Catcher in the Rye ch: 10-21 discussion questions

d. We first meet Phoebe the bottom of page 161. She displays some qualities and idiosyncrasies that otherwise Holden has found despicable in others such as interest in the new types of gadgets in cars, wanting to direct the conversation without regards to the needs of the person listening, naming people as a conversation, watches and criticizes movies, etc. Why do you believe Holden doesn’t draw the same conclusions about Phoebe that the does about the others he interacts with and accuses of phoniness?

Holden is a very negative-minded person. He always likes to point out how people are phony. The only time he is not pointing out phoniness is when he is talking (or thinking) about children. He is always very enthusiastic, happy, and positive towards children. That is why he does point out Phoebe's phoniness. Then the question arises: Why is Holden always positive toward children?
The answer to that is fairly simple, he wants to protect their innocence. He believes that children are originally very innocent and good at heart, but when they start growing they become phony, mean, and violent. For example when he says he wanted to become the catcher in the rye. It's like a field in which children are playing games, and beyond the field is a huge crater. Holden does not want the children fall into the crater. In this example the field of rye is childhood, the crater is adulthood, and the game they are playing is innocence. Holden wants to keep the children from falling into adulthood. He wants them to hold their innocence even when they grow older.
From the example above a conclusion can be drawn that Phoebe is a symbol of childhood in front of him, and he does not want to see that symbol lose its innocence and turn into a phony adult. Therefore he does not point out Phoebe's phoniness. He believes that she does not display any kind of phoniness and everything she does is merely due to her innocence. Even when she shows interest in the new types of gadgets in cars, wanting to direct the conversation without regards to the needs of the person listening, naming people as a conversation, watches and criticizes movies, etc. Holden does not find it phony, instead he finds it adorable. This is also why Holden always talks positively towards any kid.

Reasoning for book cover of Catcher in the Rye

As can be seen the cover page is in black and white which gives the cover kind of a dim, negative effect. This portrays Holden's character as he always looks at things in a negative way. When he looks at people he calls them phony, and when he looks at things he calls them bad, useless, or not worth buying. He always criticizes people and things and never looks at their positive traits. His character can be portrayed by the colors black and white. Black and white colors are usually given to paintings or cover pages to give them a sad, depressing look. It is not hard to see that Holden is a kind of a depressing person, therefore the colors black and white suit him. In the cover page he is wearing his hat with the peak pointed back which is exactly how he likes it, the hat is one of the only things that he carries around and appreciates. This gives the hat a unique value and therefore it is important to have it in the cover page for "The Catcher in the Rye". He is reading "The Great Gatsby" because literature is one of the only things that he cares about. Whenever he is talking about literature he seems happy, he is usually interested to talk about literature, not like other subjects which he hates. His love and skill for literature makes it extremely important for it to be present in the cover page for the book. In the background there is an open landscape which portrays the fact he has nothing planned for his future, shows that he is just a person moving in a direction with no goal in mind. Overall the cover page shows Holden walking with no endlessly with no goal in mind, walking with only literature to accompany him, and a hat with which he is obsessed.

The Catcher Of The Rye Cover Page

Why do you think Holden cries before he leaves Pency?

There are many explanations as to why Holden cries before leaving Pency. One explanation would be that he was sad at the fact that he had been kicked out of yet another school. Another explanation would be that he knew he would have to go to another school, he knew he wouldn't be able to do so well, and he knew that he would be kicked out again. Yet another explanation would be that he felt lonely, he had almost no friends at Pency, he had no family members he cared about. He pretty much didn't have anyone to talk to about his troubles and insecurities. It is also possible that he was thinking of all of these things while crying.
Holden is a person who likes to look at all the negative traits of a person, he shares his problems with no one, underestimates himself at every point, puts on a "tough guy" mask, and does not care about others. Looking at his traits the most obvious answer would be that he was tired of the process he had to go through almost every year. Getting into a new school, trying to fit in with everyone else, failing at academics, getting kicked out of the school. He knew that he would have to go through the process again and that fact made him sad.
Allie was a very intelligent kid, Phoebe is also very intelligent, and D.B. is also intelligent. Holden is the only one in the family who did not shine at academics. It makes him feel different and lonely. Pency is an example of his failure and therefore when he looks at the building the burden of being a disappointment makes him really sad and therefore he cries.
Holden is a very lonely person, he has no friends to share his feelings with. He relates his memories and feelings with objects such as Allie's glove, his hat, the typewriter, etc. Since he has no one to talk to he writes down his memories in the form of literature. While leaving the school he knows that he will be lonely again. He had become friends with Ackley and Stradlater but he was axed and was alone once again. The thought that he would have to leave the school and start anew at another school made him sad.
Holden was probably thinking of about one the three things above when he started crying. All the reasons make sense but one was probably enough to make him cry.