Thursday, September 20, 2012
Children Connections
While Lydia brought this up briefly in her post, I was really struck by the similarity in child/protagonist relationships in Esme and Bananafish. There is the innocence piece that Lydia brought up but also the fact that both relationships are oddly intimate for an adult and child. There is the scene in Bananafish where Seymour kisses Sybil's foot and also the scene where he says "How that name comes up. mixing memory and desire (18)." The relationship between Esme and Sergeant X closely mirrors that of Sybil and Seymour and X seems oddly infatuated with her. There is also the same foot fetish in this story as in bananafish. On pages 153-154 Sergeant X observes"It was a pretty little execution, for she was wearing white socks and her ankles and feet were lovely." These are not the only to stories where feet/ankles are referenced. Why do you suppose Salinger keeps referencing these particular appendages as opposed to other parts of the body? Thoughts?
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I agree, the relationship between child and soldier is an interesting similarity between the two stories. It surprises me especially because these kinds of relationships are special. Most people would not begin a conversation with a stranger and then play piano together or invite the other to their wedding. The similarity makes me suspect that Salinger was the kind of guy to begin relationships quickly since these ideas do not just pop into anyone's head. On the other hand, it could be someone he knew or a variety of other things, but it is odd that he should have child and soldier relationships in his stories.
ReplyDeleteIn "A Perfect Day For Bananafish" Seymour kills himself because he is very depressed.
In "For Esme: With Love and Squalor" the narrator has nervous ticks that move so violently that he can't read his own writing.
Both people are sick and I think it shows the variety of war related issues. It also shows how common sickness was, and is, in war.
I just thought of a really bizarre connection that I don't think makes much sense, but I'll share it anyway. Maybe the fascination of ankles and feet in these stories stems from the older practice of taking off a soldier's boots after he is killed in battle, and using them for yourself if your boots are worn out. I think this mainly happened in wars like the Civil War, and I'm not sure if it had any presence in WWII, but the idea just kind of jumped into my head. On the off chance that this did happen in the war to any of these soldiers/protagonists, it could be the cause for the traumatization. When thought about, it can be incredibly scarring to physically take the possession of a dead friend and then, literally, stand in their shoes.
ReplyDeleteThe practice of wearing the shoes of the dead was interesting. I think the relation between a soldier and a child in Salinger's stories is to give the reader a clear vision of how war can change a person to such an extent. In "A Perfect Day for Bananafish", Seymour was kissing Sybil's nice, little foot and grabbing her ankle as if he yearned for a part of Sybil's innocence. The narrator from "For Esme- With Love and Squalor" was doing almost the same thing. He examined Esme's feet and noticed how "lovely" they were. The two girls' feet were clean and unscarred, for they've never experienced war. Seymour and the narrator, however, were scarred. Seymour and the narrator looked to Sybil and Esme, either comparing the innocence of the girls to themselves or reminding themselves how innocent they used to be before the war.
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