J.D. Salinger famously said: "I love to write and I assure you I write regularly... But I write for myself, for my own pleasure. And I want to be left alone to do it."
This quote is one that should be noted in history, because it illustrates the real reason why one of America's most notable writers and celebrities started and continued his career choice. I think people often end up hating their job because they lose the reason for why they chose the career path in the first place. People forget the reasons for which they fell in love with their craft once they are forced to do it everyday.
J.D. Salinger inspires me because he gives the real reason for why he writes. It's obviously not for the fame and glory.
According to numerous reports circulated before and after his Jan. 27 death, Salinger did everything in his power to keep his life private — he had a shotgun, guard dogs, high fences, lawyers and "No Trespassing" signs. He had built himself a little house in Cornish, N.H., and intended to stay locked away from the world.
He wrote not so he could be interviewed, have his picture taken or appear on talk shows; instead he wrote because he loved to write and it made him happy. I think if anyone is going to devote themselves to something, it should be not for the benefits and rewards that come with it, but because of the feeling it gives them. That freeing, exhilarating rush I get when I pick up a pen is the reason I write; I don't do it for anyone else.
And when Salinger wrote, he wrote in a way that was truly his own style. His book "Catcher in the Rye" stylistically did amazing things for American literature.
"It may have helped refine some of the narrative techniques that later found their way into the onetime ‘new journalism' of nonfiction using fictional techniques: detail, direct quotation, first-person narration, intense mind probing," Larry Riley, an English instructor at Ball State University, said.
I think Salinger's idea of writing in first person was one of the main reasons the book was so popular. It was something people could easily connect with, especially because of the vernacular language Salinger chooses to tell the story.
His style was very unique and was something that was totally him, with the words, "phony" and "goddamn it" being used so freely. He didn't fit into the social norm of writing styles in the 1950s. He risked a lot by deciding to write in a way no else had ever done. But that risk of a vulgar, intense writing style brought on a surprising amount of success.
Sometimes it's a good thing to take risks and do something differently.
The worst that could happen is people wouldn't like it. But if they do like it, suddenly you've created a new genre of the field you're immersed in.
And now Holden Caulfield is an American icon, representing rebellion in every form.
While J.D. Salinger has passed on, his character is still alive and vibrant. One of the reasons Holden Caulfield is so popular is because he has an incredible way of presenting the truths of society — the truths that no one dared to mention.
This may be why "Catcher in the Rye" is on many lists of the best English-laungage novels ever written. However, Salinger didn't reach success instantly. According to The New York Times, he sent his story "Slight Rebellion Off Madison" to The New Yorker, who stashed it away for five years before finally publishing it in 1946.
Salinger's writing style has inspired me because it taught me that if you want your craft to be noteworthy and have an impact, it has to be something that's totally all you.
I've learned not to fall into the social norms of writing. If you want to be successful you have to do things your own way and then you will have the world's respect. Being yourself means all the things society rejects are suddenly OK. For some reason talking vulgarly, in a rude way, with a mean manner is wrong to society — yet Salinger used all these characteristics in his book and it was what gained him respect.
Sometimes we have to realize that often the things society rejects are simply the truths of the world that no one wants to admit. And when you have the power to present the truth in your own way, that's when you can start making a difference.
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