Mrs. Morrow

Mrs. Morrow is a woman Holden Caulfield meets on the train to New York City who is the mother of a Pencey Prep student. She is attractive, well-dressed, and sophisticated, and she is kind to Holden Caulfield during their conversation. However, Holden Caulfield lies to her about his circumstances, inventing a phony story about his health to explain why he is leaving Pencey early. Though he finds her kind and somewhat attractive, Holden Caulfield treats her with contempt in his internal thoughts, viewing her as ultimately phony and superficial. His interaction with Mrs. Morrow demonstrates his capacity for lying and his contempt for adults even when they are kind to him.