How come, J.D.?

Okay, so maybe he wont go down in history as being the "nicest" and most "socially appropriate" individual in pop culture, but the passing of author J.D. Salinger is an occasion that merits stopping--even briefly--to honor what this man did for literature, youth rebellion, and solidarity (so maybe I care....but remember, please, that I am a geeky English teacher). J.D. Salinger lived a tragic, yet respectable life--he completely closed himself off from society, the media, and pop culture....yet his motives were perfectly respectable and warranted. He had the "guts" to choose not to deal with the dishonesty, corruption, and "dog and pony show" that life--or a life of fame--often becomes. And for that, I think he is pretty cool. (plus, he lived on a farm, and I like milk).

Salinger wrote probably the perfect book; THE CATCHER IN THE RYE is the book that kids who hate reading love to read. And for good reason. Hovering at number 4 in the "top 5 books of Jared's all time" list, "Catcher" is a true masterpiece, and if you havent read it you should. The tragedy of "Catcher," in fact, isnt the tragic life of Holden Caulfield, but rather the fact that kids (including me) finished it--DEVOURED it, in fact--only becoming too excited to read other stuff Salinger had written. And there was nothing. Well, there was "something." But it was really nothing. FRANNY AND ZOOEY and NINE STORIES were strange, random, and disappointing. Its like when I fell in love with "Stone Temple Pilot's" song "Plush" back in the mid 90s....Plush was a KILLER awesome song. And then, upon listening to the rest of the album, I realized NOTHING on there a) sounded like Plush and b) sounded like anything I even remotely wanted to listen to. Yeah. Like that.

Why is THE CATCHER IN THE RYE so awesome? There are many reasons. Its like asking why Aristotle is so awesome; the "stuff" in his "Rhetoric and Poetics" is so elementary...so common sense...that we take it for granted.....NOW. But what Salinger did with Holden Caulfield was create the original "brat;" Salinger paved the way for other whiney, entitled, spoiled, pain-in-the-ass-rich kids to come to the forefront and exploit how difficult their lives are. Basically, thanks to Salinger, we have shows like "The O.C.," "The Hills," "Beverly Hills 90210," and just about every other "youth-in-revolt" kind of package out there. Holden Caulfield was the original emo, and he was the original Abercrombie. He made it possible for bands like "My Chemical Romance" to exist. He was the man. A tragic and very very sad man.

When I teach high school English year after year (and I know I'm still somewhat of a rookie) I see Holden after Holden after Holden, all putting on the act....all walking the walk....all pretending they dont care about anything or anybody in any type of authority. But now I am smart enough to know that they do care. Just like Holden. After reading this post, you should do two things: You should go read the book. Then, you should know this: Kids are actually really great people, things arent as bad as you see on the news, and not all hope is lost.......