After Catcher

Initially, I planned on reviewing all of Catcher in the Rye, however I have already read this book before. After being asked what my favorite of Salinger's works were, I realized I have not read any of his short stories.

His collection entitled Nine Stories was published in 1953. I was able to find a pdf version online at the following link:

http://materlakes.enschool.org/ourpages/auto/2013/2/25/50973306/Nine_Stories_by_J_D__Salinger.pdf.

 "A Perfect Day for Bananafish"

The first story follows the Glass family, Muriel and Seymour, a group of fictional characters who are featured in a number of his other short stories. They are vacationing in Florida at a hotel on the beach. When I first began reading, I had trouble following the plot. We are introduced to the wife through a phone conversation with her mother, the central topic being that of her recently discharged husband. It later becomes clear that the Army recommended his evaluation for psychiatric disorders. The mother is concerned that Seymour "may completely lose control of himself" (4).

After the phone is hung up, the setting changes from indoors to the seashore. Muriel believes that his bizarre behavior is manageable, more idiosyncratic than dangerous. Sybil Carpenter is a young girl in a yellow two piece bathing suit. While her mother leaves to go drink martinis like any great parent would, she is left unsupervised and makes her way over to Seymour. He is preparing to go for a swim and comments that "If there's one thing I like, it's a blue bathing suit," not realizing this is far from reality (6).

Once in the water, Seymour tells her a story about Bananafish. The sea creatures swim into holes, where they gorge themselves on bananas until they become too fat to escape. They die as a result. Sybil appears to be unfazed by what would be a seemingly tragic ending to any other child under five years old. She then claims to see a Bananafish swimming by before running back to shore, departing "without regret" (9). Seymour arrives back at the hotel room to see his wife taking a nap. He sits down on the bed next to her and pulls out his 7.65 automatic, taking his own life.

 In Seymour- An Introduction (1959), Salinger later states that this story reflects the trauma he experienced during WWII. As a combat soldier, he was exposed to the Battle of the Bulge as well as the Nazi concentration camps. He "found it impossible to fit into a society that ignored the truth that he now knew." Seymour feels the same way, as represented by adults who are detached from what really matters. The women in the story are self-absorbed and only concerned with impression management and material items. He decides it is no longer worth living in such a world.

Salinger blames the postwar economic boom for promoting ideas of gluttony and excess. He acknowledged a drastic shift from a time of scarcity during the Depression and hardship in Europe to what was happening back home. Many soldiers failed to develop appropriate coping methods and found no other way to deal with their discontent.

Unlike with Catcher in the Rye, Salinger does not use sarcasm to convey his message. Nevertheless, I enjoyed this story despite the way it made me feel after its completion. I appreciate the fact that Salinger writes in a way that is captivating, yet he still manages to deal with real issues. It is hard to say which piece of his I liked best.

Ch. 1-4 Catcher in the Rye

1. Holden Caulfield begins his story by stating how lousy life is. His parents appear to be absent and he has a brother who sold out to the Hollywood scene. Caulfield's time at Pencey Prep is coming to an end as he has failed four out of his five classes. At 17, he is already a heavy smoker and refuses to apply himself. He is full of contempt for the school and the privileged males that live there.





2. Nevertheless, Holden still looks for a way to say goodbye. He makes a visit to his former history teacher, Mr. Spencer, who is stricken with grippe. While there, Holden is reminded of his failure and gets lectured for not thinking about his future. While Spencer makes an honest attempt to help the boy, Caulfield disregards any feelings of affection towards him, rather he becomes annoyed. As someone who grew up without influential role-models, it is understandable that Holden responds the way he does. At this point in his life, he has been socialized to fend for himself. Spencer tells him "Life is a game, boy. Life is a game that one plays according to the rules" (9). However, Holden counters this with the belief that "If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then it's a game, all right-I'll admit that. But if you get on the other side, where there aren't any hot-shots, then what's a game about it? Nothing. No game" (9).


3. Holden is a self-proclaimed liar with a crude sense of humor. He lives in the Ossenburger Memorial Wing, named after a Pencey graduate who succeeded in the undertaking business. What I really enjoy about Salinger's style is the use of short, declarative sentences. He successfully portrays Holden as one with a vivid imagination that jumps back and forth between seemingly random thoughts. Referring to Ossenburger, Holden says " He probably just shoves them in a sack and dumps them in the river" (19). I assume this was written to be funny, because I found it to be. Then again, I have a dark sense of humor as well. Caulfield goes on to talk about his roommate Stradlater, who has an attitude of superiority. Ackley, Holden's neighbor, reminds me of living with my sister. The kid has a total disregard of personal space and fails to acknowledge any hints that he ought to leave, as he always barges in uninvited.

4. When Stradlater arrives back at the room, he asks Holden to borrow a hound's-tooth jacket and then requests that he write an English composition for him. This is "ironical" to Holden: "I'm the one that's flunking out of the goddam place, and you're asking me to write you a goddam composition" (33). Holden finds nothing better to do than follow Stradlater to the bathroom to watch him prepare for his date. He deems Stradlater a "secret slob," noting that he is only outwardly attractive (31). Holden soon learns that Stradlater is going out with Jane Gallagher, a girl he had known the previous summer. Caulfield shows a great deal of interest, yet Stradlater knows little detail about the one he is seeing, nor does he seem to care. Holden is bothered by this, along with the knowledge of Stradlater's sexual experience.

Writing Style

The Catcher in the Rye was written in a way that cleverly combines seriousness with humor. Holden Caulfield narrarates in the first person, from a psychhiatric facility a few months after the events that are presented. Colloquial, or familiar, language is used to express Holden's cynicism and disgust with the world.

