J.D. Salinger (1919 - 2010)
J.D. Salinger, the reclusive creator of angst-ridden Holden Caulfield, has died at the age of 91.
Salinger had been seldom seen or heard in the last half of his life. He reportedly continued writing even after after his last book was published, but only wrote for himself. The unpublished creations are rumored to be locked away in a safe in Salinger's home.
The man was evidently quite strange. Friends reported that his reclusiveness was necessary in order for him to keep his sanity. He successfully sued to prevent the release of an unauthorized biography, but he could not stop the publication of books by an ex-lover and daughter which described his eccentric eating habits (he reportedly drank his own urine), his penchant to speak in tongues and his habit of writing in a cement bunker.
Most of us have read his most famous novel, A Catcher in the Rye. The books' protagonist, Holden Caulfield, scorns the adult world of corruption and struggles to hold on to the innocent world of youth. Holden is the symbolic "catcher" of people as they "fall from Grace" (youthful innocence) into the rye field (adulthood).
One of Catcher's most magical passages details Holden's witnessing of his sister reaching out for the brass ring on a carousel. As the metaphorical "world" spins round and round, Holden realizes he cannot stop his sister from reaching for the brass ring, even though he is afraid she may fall.
Although Salinger has just passed away, the reality is that, to his fans, he really left us a long, long time ago. Regardless, the character of Holden Caulfield and the universal themes in his most famous novel will resound for decades, if not longer.
Rest in peace, J.D. Salinger.
As an aside, I am willing to bet that the man's Last Will & Testament is fascinating.
Salinger had been seldom seen or heard in the last half of his life. He reportedly continued writing even after after his last book was published, but only wrote for himself. The unpublished creations are rumored to be locked away in a safe in Salinger's home.
The man was evidently quite strange. Friends reported that his reclusiveness was necessary in order for him to keep his sanity. He successfully sued to prevent the release of an unauthorized biography, but he could not stop the publication of books by an ex-lover and daughter which described his eccentric eating habits (he reportedly drank his own urine), his penchant to speak in tongues and his habit of writing in a cement bunker.
Most of us have read his most famous novel, A Catcher in the Rye. The books' protagonist, Holden Caulfield, scorns the adult world of corruption and struggles to hold on to the innocent world of youth. Holden is the symbolic "catcher" of people as they "fall from Grace" (youthful innocence) into the rye field (adulthood).
One of Catcher's most magical passages details Holden's witnessing of his sister reaching out for the brass ring on a carousel. As the metaphorical "world" spins round and round, Holden realizes he cannot stop his sister from reaching for the brass ring, even though he is afraid she may fall.
Although Salinger has just passed away, the reality is that, to his fans, he really left us a long, long time ago. Regardless, the character of Holden Caulfield and the universal themes in his most famous novel will resound for decades, if not longer.
Rest in peace, J.D. Salinger.
As an aside, I am willing to bet that the man's Last Will & Testament is fascinating.
posted by chrismanganello at 6:31 PM
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