The War After War
We began the semester reading short stories whose theme was deeply entrenched in the feelings and effects of war. This past week has contrastingly been filled with narrations of mainly women who are conversing with men who have returned from war and/ or women who are talking about their husbands have returned from war. Instead of a perspective of a soldier feeling detached from society, or telling stories of their near-death experiences, predominately in Vietnam, Salinger has given us narratives which both indirectly and directly tell his audience what people are thinking of returning soldiers. In the second story, the reader is also given insight into the experience of what it is like to lose a loved one to war. In “A Perfect Day for Bananafish,” the reader understands that Seymour has done something or has the potential to do something that is unfavorable, according to Muriel’s mother. In the second story, “Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut,” Eloise’s husband, presumably somewhat altered...