Lying

One of the many things that Holden hates about society is phoniness. One of the key elements of being phony is blatantly lying and deceiving. However, Holden is guilty of this very crime. An example of this is when he is on the bus going into New York city, after he has left Pency, and runs into the mother of another boy that goes there. He lies to her saying several good things about her boy while he is secretly thinking about how much he dislikes the boy. He also lies to her about the reason that he has left Pency before the beginning of break by telling her he is having an operation on a brain tumor, a very extravagant lie. Holden lies for various reason. Depending on the situation, it can be for his own amusement or to keep others out of his business. Also, it appears that he lies regularly because he cannot and refuses to accept the truth, a prevalent motif in the novel.