Caulfield's recollection of the past is blurred by depression and the inexperience that comes with young age. Flashbacks rely on a memory that is never perfect, leaving interpretation of the story up to the reader. Frequent use of swearing captures Holden's insecurities and showcases the vocabulary of the mid 20th-century teenager.

To provide an example, I have written my own version of The Three Little Pigs fable using Salinger's voice.



 “ The Three Crummy Little Pigs”

If you really want to hear about it, I’ll tell you this grand story of mine. You probably won’t believe it, due to the fact that it sounds kind of phony and all, but it’s true.

In the first place, my name is Wolf. It’s kind of a boring name, but that’s okay. There is nothing I hate more than corny names like Saffron or Ham. People think they are being so clever naming someone after a goddam food item, but they are just being phony.

Anyway, I’ll just start by telling you that I was taking a stroll through the forest, not looking for any trouble, just taking a stroll. I came across this fantastic little straw house, and boy, was it crafted with great skill. Feeling lonesome and all, I knocked on the door and asked the pig to let me come in. He said no and mentioned something about a stupid hair on his chin. Feeling depressed, I huffed and puffed, and blew his house in. Suddenly, out of nowhere, I felt hungry. I’m normally not a big eater, but I decided to gobble up the pig anyway.

Continuing my stroll, I thought about what I had just done. I felt even more depressed now, and really wanted someone to shoot the breeze with for a while. Up ahead, I saw what looked like a giant mound of sticks. As I got closer, I realized it was another quality made house. Feeling excited now, I knocked on the door, and asked the second pig to let me come in, hoping he would know a little bit more about hospitality than the first one. He didn’t, and just like the other one, he said no, along with something about a goddam hair on his little chin. Full of anger, I huffed and puffed harder than I did at the straw house, and the lousy pile of sticks finally blew in. I gobbled this pig up too, but only because he looked like a good source of my much needed daily protein. To be honest, I’m quite concerned about my health and all.

I decided to continue my stroll, only so the 20,000 calories I just consumed wouldn’t make itself visible at my waistline. I’m quite fond of my appearance, if you haven’t noticed. To my surprise, I came across yet another house, this one made of bricks. Who knew there were so many goddam houses in the forest, of all places? Still searching for some hospitality, I knocked on the door, and I asked to come in. I said it ever so nicely too, but he said no like the others. He also added that stupid reference about a hair on the chin. More depressed than ever, I huffed and puffed as hard as I could to knock the crappy little house down, but it wouldn’t move. This was some serious craftsmanship.

On my way to this house, I noticed a brilliant field of turnips owned by Mr. Smith. I told the pig about it, and he agreed to go with me at six o’clock the next morning to pick some for dinner. Without my knowledge, the little phony woke up at five o’clock and got the vegetables without me.

Still wanting to meet the guy, I mentioned that we get some apples down at Merry Garden the next morning at five o’clock. Again the phony pig woke up an hour early and tried to sneak to the tree without my knowledge. Just as I arrived at the tree, the little porker was climbing down. He offered to throw me an apple, and when I went to catch it, he ran off like a goddam coward.

The next day, still feeling friendly, I offered to meet the pig at the Shanklin fair. As I was climbing up this hill, which took all of my wind, a churn started speeding towards me, scaring the hell out of me. I ran back to the pig’s house, and was furious to find out he was the one who almost killed me with the churn. I declared with ferocity that I would eat him, and that’s where my story ends. The rest is too depressing to even think about, if you really want to know. All I can say is don’t ever try to climb down a goddam chimney.

Biography

(1919-2010)

J.D. Salinger was born on January 1st in New York, New York. His father was a rabbi who ran a cheese and ham import business, while his mother was Scottish-born. Salinger did not learn of his mother's roots until he reached the age of 14, due to the controversial nature of mixed marriages.

 

 

After graduating from the Valley Forge Military Academy in Wayne, Pennsylvania, he attended New York University for a year before traveling to Europe to learn another language. Upon his return, Salinger took night classes at Columbia University. He met a Professor Whit Burnett, editor of Story magazine.

 

 

Burnett encouraged his student to create more often and Salinger's work soon appeared not only in Story but also in Collier's and the Saturday Evening Post.

 

 

In 1942, Salinger was drafted into the Army after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He landed at Utah Beach in France during the Normandy Invasion. He also took part in the Battle of the Bulge. During his two-year term, Salinger continued to write. His new novel featured a deeply unsatisfied main character named Holden Caulfield.

 

 

When WWII ended, Salinger was hospitalized after suffering a nervous breakdown. While undergoing treatment, he met and married a woman named Sylvia, a German and possible former Nazi. However, their marriage was only eight months long. He later remarried to Claire Douglas, the daughter of high profile British art critic Robert Langdon Douglas.

 

In 1951, after returning to New York, Salinger published The Catcher in the Rye. Although his novel received critical acclaim, others found that it promoted immoral views. Nevertheless, this book has sold more than 65 million copies and is now an integral part of the academic literature curriculum.

 

 

 

Two years later, his unrivaled literary fame caused Salinger to retreat to a secluded, 90-acre home in Cornish, New Hampshire. His output significantly slowed while he tried to cut off contact with the public. Other collections of Salinger's work include Franny and Zooey and Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters.  "Hapworth 16, 1924," a 25,000 word short story, was the last of his pieces to be published during his lifetime.

 

Those close to Salinger claim the author continued to write on a daily basis. Speculation exists as to how many works remain unpublished. One account claims that as many as 10 finished novels may be locked away in his home. Over the next few years, five or so of his pieces are scheduled to be released to the public.

 

 

 

 

In 2013, Shane Salerno created a film documentary entitled Salinger, which debuted around the same time as his book with David Shields, a biography of the famed writer. See the link below for the official trailer.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oUHn0lZFy8