2

Holden arrives at Mr. Spencer’s house and finds the elderly teacher bundled in a Navajo blanket, ill and in a shabby bathrobe. The room’s medicines and the Vicks smell depress Holden, but he greets Spencer, who invites him to sit and asks why he isn’t at the big game.

Spencer turns serious about Holden’s expulsion, invoking Dr. Thurmer’s idea that life is a game played by the rules. Holden outwardly agrees but internally rejects it as unfair to those not on the winning side. Spencer asks about Holden’s parents, his failures, and how they will take the news.

Spencer presses Holden on academics, especially history. He makes Holden retrieve the exam and reads it aloud, including Holden’s note permitting a failing grade. Embarrassed and irritated, Holden concedes the failure but grows resentful of the humiliation.

While placating Spencer with polite talk, Holden’s thoughts drift to the Central Park lagoon and where the ducks go in winter, revealing his preoccupation with change and survival. Spencer questions Holden’s record at other schools, prompting Holden to recall leaving Elkton Hills largely due to pervasive phoniness, embodied by headmaster Mr. Haas’s snobbery toward parents.

Spencer asks if Holden cares about his future and warns he will when it’s too late. Holden recognizes Spencer’s genuine concern but feels they are on opposite poles. Overwhelmed by the setting and the lecture, he excuses himself, declines hot chocolate, and leaves after a sad handshake, hoping Spencer didn’t call “Good luck” after him.