J. D. Salinger

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6 comments:

Anonymous said...

J.D Salinger mainly writes short stories, with the exception of his most famous novel, The Catcher In The Rye. His works usually comment on the injustices and problems of society, especially pertaining to the isolation of individuals. Using a cynical family of seven, he concisely captures the problems in society in his stories. Salinger has straight to the point plots and themes to quickly get his ideas across to the reader. His stories are not only insightful, but are funny and entertaining. The Catcher In The Rye tells the story about a teenager named Holden who gets kicked out of boarding school and roams the streets of New York for a few days, meeting up with two nuns, a prostitute, and almost getting molested by a former teacher. Holden’s adventures, along with the stories of Salinger’s other characters, are a worth reading about. J.D Salinger is a great author to read about!

Anonymous said...

J.D. Salinger is a great choice for author thesis because not only are his books clever and enjoyable, but also have a clear significance that's relevant to modern America. After reading The Catcher in the Rye in 9th grade on my own, I was positive I wanted to do Salinger for my thesis. This novel will change the way you live. His characters are well developed and likeable, and you can empathize with their issues. Salinger did not write many stories in his career, and therefore your workload will be shorter than most of your peers. The only complaint I have is that some of his stories written in the latter part of his career are not very interesting and not plot-driven. However, even these stories have interesting traits and will not compromise how much you enjoy his work as a whole. Salinger writes about a large range of topics, from eastern religion to baseball to Central Park, and therefore will entice any reader.

Anonymous said...

I found most of J.D. Salinger's literature fast paced and exciting, but he has a novella or two that are tedious to read. In one of his works, Seymour: An Introduction, there is essentially no dialogue. The prose is basically a stream of consciousness, and I was quick to lose my focus. His other works, though, are comical and fairly short! Many of his books condemn society and focus on alienated individuals. His themes pop out at you and are very interconnected, which makes writing the paper easier. Salinger's characters are mainly young adults and are easy to engage with. Furthermore, several characters appear in more than one of his works. If you enjoy short stories and novellas about fairly young people, J.D. Salinger is the author for you!

Anonymous said...

J.D. Salinger is an interesting author. He wrote mainly short stories, but did write one novel named The Catcher in the Rye. I was only able to use the short stories in my paper. The problem I found in reading short stories was finding something that connected all the short stories together. At first I thought the reading time would be shorter, but you still have to read the same amount. Do not pick short stories just because you think you will not have to read as much you do. If you like short stories and the plot not being able to unfold then choose Salinger.

Anonymous said...

Lily A.

Despite the periodic confusion in J.D. Salinger’s short stories, the themes portrayed throughout all the stories are easy for the reader to connect to each other. The themes of depression and isolation reoccur in all the stories, making it simpler to write the paper. Additionally, the recurrence of the same characters allows for less confusion, though the plot-less stories are reasons the reader can get confused. The stories are relatable to young adults today, because the characters experience stress from familial and romantic relationships. If one is looking for an easy theme to write their paper on, I would recommend J.D. Salinger, though one has to beware that they may get bored easily due to the lack of a solid plot line.

Anonymous said...

I found J.D. Salinger to be a very good choice for my Author Thesis. His books, for the most part, are quick and easy reads. The books he wrote mainly consist of short stories, which initially intimidated me because I thought it would be hard to connect all of them. However, I discovered that I had no reason to be intimidated; Salinger’s books all connect in a very distinct way. They all focus on the force society places on individuals to act a certain way. This force he examines is so strong that individuals feel they must change themselves in order to fit into societal norms. His books not only provide insight about the faults of society, but they also provide entertainment for the reader. I would recommend Salinger to anyone who is trying to choose an author; he is not too hard and he is always entertaining.

American Author Thesis

Now that you have written your essay, we ask that you reflect on the reading portion of the experience and write 100-150 words about your author.

Think of what you write as advice for someone next year and beyond, someone who (like you were doing last fall) is thinking about choosing your author - and maybe even the same three books - to read for the assignment.