Stubbornness In Catcher In The Rye

Holden’s obsession stems from his fear that he may become a phony one day. So, he spends the book running from adulthood by doing childish things and struggling to keep his life from changing. We see Holden’s fear of phonies shine throughout The Catcher in the Rye. Why does he have this fear?

To not seem “phony”, a recurring word in the novel, J.D. Salinger utilizes repetitive dialogue for the main character Holden Caulfield, to show how desperately Holden doesn’t want to seem insincere and fake. He believes that of all of his prep schools he has been too were all “full of phonies” (Catcher in the rye, page 2). They are were trying to appear better than they were, because that is what they grew up seeing society around them doing.

Adolescence is the transitional period of psychological changes that generally occurs during puberty. Although the Catcher in the Rye was published in 1951, when the characteristics of adolescents were not fully acknowledged, Salinger portrays adolescents’ struggle comprehensively. He depicts teenagers’ unstable mindsets through the Catcher in the Rye, especially through his teenaged protagonist, Holden Caulfield. Throughout The Catcher in the Rye, he uses Holden to convey the immature curiosity, painfulness of the process of growing up for a typical teenagers and adolescents’ view on the adult world.

When reality confronts him, he goes deeper into his desperation and his illusions. Of the many situations that expose Willy to reality, Biff appears to be the most significant. Simply by existing outside of Willy’s “American Dream”, Biff is challenging his father’s false beliefs. Instead of accepting his son, Willy is constantly trying to control and, ultimately, change him. This creates a myriad of negative emotions and frustrations for both of them.

In The Shining the main human body that becomes a source of horror is Jack Torrance. He is a more complicated issue than Regan. In a way, he is already dangerous from the start of the novel. One could argue even before the novel as his violent history such as the breaking of his own child's arm and the beating up of a schoolboy. He seems to be a complicated, human character, neither bad nor good, who struggles with drinking and domestic abuse.

Phonyphobia? Is someone afraid of phony people a phonyphobic? In the novel the Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, a teenager named Holden struggles with the interaction between most other people because he believes that they are phony. This novel takes place in the 1950’s which were very different times comparing to present day. Holden struggles with people because he believes they are fake, however he preforms tasks that reflect himself as a phony as well.

In order to absolutely understand a character, one must spend an arduous amount of time studying it, as there is always more than what meets the eye. Humans are the same quantity of transparent as they are complex, which makes a character with an intricate backstory and personality much more alluring than one that complies to stereotypes. The novel “Dead Ends” by Erin Lange delves into the lives of Billy D, a tough yet tender freshmen with down's syndrome, and Dane Washington, the kind hearted resident bully. This extraordinary novel finds the way to blend humor, friendship and pain, blurring the lines in what the audience believes is someone “bad” and someone “good”. The type of characters our society has learned to hate are the ones to love

I don't care if it's a sad good-by or a bad good-by, but when I leave a place I like to know I'm leaving it. If you don't, you feel even worse.” (Salinger 2010: 4) Holden is angry and disappointed with the people around him, but even with this feeling of anger and disappointment towards these people, he wants a good bye from these people. Deep down he wants to know that people acknowledges him, that they care enough to say good bye at least. It would make him feel better if people would at least say good bye to him, whether it is a sad or happy goodbye, any would do.

He dislikes Auggie and tries to convince the other students that if they touch him, they will develop "The Plague." He bullied Auggie and told most of the grade to isolate him, and Jack Will for becoming friends with Auggie. At the end of the story, Julian's parents take him out of Beecher, as they say they don't feel Beecher Prep is an "inclusion school" and they think Auggie shouldn't have been admitted. Justin: Via's boyfriend.

Through the hustle of everyday life, one undergoes life and the struggles that follow. As time passes by, habitual routines develop, and the mind is opened to understanding the difference between an illusion and reality. Yet, once a new conflict arises, it cannot be avoided. Thus, this creates a false reality; which is what lingers in the mind of many characters in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. First of all, one of the more notable examples of illusion seen as reality in The Great Gatsby involves the title character himself; Jay Gatsby.

Mr. Spencer cares about Holden and his future while Holden likes Mr. Spencer he still calls him a “phony”. Mr. Spencer is a “phony” because he is a suck up around his boss and it makes Holden lose respect for him. Mr. Antolini on the other hand is described as the best teacher he has ever had and the kids in

While this novel does have profanity and sexual references, it still deserves to be taught in high school because Holden shows how having a negative attitude towards life does not get a person far. In the beginning of the novel Holden tells the reader that "[Pencey] kick[s] [him] out [of their school]" (6) because he "was [failing] four subjects and not applying [himself]" (6). However, he does not just notify the reader, he notifies them in a way of forgetting to mention that he is no longer going to be attending Pencey. Holden passes this off as some minor detail when in reality it is not just a minor detail. Later on, Holden reveals to the reader that this is not the first school where he has gotten expelled.

The teenage years act as a boundary to either permit or prevent one from reaching adulthood. While some find the transition to be smooth, others become stuck in their past, remaining tied to their innocent childhood. Holden Caulfield, in J.D. Salinger’s novel The Catcher in the Rye, is an iconic representation of the American teenager. Holden refuses to accept the inevitable processes of life.

He believes that professors are softening the grades. Phil Primack also is aware of the many excuses professors give for grade inflation, he even comes up with a reason. He sates, "colleges are unwilling to challenge and possibly offend students and their hovering, tuition- paying parents with some grade tough love. And without institutional backing, individual faculty members simply yield to whining students."

Even though he is skeptical of people he considers phony, such as Marty who lies about seeing a movie star, his negativity and judgement of others usually goes a lot farther than what is considered normal. For example, he doesn’t get serious in relationships with others, because he always seems to find flaws in everyone. Another example is when Holden’s history teacher at Pencey, Mr. Spencer, wants to understand why he refuses to put in any effort. Spencer feels bad about failing Holden and reaches out to him, trying to connect with him and possibly influence him positively. However, Holden gets upset and starts talking poorly of him once he hears this, and later excuses himself with a lie he made up to leave, showing both his self-defence mechanism and his skepticism towards people he liked.