a grief cycle over his brother's death, refuses to accept responsibility and accuses everyone around him who lives their life of being a phony.*
*Holden has good memories about visiting the museum when he was younger. The thing