Re: H. Bloom and TCITR
Ahimsa2000@aol.com
Fri, 20 Feb 1998 23:47:52 -0500 (EST)
Without really giving it serious thought, I'd say it might be a little
difficult to come to Catcher at, say, 45, though I'm sure it could still be
appreciated for its literary qualities. But if you read it, as most of us
have, in high school or college, then the appreciation of it can stick far
past the age of literal empathy with Holden, his situation, etc.
BTW, speaking of schizophrenia, a novel that seems to have fallen out of
fashion, but that once had almost the same hold on my imagination as CITR, is
Joanne Greenberg's I Never Promised You a Rose Garden. I sort of think of the
protagonist, Deborah, as a female equivalent of Holden, if a much more
seriously mentally ill one. I have actually entertained myself by imagining a
meeting between the two, what they would talk about, whether they would like
each other, etc.
pauline