cademic rating" (p8) and "it's as good as most schools" (p55). Further confirmation that Holden is a phony. Once in his room at the Edmont Hotel, Holden is quick to become a voyeur to the erotic and carnal activities of others in the hotel. Although he supposedly detests what he sees he does observe a male transvestite for quite a while. Holden says, "the hotel," which he personally chose, "was lousy with perverts" (p62). While staring at the obscene acts being performed he admits that "that kind of junk is fascinating" and he wouldn't mind doing it "if the opportunity came up" (p62). Another example Holden's hypocrisy. He criticizes the 'perverts' then acknowledges he would do the same thing if he could. Holden claims to be heterosexual but that is 'phony' to shroud his subconscious, homosexual propensities. Holden is quite bold in announcing his own sexual attractiveness at several times through out the novel. He boisterously declares, "I am quite sexy" (p54) and that he is "probably the biggest sex maniac you ever saw" (p62). Both of these statements are made by Holden to impress upon the reader his sexual prowess. It is a thinly veiled attempt which allows Holden not to express his true intimate feelings, which he is timid to admit. In order to expose the doubt in his sexual commitments one should examine his statements and actions as well as the conduct of those he associates with. Holden affiliate with two other gay men, Mr. Antolini and Carl Luce. Salinger is careful to connect the three through their attraction to older women, possibly as a means to conceal their true sexual desires. Carl Luce is dating a Chinese woman who is "in her late thirties" (p145). While Antolini is married to a woman who was "about sixty years older" (p181) than him. Furthermore, Holden becomes attracted to Mrs. Morrow as seen in his personal observations. He said, "she was very good looking" (p54) and "had quite a lot of sex appeal" (p56). The link of ...
