Be Yourself: "The Catcher in the Rye"

"The Catcher in the Rye" is what Holden essentially wants to be. The idea of being a phony hurt Holden. When all the children are playing and accidentally fall off the cliff, Holden wanted to be the one to catch them. He wants to save them from the adult world and hypocrisy. In Holden's mind the two greatest victims of this fall are Allie and James Castle who suffered the ultimate loss. No one was …

…fall off, they fall off, but it's bad if you say anything to them."(Page 211) I think that the carousel symbolizes life. Children sometimes fall when they are trying to reach complete success. Holden has matured and realized that he can't stop people from being a phony. He still wants to stop them but he can't. In The Catcher in the Rye the idea of phoniness is a reoccurring motif that caused Holden great pain.