Holden Caulfield is a tragic
character in that he embodies the very thing he hates: phoniness. Throughout the Catcher in the Rye, Holden struggles
to accept the world he lives in, rejecting what he perceives as a society of
fake personas, self-serving liars, and shallow fools. The author of the novel,
J.D Salinger, writes a very understandable teenage character, as Holden provides
a voice to the internal conflict of identity that all people experience in
maturity. Particularly, Salinger writes Holden as a rebel, a fighter of the
system which he perceives. The resulting narrative provided by Holden is both
admirable and lamentable; Holden works against fallacies he views in society
while simultaneously failing to realize his own faults.
Teenagers often strive to protect
and nurture (and often project) their own identity. Holden shares this desire,
but almost in a reversed way. Rather than maintain truth and individuality
himself, Holden focuses upon the ways that others
bend their own images and identities. In Holden’s worldview, almost everyone
has a shortcoming that can be analyzed and criticized. Throughout his sharp and
cutting observations of other people, Holden believes he maintains his own
identity and sincerity. All that he does, in his mind, is merely a reaction to
the problems he encounters in life.
Holden, towards the beginning of
the novel, very peculiarly admits that “I’m the most terrific liar you ever saw
in your life” (Salinger 16). This admission is incredibly peculiar due to his
focus on phoniness, flashy personae, and so on. However, for Holden, there is a
distinction between lying and being fake. One of the more evident examples of
Holden criticizing phony behavior is at old Ernie’s bar. He describes how the piano player, Ernie,
“gave this very phony, humble bow.
Like as if he was a helluva humble guy. Besides being a terrific piano player.
It was very phony” (Salinger 84). In this instance, Holden seems almost
entirely focused on character. The fact that Holden (due to influence from D.B)
knows old Ernie fairly well enables him to see through the piano player’s
façade and understand his deceitful nature.
Conversely, Holden completely lies
to a woman he meets on a train going in to New York from Pencey. The woman’s
son is a Pencey student, and she comes to recognize Holden’s Pencey sticker.
Rather than be direct with the woman when she asks Holden’s name, he replies with
“Rudolf Schmidt.” He explains in interior monologue that he “didn’t feel like
giving her my whole life story” (Salinger 55). Yet Holden does not carry
himself in an uncharacteristic way during his conversation with the woman. In
fact, Holden behaves as only his true self can, at one point even asking the
woman if she would like a cocktail. The distinction for Holden seems to come at
a crossroads between surface deception and deep, inner deception. Holden throws
out fake names like “Jim Steele” and enjoys telling stories, but he does so as
himself (if that notion can be followed). People who act phony for appearances,
to leave desired impressions and to bend attitudes (like the Pencey principal,
or Stratladter, or old Ernie), all try to play a role in society. Holden
perceives most of the public in this way, as false at the core and reliant on
phony nature. In a sense, he succeeds in finding himself, as he begins to
refine his sense of identity and values. And, even in lying, Holden still
maintains a fairly fringe existence, living on the boundary of and resisting a
true phony life.
Works Cited
Salinger, J.D. The Catcher in the Rye. New York :
Little Brown and Company, 1991. Print.
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