Subject: Seymour at camp
From: Sean (mccleary@efn.org)
Date: Fri Nov 03 2000 - 15:19:06 GMT
OK, so I've not yet finished Hapworth, I started it at about 11:30 last
night and got tired soon after, and am going to be out of town for the
weekend, leaving just as soon as my clothes gets out of the dryer, but,
I can say this...
Jesus, Seymour was one creepy kid at 7. Everything else I've read about
him -- his diary selection in "Raise High the Roof Beam Carpenters,"
"Seymour: An Introduction," and "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" -- made
me like and sympathize with him. But, goddam, I sure don't like him as
a seven-year-old.
I haven't read "Dream Catcher," but from what I've heard people say of
it on this list, it seems like Seymour, at age 7 anyway, lacks the same
thing Salinger himself does: tact. I mean, maybe Seymour should have
asked himself before opening his mouth (or picking up his pen), "Will
Les and Bessie really want to hear about how the married-and-pregnant
director here at camp makes me, their seven-year-old son, horny? Or
will that just CREEP THEM THE HELL OUT?" Same with asking Les to
describe his fantasies when he was Seymour's age.
Of course, the complete opposite of being a phony would be being
completely honest, but, there's a difference between that and too much
information. I guess it's silly, there isn't any reason why something
like that should creep a person out. Maybe I'm brainwashed by society
or something intelligent-sounding like that.
Also, on another note, no matter how smart the Glass children are
supposed to be, I find it hard to believe that Seymour could compose a
letter like that at age 7. And he's completely mastered the
I'm-intelligent-because-I-use-lots-of-parenthetical-statements routine
normally only employed by college students who get As on their essays.
There's nothing hard to believe about children composing operas or
beating the pants off someone at chess, but I just find it hard to
believe that someone with 7 years could have such a mastery of language,
no matter how much he's read. I don't know. I guess anything's
possible.
Sean
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