Subject: Re: "Bananafish"
From: Matt Kozusko (mkozusko@virtual.park.uga.edu)
Date: Tue Apr 22 1997 - 02:40:02 GMT
On Mon, 21 Apr 1997 oconnort@nyu.edu wrote:
> I'm curious: to whom would you award the #1 useless slot in Salinger
> scholarship?
>
Why, Freddy Gwynn, of course! Blotner's partner in puerility. The two of
them published a pamphlet of psychocriticism on Salinger in the late 50's
called "The Fiction of J.D. Salinger." Actualy, they seem to be
well-established, respectable academics, especially Blotner, who is a
Faulkner scholar (he's done something with William Carlos Williams, too, I
think). Hugh Kenner invited him over here, which is a good indication of
both age and importance.
Their approach to Salinger, though, seems way off to me. For instance,
they read Seymour as sexually troubled--thus the pedophelia, the
fascination with trees, the gun, and the connection to Rilke, who they say
also liked little girls. Gwynn and Blotner are smug, disdainful,
bored--if one can acually yawn complacently in academic prose, I'm sure
they do it--and "themeselves implicitly bursting with mental health."
I spoke before I thought, but "useless" is at least partially accurate.
-------------------------------------------
mkozusko@virtual.park.uga.edu
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