In a message dated 8/17/99 2:56:04 PM Eastern Daylight Time, wh14@is9.nyu.edu writes: << I don't know if JDS had many probs with English mechanics but I can imagine Holden wanting to get beyond phony conventions...will >> Ah, Will, ALL language is convention. Abandon all conventions and you have the tower of Babel. I do agree that meaning, not conventions, is the purpose of language, but I like to see people master the convention before they choose to deviate. Joyce told one heck of a good short story before he tackled Finnegan's Wake... Jim