Re: Salinger and Nabokov / Flaubert's Parrot -Reply -Reply
rainswept@nwu.edu ("rainswept@nwu.edu")
Thu, 03 Sep 1998 11:54:59 -0500 (CDT)
> Secondly, if his work IS a jigsaw puzzle, then ultimately that is true
> for all writers. Kurt Vonnegut's body of work is a monument for me.
> Each piece, each story, each novel makes me appreciate the others all
> the more. Is he some kind of literary super-genius? No, it's just that
> all of the work comes from the same man. Therefore, the more I read,
> the better handle I have on his imagination and how his mind works.
> Likewise, the jigsaw puzzle of Salinger's work is most likely not
> planned, but a natural pheneomenon created with every prolific writer.
> Just a thought.
>
> Thor
>
I think that it is important to remind that "A Perfect Day for
Bananafish" was written (published) *before* the other books that
allowed us some insight into and info about the lives of the Glass family
so it does stand alone as a story. The ambiguity concering Seymour's
troubles is part of what makes this such a compelling short story.
This has probably been brought up before--and if it has, I apologize--but
the similarities between "Bananafish" and the poem "Richard Cory" are more
than slight--in my opinion. This is in no way to say that one influenced
the other, just that they deal with the same subject in similar mysterious
circumstances/reasons.
I do think that the additional knowledge about the Glass family is
interesting, but is it necessary to the story "A Perfect Day for
Bananafish?" I don't think it is at all...it just offers some insight into
the possible reasons for Seymour's unhappiness and ultimate decision.
Lisa
**********************************************************************
"You chose a giant step/Caught your eye/Guaranteed sweetness/That you
thought broken/And you were not fine..."
---Guided By Voices