Growing up is something everyone experiences, and with growth comes the loss of innocence. In J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye, the protagonist Holden Caulfield wishes to be the “catcher in the Rye” so that he can preserve the innocence of individuals. As Holden travels the streets of New York City, he realizes how ugly the adult world is. As a troubled teenager, Holden doesn't want to grow up but soon concludes that he can't stop himself from this process. Because of Holden's belief that the adult world is full of fakes, the death of his brother Allie, and the loss of his own innocence, Holden feels obligated to protect the innocence of the people around him. Holden's belief that the adult world is full of fakes forces him to protect the innocence of the people around him. At the beginning of the novel, Holden learns that he will be expelled from another preparatory school because of his pitiful grades. Recounting his journey from Pencey Preparatory School to New York City, Holden recalls many fakes he encountered on that journey. At Pencey Prep, Holden lives in the “Ossenburger Memorial Wing of the new dorms, [which] was named after this Ossenburger boy who went to Pencey” (Salinger 16). Later, Holden finds out that Ossenburger made a large amount of money after leaving Pencey, because "what he did, he started these parlors all over the country where you could have your family members buried for five dollars each" (Salinger 16 ). . Holden claims that Ossenburger is a fake because he is infatuated with making money by burying people in cheap funerals. After getting a lot of money, Ossenburger gives a speech in a chapel that "lasted about ten hours...telling us that we should always pray to God...in the middle of paper...I've had enough" (Salinger 172). Lying, underage drinking, smoking, and swearing are all factors that show that Holden no longer has his purity. Holden is not innocent; he is in fact sucked into the cruel world of adults and doesn't even recognize it. Due to Holden's opinion that the adult world is full of fakes, the death of his younger brother Allie, and the deprivation of his own innocence, Holden feels the need to protect the innocence of the important people in his life. During his weekend trip from Pencey to New York City, Holden tries to discover the difference between the world of children and that of adults. At the end of his journey, Holden realizes that growing up is a part of life that everyone experiences. In conclusion, growing up is a life process that every single person must go through and cannot prevent from happening.