They are almost all gone now. My literary heroes. Today we lost J.D. Salinger. Well the truth is we lost him in 1965 when he decided he had nothing left for "us". But I loved imagining him in seclusion, writing daily, for no one but himself. It was good to know he was still kicking around...still able to see what a mess society continues to be. Supposedly he was a strange man, probably slightly disturbed but then most brilliant people are that way. I love everything he gave us and I've always respected that when he declared he had nothing left, he stuck to it and was never pressured into doing anything just to appease the public thirst. I fucking love that and think it shows that he truly believed in the themes he wrote about.
More than anything his death leaves me fearful. Will his family uphold his legacy or will they sell it out? Oh don't get me wrong, I'd love to know what he's been writing all these years in seclusion. I'd probably have a mental orgasm right on the spot, but I wouldn't truly want to read it. not if he didn't want me to. it would be like reading his diary or something, ya know? PRIVATE. I know what it's like to write for yourself. I've written stories I don't wanna share with anyone. Supposedly, there's a whole vault of stuff he's written at his home, but unless he left instructions to the contrary, it should die with him. it should be destroyed. perhaps he took it upon himself to do that before he passed. it would have been the smart thing to do. Because I hate the idea of putting it out there and having people critique it, knowing that it was never meant for publication.
Catcher in the Rye did change my life and my relationship with books and writing. Franny and Zooey sent me into a spiritual tailspin between the Catholicism I was growing up with and the eastern philosophies I was so drawn to. Salinger wrote the way I WANTED to write. He said the things I wanted to say. Things we've ALL wanted to say at some point or another. You wanted to shake his hand for it. Actually, he let Holden say it best:
" What really knocks me out is a book, when you're all done reading it, you wished the author that wrote it was a terrific friend of yours and you could call him up on the phone whenever you felt like it."
Did he know that he succeeded? That his books made us feel that way? And was that the proverbial can of worms that became too big for the room, the thing that ultimately sent him running? Maybe. But whatever the reason, I can't blame him. Not with the way this society latches on to things, exaggerates them and continues to milk them even after they are dry. maybe in one sense he made it worse for himself. By cutting us off, he made people infinitely curious about him, eager to solve the mystery of J.D. Salinger. So is it only a matter of time before someone tries to peel back the curtain, to get answers to the questions he never wanted to answer?
Salinger chose the legacy he wanted to leave us with the works he published. To ask more of him, especially now that he is gone, would be disrespectful to that legacy. Rest in Peace J.D. My only hope now is that whatever your wishes in life were, that they are still respected in your death.
More than anything his death leaves me fearful. Will his family uphold his legacy or will they sell it out? Oh don't get me wrong, I'd love to know what he's been writing all these years in seclusion. I'd probably have a mental orgasm right on the spot, but I wouldn't truly want to read it. not if he didn't want me to. it would be like reading his diary or something, ya know? PRIVATE. I know what it's like to write for yourself. I've written stories I don't wanna share with anyone. Supposedly, there's a whole vault of stuff he's written at his home, but unless he left instructions to the contrary, it should die with him. it should be destroyed. perhaps he took it upon himself to do that before he passed. it would have been the smart thing to do. Because I hate the idea of putting it out there and having people critique it, knowing that it was never meant for publication.
Catcher in the Rye did change my life and my relationship with books and writing. Franny and Zooey sent me into a spiritual tailspin between the Catholicism I was growing up with and the eastern philosophies I was so drawn to. Salinger wrote the way I WANTED to write. He said the things I wanted to say. Things we've ALL wanted to say at some point or another. You wanted to shake his hand for it. Actually, he let Holden say it best:
" What really knocks me out is a book, when you're all done reading it, you wished the author that wrote it was a terrific friend of yours and you could call him up on the phone whenever you felt like it."
Did he know that he succeeded? That his books made us feel that way? And was that the proverbial can of worms that became too big for the room, the thing that ultimately sent him running? Maybe. But whatever the reason, I can't blame him. Not with the way this society latches on to things, exaggerates them and continues to milk them even after they are dry. maybe in one sense he made it worse for himself. By cutting us off, he made people infinitely curious about him, eager to solve the mystery of J.D. Salinger. So is it only a matter of time before someone tries to peel back the curtain, to get answers to the questions he never wanted to answer?
Salinger chose the legacy he wanted to leave us with the works he published. To ask more of him, especially now that he is gone, would be disrespectful to that legacy. Rest in Peace J.D. My only hope now is that whatever your wishes in life were, that they are still respected in your death.
I can only hope that his wishes are respected and that his family will honor his legacy.