Re: About the Maynard book...
mepierce (mepierce@sfasu.edu)
Fri, 13 Nov 1998 13:34:24 -0600
Erin,
I concur that Salinger most likely wrote to say something about the
meaning of his world--not to present an autobiography (though one critic
insists that the seven Glass children are really the seven faces of
salinger). And frankly, from what i know of his life, IT IS A DULL ,
DULL , DULL ROUTINE--so who cares?
I guess I do. Knowing more about salinger's history reveals the
evolutions of some of his stories and hints at certain themes that I
fear I might otherwise overlook or misinterpret.
Still, as you say it is "fun" sometimes to just read the work and
imagine the author. maynard has pretty well stripped him to a most
unattractive frame of a bitter, arrogant, pedophile (she most clearly
implies this in her book). Perhaps, it is better not to turn to
maynard anyway for revelations--biographical or literary.
Thanks Erin for encouraging me to modify/clarify my point.
How polite I am ! How civil these notes of late. What a change. Where is
all the acrimony and diatribe I saw when I first joined this group?
Wow! Seems like I began this list serve with someone exclaiming "fuck
you" and then yesterday someone walked out the door and away from
bananafish? I hope my lack of hystrionics in these notes won't bore the
audience. I'll do better!
--
M.E. Pierce
Dept. of English/ SFASU
http://titan.sfasu.edu/~f_pierceme
"and gladly would he lerne, and gladly teche." Chaucer