Holden’s red hunting hat represents his honesty to all, unlike the phonies in his life, thus connected to the theme of phoniness vs. sincerity. Holden decides to leave his dorm and Pencey to stop dealing with all the people he never wanted to interact with. As he walks down the hallway to leave, he puts his red hunting hat on and, “yelled at the top of [his] goddam voice, ‘Sleep tight, ya morons!’” (Salinger 52), to tell everybody there what they really meant to him as, but also to annoy them from their sleep. Holden wasn’t trying to be a phony or hide his true thoughts of those people. He says what he wants to say without hesitation, telling them they are “morons” and leaves. No lies just the truth, being sincere in his own way. After Holden
