(no subject)

[scottopic]

These two quotes sum up so much of what's going on -- how I feel in relation to so many of you and how I feel in relation to me:

"Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody's around - nobody big, I mean - except me. And I'm standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff - I mean if they're running and they don't look where they're going I have to come out from somewhere and catch them. That's all I do all day. I'd just be the catcher in the rye and all. I know it's crazy, but that's the only thing I'd really like to be."

"Among other things, you'll find that you're not the first person who was ever confused and frightened and even sickened by human behavior. You're by no means alone on that score, you'll be excited and stimulated to know. Many, many men have been just as troubled morally and spiritually as you are right now. Happily, some of them kept records of their troubles. You'll learn from them - if you want to. Just as someday, if you have something to offer, someone will learn something from you. It's a beautiful reciprocal arrangement. And it isn't education. It's history. It's poetry."

(both from Catcher in the Rye)

I'm not sure I could explain, and I'm not sure it's for me to explain. I like them though, and perhaps will let them just say whatever they'll say to you for themselves.

Comments

[scottopic.livejournal.com]

I understand ;)

[fairyhead.livejournal.com]

Sometime, I'd really like to talk books with you, if you're interested. The past few years, it's been very difficult for me to find people with even a small overlap with the books that I'm interested. While Adrien and Faidra will let me babble on and on about the books I'm reading, it would be nice to be able to actually talk about authors/books that are common between me and someone else.

I hadn't even realized that you cared about Salinger, prior to this post.

[scottopic.livejournal.com]

Ha, yes. I excel in being "jack of all genres, master of none" --- but have special appreciation for certain key areas and stories. Lots seem to be "sole disaffected youth" -- this, Demian, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, To Kill a Mockingbird, Run with the Horses. But it expands outward -- I have a pretty heavy showing for "Modern" British lit and Romantic and Existentialist writers (the only areas of poetry I can say I "like")

So...all over the map. I'm sure they'll be overlap in multiple places!

[fairyhead.livejournal.com]

Heh, how cringe-worthy is this? I couldn't even name particular authors that qualify as 'modern' British lit or Romantic.

Remember, I went to a tech school and majored in Business ...

However, I'm heartened by you thinking there will be some overlap. You know, for me, mostly, if bone-crushing, depressing, or bone-crushing depressing can be applied to the book, I might have read it. Though, I don't think of Salinger or Hesse to be depressing (that probably gives a weird, weird insight into how my brain works). :)

[scottopic.livejournal.com]

Yeah, my Lit degree was essentially a handy dandy chart of what label fit where!

And some floof...