Catcher In The Rye: Everybodys A Phony :: essays research papers

Everybody’s A Phony J. D. Salinger’s novel, The Catcher in the Rye, is a very well known piece of the twentieth century. It’s a story about a seventeen-year-old boy, Holden Caufield, who experiences some interesting things and people upon his being expelled from Pencey Prep. School. From having breakfast with a couple of nuns on a bus, to spending an evening with a far from seraphic prostitute, Holden handles each situation the best way he can. However, most of the people Holden encounters, he deems innately phony; Holden thinks almost everyone is a phony. Holden discusses how phony his headmaster at Elkton Hills, Mr. Haas, was when he was there: [Mr. Haas] was the phoniest bastard I ever met in my life . . .. On Sundays, for instance, old Haas went around shaking hands with everybody’s parents when they drove up to school. He’d be charming as hell and all. Except if some boy had little old funny-looking parents. . . . I mean if a boy’s mother was sort of fat or corny-looking or something, and if somebody’s father was one of those guys that wear those suits with big shoulders and corny black-and-white shoes, then old Haas would just shake hands with them and give half and hour with somebody else’s parents (13-14). To Holden, it was blatantly clear that Mr. Haas was just putting on act to please the parents who showed up. He thought that everyone should be himself and not wear stupid facades.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Holden Caulfield lived in the Ossenburger Memorial Wing in his dormitory. That hall was only for juniors and seniors. The dorms were named after this person named Ossenburger who also went to Pencey Prep. School a long time ago. After Ossenburger got out of Pencey, he made a lot of money in the undertaking business, and he gave a pittance to the school. That pittance is why the hall was named after him. Then the next morning, Ossenburger gave a speech to the students of Pencey Prep. about how he was never ashamed when he was in some kind of trouble, but he would get right down on his knees and pray to God, and that you should always talk to God wherever you are. Ossenburger said to think of God as your friend. Caulfield got a kick out of this speech thinking how he could â€Å"Just see this phony bastard .