greetings
Gunnar Burton (bu0886gu@uscolo.edu)
Mon, 31 Aug 1998 15:36:25 -0600 (MDT)
I'm new to Bananafish and also new to this whole E-mail world of
electronic discourse. I have read some of the comments made by others
regarding Salinger's need for privacy and feel like I might have something
to contribute in that regard.
I went to the zoo here in town on a weekday when there were no
crowds. The handlers were giving exercise to a raven and I watched how
they handled the bird. They came over to where I was sitting and we began
a conversation. We talked about how important the raven is to Native
Americans how it is their symbol just like the bald eagle is the symbol of
the United States. Anyway as we talked the subject came up about bird
feathers. They asked me if I knew that it was illegal to pick up and carry
home a feather that was lying in the field. They explained that in order
to protect the birds from poachers even possession of their feathers no
matter how they were obtained was a Federal Offense.
I tell this story because it seems to me that is how the law works. It
isn't a precision instrument. I have always appreciated and felt sympathy
for Salinger's need for privacy partly I guess because I feel like if he
got too cozy with interviewers and told too much about himself it would
injure his work. If he were to go on the Tonight Show and give elaborate
interviews and everyone had access to every detail of his life then maybe
he might legally lose control of some part of his work. I mean does anyone
really want to see a Holden Caufield action figure with "real time Karate
Chop action that strikes terror in the heart of the money managers?"
I say this yet my mind is as inquiring as everyone elses. After
reading On The Road I went out and bought a 700 page biography of Kerouac.
But if the man wants us to leave him alone I feel like he is confident
that all we need to know is in the stories and it seems to me that in
Salinger's case that is enough.