Major Themes Growing Up: Through Holden's three-day adventure he realizes some hard truths about the world. He discovers that living is expensive and it is frightening being alone. Because he is getting older his parents and teachers expect more from him. They want him to take initiative and responsibility for his life. Holden longs for his responsibility-free childhood but also wishes for the perks of adulthood. The False lives of people: Throughout the novel Holden meets all kinds of people. He classifies most of them as "phonies' ' and would rather not associate with them. He sees them as fake and feels that he has better things to do with his time than wasting it on artificial people. The Pain of Reality: Part of Holden’s erratic behavior had to do with the emotional distress he experienced. There are major life events that cause one to be in a frantic state of mind, some of which included, death of a family member. Holden’s little brother passed away which caused him great pain. He is also struggling with his love life, watching his roommate go out with the girl he cares for is painful. His failure in school also generates great distress. All of this causes Holden’s pain and clouds his prescription leading him to cope in unhealthy ways.