Who is Holden as a person?

Holden can be viewed in many different ways. Some people might consider him werid because of the way he acts and the things he thinks about. Alot of the things Holden says and does might be seen as imature and childish. For example how he makes up stories in his head and how all he needs is an audience to "put on a show".

He could also been seen as mature becuase of the way he deals with people he meets in public, like how he meets those girls in the Lavander room and asks them to dance and bought them drinks. Also how he can act older when a waiter is taking his order so he can get away with getting alcohol.

Is it Possible to Protect Everything That Matters to You?

Some people are very protective of there belongings and people that matter to them. They feel as if without them they wouldn't have anything to live for. This can be a good way of looking at things, however I beleive that this should only be the case with people in your live (Family and Friends) and things of sedimental value. For example if you have a Xbox 360 or a PS3 and it breaks..its not the end of the world and you can live without. However if you have something that was given to you by a now dead reletive or someone who is very speical to you and it breaks or is lost, this is a big deal.

The best example of this from the story is how Holden holds on to his now dead younger brother's old baseball glove. He holds onto it to remember him by and i'm sure he is very protective of it. Anothr example is how he feels protective of Jane and questions Stradlater after their date. He feels protective of her because of their past and I'd say because he has feelings for her. So I'd say it is posible to protect everything that matters to you, so long as you've got your priorities straight and arn't dumb about the things that "matter" to you.

What Does it Mean to Be True to Yourself?

Being true to yourself can mean many different things. It can be staying true to your beliefs such as religion. If you stand up for what you believe in and don't act fake to make yourself seem cool or to be come popular this is being true to yourself. I know that aw a point in my life I had the chance to change and become "cool" but I stood by my beliefs and stayed to to myself and I haven't regreted it since. People who are fake or act like something they're not at not true to themselves and alot of the time will hide the fact they are miserable about it.

In the story the Catcher and The Rye the main character Holden talks about being true to yourself. He talks about people in his old and current school who are "phonies" which means they act nice and like they have good intentions when they are mean and don't really care. The best example he gives is his old headmaster. He talks about how he use to shake the hands and greet all of the parents of the students at his school. However if they looked "ugly" or "poor" he would olny shake hands with them and move on. This to me is someone who is fake.