Jerome David Salinger Research Paper

Albert Xu

Mrs. Kirk

Accelerated English I

7 November 2017

Jerome David Salinger: A Reclusive American Author American author, Jerome David Salinger, was an influential author of the 20th century. Even though he never wanted to be famous, many of his works are well known and critically acclaimed. His unique writing style comes from many of his life experiences and influences and his writing has left an impact on many. Salinger was born in Manhattan, New York on January 1, 1919 (Bloom 1). Called Sonny in his youth, he was the second child of Sol Salinger, a Jew and successful importer of hams, and Miriam Jillich Salinger, a Christian. Little about Salinger’s sister is known other than she was born eight years before him (Verde 2). Salinger

“Slight Rebellion off Madison” was the other story later used that was published in The New Yorker in 1946. Throughout the years of 1948-50 Salinger published some of his most famous stories including “A Perfect Day for Bananafish”, “Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut”, “Just before the War with the Eskimos”, and “For Esmé – with Love and Squalor” (Verde 5). When Salinger’s most famous work The Catcher in the Rye was published in 1951 to critical acclaim, Salinger went to Europe to avoid publicity. In 1953 he moved to Cornish, New Hampshire, where he was interviewed for the first and last time by a high school girl (Blackstock 2248). In 1955 Salinger married Claire Douglas, whom he had two children with, Margaret and Matthew, before divorcing in 1967. Salinger spent the rest of his life in isolation until he died of natural causes at the age of 91 in 2010. (Bloom

He is most well-known for his only full-length novel The Catcher in the Rye. After being published the novel was well received by critics and also popular, being on the New York Times best-seller (Bloom 3). The novel follows Holden Caulfield leaving Pencey Prep and his following days loitering around New York City before returning home (Blackstock 2250). Some of his other short stories including “A Perfect Day for Bananafish”, “Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut”, and “For Esmé – with Love and Squalor” are also well-known (Verde