Personal Notes of an Infantryman
| "Personal Notes of an Infantryman" | |
|---|---|
| Short story by J. D. Salinger | |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Publication | |
| Published in | Collier’s |
| Publication date | 12 December, 1942 |
“Personal Notes of an Infantryman” is an uncollected work of short fiction by J. D. Salinger which appeared in the 12 September, 1942 issue of Collier's.[1][2]
Plot
The story concerns an older man trying to get in the military, and then overseas to combat, despite the obstacles in his way. Collier's published it in December 1942.[3]
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Critical Assessment
An example of Salinger’s early single-page “patriotic bromides” published by Collier’s during WWII, the story includes “a cute-to-sickening” surprise ending. A “glib comedy,” the story contrasts with Salinger’s more serious-minded tales dealing with men and boys at war, such as “Soft-Boiled Sergeant” (1944).[4]
Written as an expedient to sustain his early success as a published writer, Salinger, aware of “which magazines like what kind of writing,” formulated “Personal Notes of an Infantryman” to make it particularly appealing to Collier’s editors: “A neatly predictable O. Henry ending…imbued with patriotism and a warmth toward the military.”[5] Biographer Kenneth Slawenski reports on Salinger’s own appraisal of the story:
“Infantryman” was deployed by Salinger only as a literary filler, to plug the gap between his period of literary inaction and the completion of more discerning works. It was certainly not a story that Salinger bragged about.[6]
Footnotes
- ^ Wenke, 1991 p. 167: Selected Bibliography
- ^ Starosciak, Kenneth (1971). J. D. Salinger: A Thirty Year Bibliography, 1938-1968. St Paul: Croixside Press. ISBN 9780870180729.
- ^ Salinger, J. D. (12 December 1942). "Personal Notes on an Infantryman". Collier's Weekly. New York: Crowell-Collier Publishing Company.
- ^ Wenke, 1991 p. 6, p. 15-16
- ^ Slawenski, 2010 p. 55
- ^ Slawenski, 2010 p. 55-56
Sources
- Slawenski, Kenneth. 2010. J. D. Salinger: A Life. Random House, New York. ISBN 978-1-4000-6951-4
- Wenke, John. 1991. J. D. Salinger: A Study of the Short Fiction. Twaynes Studies in Short Fiction, Gordon Weaver, General Editor. Twayne Publishers, New York. ISBN 0-8057-8334-2
