Re: Quiet list? there's always
WILL HOCHMAN (hochman@uscolo.edu)
Fri, 03 Jul 1998 10:11:57 -0600 (MDT)
Wimsatt and Beardsley wrote about "The Intentional Fallacy" in l947 or
l949 and basically thought it was wrong to interpret a text based on what
one believes the author intended. However, there are critics (Leon Edel,
Mitchell Leaska -- in the cases of Henry James and Virginia Woolf) who
have used biographical information to understand texts and I admit that I
do find such criticism of interest.
It's ironic, but also strongly possible that Mr. Salinger's withdrawal
from the public eye has actually stimulated readers to integrate
perceptions of the author into (or from) his characters.
Personally, I've often wished we knew more of Mr. Salinger's childhood
than we probably ever will. He once wrote to Whit Burnett(I think) that
he wanted to play Holden in a Broadway production and Salinger's actual
prep school experience may influence, for example, our discussions about
Holden's sanity...I feel bound to honor Mr. Salinger's requests for
privacy and willing to work with what is in the public domain, but oh the
stories his sister might have told...
I guess I'm on both sides of the issue. Sometimes it seems as though the
author has created such a strong sense of voice in his characters it's
impossible to avoid feeling as though he is talking directly to his
readers and we can know him because of how deeply he works in our hearts
and minds. It's almost as if the actual Jerome David Salinger has become
his own "meta-character" like some unwilling understudy shrinking off
stage--and some of us, (in those extreme angle seats?) can't help looking
off the stage/page to see what else we can, while others love the play too
much not to want to focus ("Glasses") mostly on the page...
But finally, I have to admit that this list is the living page and that
Salinger's texts change with our words. Frank Kermode made sense when he
argued that a classic piece of literature is one that yields multiple
interpreations over time...in other words, that old books can still create
new meaning. I think it's the process of finding new insights and
Salinger information that matters and changes his work in ways I can only
describe as living...will