Carefree Youth
Throughout
his stories, Salinger seems to present several different recurring themes
including the idea of childhood youth and innocence. His fascination with this
idea is portrayed in multiple characters such as Ramona from “Uncle Wiggly in
Connecticut”, Sybil in “A Perfect Day for Banana Fish”, and even Ginny and Franklin from “Just Before
the War with the Eskimos.” The reader grows to treasure this childhood
innocence and at times it is even sought after by characters like Eloise and
Seymour. Salinger portrays this idea as a desirable quality and adds a
relatable touch to his stories as he depicts children adult interactions.
This youthful
and carefree nature is contrasted by the shallow and materialistic qualities of
characters such as Muriel and Mary Anne (at times). While she is waiting for
the phone call to her mother, Salinger spends a great deal of time describing
the way Muriel chooses to pass the time. Among other things, she paints her
nails, reads a popular magazine, washes her comb and brush, and fixes part of
her skirt. While these are all ordinary tasks, they are significantly different
than what her partner, Seymour, decides to do with his free time. The
intricacies of fashion and interior design do not seem appealing to him,
instead, he seeks the company of a young companion, Sybil. Despite Seymour’s questionable
intentions with Sybil, it is clear he enjoys talking to her and playing with
her on the beach, just as another child would upon meeting a new friend. In
this way, not only is the playfulness of Sybil exemplified as a good quality,
it is so interesting that Seymour seems to pursue it.
Another
great example of this interest takes place during the interaction between Ginny
and Franklin in “Just Before the War with the Eskimos.” Although Ginny is
clearly the younger of the two, she seems fascinated by Franklin’s behavior and
perspective on life. While there are many words to describe him, I think carefree
certainly fits the description. He seems to have a childlike perspective on
things we would most likely consider important decisions. He takes no action to
cover his bleeding wound, he doesn’t hesitate to insult Ginny’s sister (even
after learning that they were related), and he could care less about his current
situation (leaving the “rheumatic fever” and “ticker” unchecked and not caring
about his economic status holding a job, joining the army, etc.) Like we
discussed in class, Ginny seems to be so captured by this idea (or by Franklin
in general) that she no longer cares about the bus fare (the reason she came to
Selena’s house in the first place).
In my
perspective, there is a reason Salinger chooses to include this idea in so many
of his stories. It could be that he is alluding to the harsh realities of
adulthood and suggesting that we treasure the playfulness of childhood, or
something completely different possibly having to do with the impact of the war
on this aspect of life. Either way, it will be interesting to see how this theme
develops and if it continues to arise in the remaining stories in his book.
I agree with you in that childhood seems to be a recurring theme, even with the adult characters that we see in the story. There is something childish about the carefree-ness and shallowness that Muriel shows in her scene in "A Perfect Day for Bananafish", although it comes from an interesting place that doesn't quite make sense. Muriel's life is anything but simple, and at the end it gets even messier. To me, her carefree nature seemed more like blissful ignorance in an attempt to recreate the childish feeling she's looking for (i.e. wanting to enjoy a vacation, spending time away from home).
ReplyDeleteI think we see the continuation of the childhood innocence in today's reading of The Laughing Man. I guess I had not before noticed this theme before you brought it up. Your post has peaked my interest interest and I am looking forward to following this theme in the rest of Salinger's work. Maybe children have an innocent understanding of things that adults lose the ability to understand, or maybe in the case of Sybil, children are too innocent to recognize extreme distress and are happy to interact with anyone as if they knew them their whole lives.
ReplyDeleteI really like this post. You give good examples of how Salinger emphasizes the theme of childhood innocence throughout each of the stories so far in the book. Salinger uses the child characters like Ramona and Sybil as a contrast to the shallow adult characters like Mary Jane and Muriel in his stories to critique the materialism and upper class in the post WWII era.
ReplyDeleteI like this post and I definitely agree with what you're saying. I think childhood innocence really is a theme that Salinger likes to use. I'm personally a big fan of how he writes about childhood versus adulthood, particularly in characters like Ramona and Sybil.
ReplyDeleteI really like the ideas you bring up in this blog post, particularly your comment about how Salinger may be suggesting that childhood is something worth cherishing in contrast to the harsh realities of adult life. His stories definitely have a very nostalgic feel to them that paints the past into a much rosier image than it perhaps was in reality. I think it's worth noting that a similar point was being made in Tim O'Brien's collection. In many of the stories, the events are told through the scope of a past memory. That is, he is remembering a past event from the present and therefore his memory of it will be tainted and more selective. In the same way, childhood memories in these short stories seem to bring happiness and longing for a more carefree time.
ReplyDeleteYou should read Catcher in the Rye!
ReplyDeleteI agree that youth and innocence are themes that Salinger often explores, and portrays them in a very positive light. They are things that should be protected and preserved. Also, we often get the sense that the younger characters (Ramona, Sybil) are wise beyond their years. Wiser than their older counterparts, perhaps.
I think I read that Salinger was influenced by some of the religious work he studied that the goal to enlightenment was to return to the "innocence" of childhood, which I think explains the obsession with a fantasy of childhood that Salinger attempts to express throughout this collection.
ReplyDeleteGiven the amount of books and stories told from an "adult" point of view, I found Salinger's frequent use of a younger perspective very engaging, and I agree with you completely that he's stressing the importance of enjoying being a kid while you can. I also think he's trying to show that kids can have intelligent thoughts and conversations too, in contrast to some adults' beliefs that children can't think for themselves. Good post!
ReplyDelete