Catcher in the Rye 8-11

These chapters start off right after Holden left Pencey Prep. Holden decides to go to New York and live in a hotel before he heads home. On the train, Holden meets an old lady who is the mother of Ernest Morrow, a classmate of Holden. Ernest Morrow is described as the "biggest bastard that ever went to Pencey" by Holden. Though Holden just lies and describes Ernest as a great guy and extremely adaptable. Holden continued lying for a while and even went as far as saying Ernest was going to be elected president of the class president. The conversation continued until they got to New York and the first thing Holden did was to enter a phone booth to call someone but he couldn't think of anyone to call so he left to take a taxi. He tells the taxi driver to drive to his home address absent-mindedly but eventually he manages to get to Edmont Hotel. After seeing a bunch of perverts on the other side of the hotel, he calls up a girl that is a mutual friend of his, Faith Cavendish. He was calling her with impure intentions but he was rejected. He then starts a monolog about how nice and sweet his sister Phoebe is. He talks about how smart and kind she was and how she "kills" everyone who knew her. With Phoebe as a contrast, Holden meets 3 ladies at the hotel bar. He wants to have a conversation with them and dance, however, they seemed to ignorant and stuck up for Holden to hold a conversation with. In the last chapter, Holden leaves the bar and starts to reminisce about Jane Gallagher. He thinks about when he met her and all the fun times he's had with her. He even thought about the times where he got intimately close with her. But all the reminiscing made him even more depressed so he decides to go to Ernie's, a nightclub.

I can relate to Holden's reminiscing incident. Holden remembers the good times that he had with Jane to help himself feel better, on the contrary, he feels even worse because he knows those times will never come back and he is unable to contact her anymore. I too have had pleasant experiences that after remember, brings grief and remorse to me. If there was an experience that was extremely pleasant then I would feel some level of remorse and grief if I would no longer be able to experience this. An example of this would be spending time with old friends who are no longer in the area and I have no way to contact. 

When Holden was lying about Ernest on the train, I believe he was talking about his own ideal self. He says, "He's one of the most popular boys at Pencey. Did you know that?" (56) His description of Ernest is the complete opposite of himself and shows his desire to be popular and accepted by his classmates. Another interesting lie he tells is that he has a tumor in his brain and needs to get it removed. Holden might realize that there is something wrong with him otherwise he wouldn't come up with such an obscure lie. Another symbolism that occurs in the story is when he asks the taxi driver, "You know those ducks in that lagoon right near Central Park South? That little lake? By any chance, do you happen to know where they go, the ducks, when it gets all frozen over?" (60) The ducks are a symbol for Holdens hope. He keeps wondering where they went and even tries to ask others to tell him where they went, but not only does no one tell him, they rebuke him by saying he is dumb for asking such a question. Finally, the 3 girls represent how Holden thinks of everyone in his head. He thinks that no one would pay attention to him and they would always be looking for some hotshot to talk to instead of him. It could be said that Holden has developed an intense inferiority complex that further develops his depression.

How did Holden develop such a strong inferiority complex?
Holden's inferiority complex is likely due to his family and classmates that he surrounds himself with. Even though he thinks everyone is a phony, he believes that he is worse than everyone. For example, he thinks of Stradlater as a super successful playboy while he is still a virgin and his brother being a successful writer when he can't even pass school.

Why does Holden like his sister, Phoebe, so much?
Holden like Phoebe so much because she represents the opposite of the world he's used to. She is innocent, sharp and adores him but everyone else in the world is a phony, ignorant and hates him according to Holden.

This song is a good representation of Holden's personality. In the song, the lyrics "Take me back to when I believe." represents Holden's desire to turn back time and fix the mistakes that he made in hopes of fixing his depression and being different from what he is today. Also, the lyrics, "If I could live a thousand times / If I could make a thousand tries / Maybe then I'd get it right" represents his loss of hope in making things better for himself.