Let's see... Where to start with this kid? It's really easy to over-analyze characters in novels, in order to make them fit your perception. Really, as hard as it is to understand Holden's true intentions, it's simple to see the reasoning for what he does.
"Phony" is Holden's favorite word, but I don't think he's using it in the way he means to. Sure, he's calling out everything that's fake, but I don't think he believes what he makes himself believe. Pencey Prep is fake, the students are fake, the principal is fake, etc. I think that's his way of coping with life. One contradiction I found was when he called out Stradlater and Ackley. They put the blame on surface things, and leave it at that. Ackley said that the only reason Coyle is good at basketball is because of his build. Stradlater blames his poor English skills on comma placement. Here's where Holden comes into this: he blames his social problems and school life on "phonies". He avoids people, using his hunting hat, in order to not deal with them. He really is just one big hypocrite, since he's doing exactly what he accuses everyone else of doing.
We also learned how much of a liar Holden is. Wouldn't this automatically put him under the category of "phony"? I mean, last time I checked, anyone who lies is fake. It seems to be something he's really good at doing, too. The way he was able to lie about Ernest to his mom was impressive. He didn't even seem remorseful when he did it because, after all, he was saying good things about her son. And also, she is a complete stranger to him, so I guess it wasn't really harmful. Hopefully as we read further into the book, we uncover more of who Holden truly is, because as of now it's very indecisive.
Let's see... Where to start with this kid? It's really easy to over-analyze characters in novels, in order to make them fit your perception. Really, as hard as it is to understand Holden's true intentions, it's simple to see the reasoning for what he does.
ReplyDelete"Phony" is Holden's favorite word, but I don't think he's using it in the way he means to. Sure, he's calling out everything that's fake, but I don't think he believes what he makes himself believe. Pencey Prep is fake, the students are fake, the principal is fake, etc. I think that's his way of coping with life. One contradiction I found was when he called out Stradlater and Ackley. They put the blame on surface things, and leave it at that. Ackley said that the only reason Coyle is good at basketball is because of his build. Stradlater blames his poor English skills on comma placement. Here's where Holden comes into this: he blames his social problems and school life on "phonies". He avoids people, using his hunting hat, in order to not deal with them. He really is just one big hypocrite, since he's doing exactly what he accuses everyone else of doing.
We also learned how much of a liar Holden is. Wouldn't this automatically put him under the category of "phony"? I mean, last time I checked, anyone who lies is fake. It seems to be something he's really good at doing, too. The way he was able to lie about Ernest to his mom was impressive. He didn't even seem remorseful when he did it because, after all, he was saying good things about her son. And also, she is a complete stranger to him, so I guess it wasn't really harmful. Hopefully as we read further into the book, we uncover more of who Holden truly is, because as of now it's very indecisive.