Salinger and His Work

Both Salinger and Holden share similar personal backgrounds. They were born and raised in New York City and left their schools at least once for academic reasons. Salinger's experience at the Valley Forge Military Academy also serves as a model for Holden's times in Pencey Prep. Just as Holden, Salinger was the manager of the fencing team and later in their lives, they both ended up at sanitarium being hospitalized. Not only do they share their upbringings, they exhibit analogous personalities and values. Holden's fondness for innocent young girls resembles the kind of affection Salinger had for dating "the youngest, most innocent kids he could find." He would tell fantastic stories about himself to these girls, which recalls Holden's conversation with Mrs.Morrow while on the train. But unfortunately, they both struggle to form long-lasting and meaningful relationships with a woman. Furthermore, their attitudes towards the public also resemble. As Holden regrets his openness to tell everyone of his stories at the end of the novel, Salinger is also known for his literary reclusiveness. Reflections on his own isolation and the discomfort towards the public are deeply embedded in Holden's character. At Ernie's club, Holden hates people clapping for Ernie's phony and show-offy piano performance. Because people usually appreciate wrong things, he says that he would rather play the piano in "the closet". Like Holden, Salinger may have wished to find his seclusiveness, writing in his own little "closet". Also Holden's distaste for films--despite his considerable knowledge of them--parellels Salinger's. Salinger had several relevant experiences with the acting field but his distaste for the film based on his story was so great that ever since he refused to allow any of his work to be made into films or plays. Holden speaks of his brother D.B. as "out in Hollywood...being a prostitute", acidly criticizing his brother's activities as prostitution. Salinger must have felt the same way about his former film experiences. More interestingly, the prostitute in the novel, Sunny reminds the reader of Salinger's nickname, Sonny.

Such possible connections enabled by specific autobiographic data about author himself certainly help to create another imaginary dimension for the readers. While it seems quite plausible from the aforementioned evidences that Salinger may have inserted parts of his own stories into Holden, one must also remember that a literature is not necessarily a direct replica of the author himself or his life. Rather, it is a open canvas full of possibilities, where the author, characters and readers can share their own perceptions and thoughts.