The most noticeable of Holden's "peculiarities" is how extremely judgmental he is of almost everything and everybody. He criticizes and philosophizes about people who are boring, people who are insecure, and, above all, people who are "phony." Holden carries this penchant for passing judgment to such an extreme that it often becomes extremely funny, such as when he speculates that people are so crass that someone will probably write "f*** you" on his tombstone. Holden applies the term "phony" not to people who are insincere but to those who are too conventional or too typical-for instance, teachers who "act like" teachers by assuming a different demeanor in class than they do in conversation or people who dress and act like the other members of their social class. While Holden uses the label "phony" to imply that such people are superficial, his use of the term actually indicates that his own perceptions of other people are superficial. In almost every case, he rejects more complex judgments in favor of simple categorical ones.
-NERD!
Holden used the word phony very often when describing people and things to create verbal irony.
There are several reasons why Holden is a phony. For one, he constantly talks about how phony the movies are and how much he hates to go to them. However, there is one time when he pretends to have been shot and holds his guts in like they do in the movies. A second example is that he erases the f-word off of the steps of Phoebe's school in an attempt to protect the children from the profanity, yet he himself curses around Phoebe all the time.
Holden uses the word phony forty-four times in Catcher, and it is obvious that the young man is extremely sensitive to phonies--so sensitive, in fact, that he even wants to puke when he hears someone use the word grand... and to expose the rampant hypocrisy that so many see in modern society.
Holden hated Pency, yet was (in his own word) "corny" enough to put Pency stickers on his luggage.
According to homework-online.com, "Madman" Holden uses the word "madman" commonly as an adjective and in a variety of ways ranging from "[snow] was still coming down like a madman" to "I went right on smoking like a madman." It seems plausible that Salinger wished to convey that there is a bit of madness in the way Holden sees the world. The fact that the word comes up most often when Holden is criticizing himself could be a sign of further self-estrangement from society. According to homework-online.com, "Madman" Holden uses the word "madman" commonly as an adjective and in a variety of ways ranging from "[snow] was still coming down like a madman" to "I went right on smoking like a madman." It seems plausible that Salinger wished to convey that there is a bit of madness in the way Holden sees the world. The fact that the word comes up most often when Holden is criticizing himself could be a sign of further self-estrangement from society.
Holden Caulfield says the word "phony" 35 times in J.D. Salinger's novel "The Catcher in the Rye." It is a word that he frequently uses to describe people or situations that he finds insincere or fake.
An example of connotation in "Catcher in the Rye" is the word "phony," which Holden Caulfield uses to describe people whom he perceives as fake or insincere. This word carries a negative connotation and reflects Holden's deep mistrust of others and his desire for authenticity.
Holden often uses the word "phony" to describe people whom he sees as inauthentic or hypocritical. He uses this term to criticize those who he perceives as being fake or pretentious in their behavior or speech.
Holden Caulfield uses the word "crazy" to describe people or situations that he finds irrational, senseless, or emotionally unstable. He uses it as a way to express his frustration with what he perceives as phoniness, insincerity, or superficiality in the world around him.
Holden used the word phony very often when describing people and things to create verbal irony.
Holden is in fact more of a phony than the people that he accuses. Holden believes that all adults are phony because of the fact that they take responsibility for their lives, even when things don't go your way, adults have to cope. Holden finds it particularly difficult to accept that his parents are able to move on from Allie's death. His parents move forward, continue to live, to work to make money. Unfortunately for Holden, he does not realize that life requires the living to go on, even though you bear a deep sadness and loss in your heart. D.B., Holden's older brother is a phony, a sell-out, because he writes scripts for Hollywood instead of serious books. Yet Holden, who refuses to participate in being a responsible student does not see his own faults. His family is not pretending to live, they are not phony, what is phony is Holden's refusal to grow up. You can't stop the process. It is phony of Holden to pretend to remain a child, when he knows that, he is maturing into a young adult. It is phony of Holden to say that he really cares about Jane Gallagher, yet he never calls her. When she has a date with Stradlater, Holden does not go to the Annex to say hello. Holden is a very depressed person, he is stuck in a grief cycle over his brother's death, refuses to accept responsibility and accuses everyone around him who lives their life of being a phony. - pmiranda2857
Phony, bogus
false, phony, bogus
alia means "others"
There are several reasons why Holden is a phony. For one, he constantly talks about how phony the movies are and how much he hates to go to them. However, there is one time when he pretends to have been shot and holds his guts in like they do in the movies. A second example is that he erases the f-word off of the steps of Phoebe's school in an attempt to protect the children from the profanity, yet he himself curses around Phoebe all the time.
False and phony are five letter words that mean ingenuous or fake.
Holden uses the word phony forty-four times in Catcher, and it is obvious that the young man is extremely sensitive to phonies--so sensitive, in fact, that he even wants to puke when he hears someone use the word grand... and to expose the rampant hypocrisy that so many see in modern society.