Subject: Two Questions
From: Matthew Cole (matthewcole26@hotmail.com)
Date: Sat Aug 04 2001 - 11:07:03 GMT
Hi.
My name is Matthew and I'm a rising sophmore at Applachian State University
in Boone, NC. I've gotten quite a bit out of the discussions on the list and
I had a few questions that I thought everyone may be able to help me with.
I just finished reading Joyce Maynard's book and it got me thinking about
what effect, if any, an artist's personal life should have on how their work
is percieved. The story that she told was obviously a little one sided but I
didn't get the impression that she was overly bitter or unfair. I found
myself siding with her more and more after every page, which is
understandable considering that Salinger obviously wasn't there to defend
himself, and while it didn't change the way that I look at his work it did
make me a little more critical of the people who take to him as some kind of
a savior. I don't want to read too much into what she said but it's hard to
completely ignore. I have learned though, that after reading a few
biographies on Salinger and doing plenty of research I have a much more
human picture of him, flaws and all, and I respect him more so for his work
than his excentric personality, which is good I think.
My second question is about "The Heart of a Broken Story" short story. It
seems to be a much more lighthearted and informal piece and stands out as
something different than his other short stories that were published around
the same time (Louis Taggett, Personal Notes on an Infantryman, etc.) Does
anyone have any history or background on the story? I'm also curious to hear
other's thoughts on the story as it is one of my three favorite Salinger
short stories.
I look forward to everyone's thoughts.
-Matthew Cole
_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp
-
* Unsubscribing? Mail majordomo@roughdraft.org with the message
* UNSUBSCRIBE BANANAFISH
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b25 : Mon Sep 10 2001 - 15:42:12 GMT