“I'm the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life” (pg. 16) The quote just stated obviously isn’t the truth. It makes whoever said it come off as an unreliable narrator. This quote and many others hint that some of the things the main character, Holden Caulfield, in The Catcher in the Rye says may not be true.
It doesn’t specifically say whether or not Holden is lying in the book, but some things are suggested at. “That sort of scared me a little bit. "Well, I know it's quite late," I said, in this very mature voice and all.”(pg. 64) If Holden wouldn’t have said ‘and all’ it would have sounded like his voice was actually mature. But the way he writes makes it seem as if he is just saying how he thought he sounded. It shows that he is possibly …show more content…
"I hope you'll forgive me, but I was very anxious to get in touch with you." I said it suave as hell. I really did.” (pg. 64) If he hadn’t have reassured that he ‘really did’ say it ‘suave as hell’, he would have been believable. This also shows that the way things are said determine how they are viewed.
Besides those two quotes, there’s also a different kind of lie Holden shows. “Then I started reading this timetable I had in my pocket. Just to stop lying. Once I get started, I can go on for hours if I feel like it. No kidding. Hours.”(pg. 58) From this quote, it isn’t that Holden is lying because he most likely could go on lying for hours. In this quote, he says ‘if I feel like it’ which portrays him meaning that if he really did care he wouldn't lie so much. It reveals that Holden doesn’t seem to care that he lies a lot, or at least that’s how the way his words depict him show.
In other words and as stated in the aforementioned paragraphs, Holden Caulfield doesn’t seem like a reliable narrator. What he said and the ways he said it don’t always come off as true. His wording portrays him as an uncaring teenager, which he is and as well as makes him seem more mature. So in short, Holden's’ way of writing causes him to come off as unreliable and uncaring
It doesn’t specifically say whether or not Holden is lying in the book, but some things are suggested at. “That sort of scared me a little bit. "Well, I know it's quite late," I said, in this very mature voice and all.”(pg. 64) If Holden wouldn’t have said ‘and all’ it would have sounded like his voice was actually mature. But the way he writes makes it seem as if he is just saying how he thought he sounded. It shows that he is possibly …show more content…
"I hope you'll forgive me, but I was very anxious to get in touch with you." I said it suave as hell. I really did.” (pg. 64) If he hadn’t have reassured that he ‘really did’ say it ‘suave as hell’, he would have been believable. This also shows that the way things are said determine how they are viewed.
Besides those two quotes, there’s also a different kind of lie Holden shows. “Then I started reading this timetable I had in my pocket. Just to stop lying. Once I get started, I can go on for hours if I feel like it. No kidding. Hours.”(pg. 58) From this quote, it isn’t that Holden is lying because he most likely could go on lying for hours. In this quote, he says ‘if I feel like it’ which portrays him meaning that if he really did care he wouldn't lie so much. It reveals that Holden doesn’t seem to care that he lies a lot, or at least that’s how the way his words depict him show.
In other words and as stated in the aforementioned paragraphs, Holden Caulfield doesn’t seem like a reliable narrator. What he said and the ways he said it don’t always come off as true. His wording portrays him as an uncaring teenager, which he is and as well as makes him seem more mature. So in short, Holden's’ way of writing causes him to come off as unreliable and uncaring