Catcher in the rye and For Esme with Love
There have been many great authors to this date in history, as we know it. In my lifetime, J D Salinger is one of the most famous and powerful authors I read. "J D Salinger, one of the world's most influential and reclusive authors..." (Brooks Richard, The Sunday Times pg 3) states Richard Brooks from "The Sunday Times". One of Salinger's greatest achievements was the novel "The Catcher in the Rye". I heard about he novel in numerous occasions. It was even mentioned in films such as "Conspiracy Theory" in which Mel Gibson plays a "disturbed" man who has to buy a copy of "The Catcher in the Rye" whenever he sees one or has the thought about the novel. He had a bookshelf filled with the novel. It seemed like I was the only one that did not read this classic. So I went to the library and they were all on loan so I bought one. After finishing the novel, which was great, I decided to read another piece of Salinger's work to see how Salinger's writing style would compare to "The Catcher in the Rye". I picked up a book called "Nine Stories", which had, as the title read, nine different short stories. I found myself reading a story called "For Esme - with love and squalor". After completing the story, I discovered that the two
Both of these stories were very similar to each other, from the characters, theme, plot and many more similarities I mentioned throughout this essay. Though, these stories never lost my interest as I read them and compared them. J D Salinger makes both of these stories personal as you read them which makes you want to read more even though you notice that you have finished the book. Nevertheless, what is certain, is in the near future, I will be going to my local library to try and pick up another one of Salinger's great work. Salinger uses the view of the characters to inject humor into both of these stories. In "The Catcher in the Rye", we see Holden's thought about old-aged Spencer's bed being hard as a rock. He also adds "I didn't feel like being lectured to and smell Vicks Nose Drops and look at old Spencer in his pajamas and bathrobe all at the same time" (Holden Caulfield, The Catcher in the Rye). In "For Esme - with love and squalor" we see the humor of the little girl Esme. "You seem quite intelligent for an American" (Esme, For Esme - with love and squalor). Salinger cleverly reverses this effect in "For Esme - with love and squalor". He uses the point of view of a young adult to interact with the young girl, Esme. The results in the reader receiving the thoughts of Esme through there dialogue with the narrator. Therefore, the reader can understand the view of society on young intelligent minds. For example, the narrator talks about Esme. "It wasn't an observation of a smart aleck but that of a truth-lover of a statistics-lover" (Narrator, For Esme - with love and squalor). This observation shows us how the adult is actually admiring Esme's thoughts. In "The Catcher in the Rye", the reader cannot get a sense of what society thinks of Holden. The loss of loved ones and not having a close relationship with your family is common between Holden and Esme. Holden had lost
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Approximate Word count = 1290
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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