Examples Of Phony In Catcher In The Rye

Holden is afraid to grow up is because he is scared that he will become a phony. When Phoebe asks Holden why he is so scared to be grown up, Holden exclaims, “How would you know you weren’t being a phony? The trouble is, you wouldn’t” (172). Because Holden strongly considers himself as ostracized by society for the reason being that he is a non phony, he believes that when he gets older, it is certain he will become a kind of person that is fake, or somebody that in his eyes doesn’t live a unique life. Also, Holden is afraid that when a person becomes an adult and completely leaves their childhood existence, they will have no way of being able to tell the difference between somebody who lives their own life the way they would like to by having …show more content…
This happens when he is in the bathroom of his favorite Museum, when he hits the ground. He tells the reader, “I mean I could’ve killed myself when I hit the floor, but all I did was land on my side. It was a funny thing, though. I felt better after I passed out. I really did” (206). This “fall” that Holden experiences is a vital one for his existence because he realizes how important life really is to him. In the beginning of the story, Holden strongly believes that he is going to die because James Castle died. Once Holden accepts his adulthood, he realizes that believes that most kids are not phonies and they have to be able to figure out life on their own way. At the time when Holden was watching Pheobe go around and around on the carousel, he thinks to himself, “The thing with kids is, if they want to grab for the gold ring, you have to let them do it, and not say anything. If they fall off, they fall off, but it’s bad if you say anything to them (211).” Holden believes kids don’t take risks on their own then they will be no different than any other child living in the