Sources
- Slawenski, Kenneth. 2010. J. D. Salinger: A Life. Random House, New York. ISBN 978-1-4000-6951-4
 | This article about a short story (or stories) published in the 1940s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
| "The Magic Foxhole" | |
|---|---|
| by J. D. Salinger | |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Published in | Unpublished |
The Magic Foxhole is an unpublished short story by J. D. Salinger.
The story, told in the first-person by a narrator named Garrity, takes place days after D-Day. Garrity describes a friend of his, another soldier named Gardner, who is suffering from battle fatigue. Gardner is in the hospital, hallucinating. He sees a soldier in his room dressed in a futuristic uniform with weaponry he doesn't recognize. Garrity finds out that the soldier he sees is in fact Gardner's son (who has not been born yet) about to go into combat during World War II. Gardner tells Garrity he must kill him, to prevent him from dying in combat and hopefully preventing the future war. The story ends abruptly with Garrity leaving the hospital, while Gardner screams in horror.
“‘The Magic Foxhole’ is a strong condemnation of war and one that could have been written only by a soldier…Its message countered the propaganda common in 1944 with a frankness that could have been interpreted as subversive…Even had this story slipped by the military censors, it is hard to imagine a publisher with the courage to print it.”—Biographer Kenneth Slawenski in J. D. Salinger: A Life (2010) [1]
The 21 page story was written in 1944 [2] while Salinger was in the service during D-Day “the first he wrote while on the front line and the only work in which he depicted active combat.” [3] and was submitted to The New Yorker but rejected. The story is noteworthy for its graphic descriptions of the combat during the D-Day invasion. Salinger noted in at least one letter [4] he believed the piece was a demonstration of the "psychological drama" he began to place in his character's heads, particularly war veterans. He had a high opinion of the piece, which will not be published until 2060, and after much discussion it was planned to be included in the collection he arranged with Whit Burnett and Story Press' Lippincott imprint, [5] but the deal fell through, much to the author's consternation.
| | This article about a short story (or stories) published in the 1940s is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
The Catcher in the Rye is an American novel by J. D. Salinger that was partially published in serial form 1945–46 before being novelized in 1951. Originally intended for adults, it is often read by adolescents for its themes of angst and alienation, and as a critique of superficiality in society. The novel also deals with complex issues of innocence, identity, belonging, loss, connection, sex, and depression. The main character, Holden Caulfield, has become an icon for teenage rebellion. Caulfield, nearly of age, gives his opinion on a wide variety of topics as he narrates his recent life events.
Holden Caulfield is a fictional character in the works of author J. D. Salinger. He is most famous for his appearance as the lead character and narrator of the 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye. Since the book's publication, Holden has become an icon for teenage rebellion and angst, and is considered among the most important characters of 20th-century American literature. The name Holden Caulfield was initially used in an unpublished short story written in 1941 and first appeared in print in 1945.
"A Perfect Day for Bananafish" is a short story by J. D. Salinger, originally published in the January 31, 1948, issue of The New Yorker. It was anthologized in 1949's 55 Short Stories from the New Yorker, as well as in Salinger's 1953 collection Nine Stories. The story is an enigmatic examination of a young married couple, Muriel and Seymour Glass, on vacation in Florida. It is the first of his stories to feature a member of the fictional Glass family.
Franny and Zooey is a book by American author J. D. Salinger which comprises his short story "Franny" and novella Zooey. The two works were published together as a book in 1961, having originally appeared in The New Yorker in 1955 and 1957 respectively. The book focuses on siblings Franny and Zooey, the two youngest members of the Glass family, which was a frequent focus of Salinger's writings.
The Glass family is a fictional family appearing in several of J. D. Salinger's short fictions. All but one of the Glass family stories were first published in The New Yorker. They appear in the short story collections Nine Stories, Raise High the Roof Beam, Carpenters and Seymour: An Introduction and Franny and Zooey.
"For Esmé—with Love and Squalor" is a short story by J. D. Salinger. It recounts a sergeant's meeting with a young girl before being sent into combat in World War II. Originally published in The New Yorker on April 8, 1950, it was anthologized in Salinger's Nine Stories two years later.
The Foolkiller is the name of four fictional characters, vigilantes appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, consisting of Ross G. Everbest, Greg Salinger, and Kurt Gerhardt in the primary continuity Marvel Universe, and Mike Trace in the MAX imprint.
Emory & Henry College Hospital was a Confederate hospital during the American Civil War. The First Battle of Saltville took place near the hospital.
"Down at the Dinghy" is a short story by J. D. Salinger, originally published in Harper's in April 1949, and included in the compilation, Nine Stories.
“A Boy in France” is an uncollected work of short fiction by J. D. Salinger which appeared in the 31 March, 1945 issue of The Saturday Evening Post.
"The Hang of It" is a short story by J. D. Salinger, first published in the July 12, 1941 issue of Collier's magazine.
“Soft-Boiled Sergeant” is an uncollected work of short fiction by J. D. Salinger which appeared in the 26 February, 1944 issue of The Saturday Evening Post.
“Once a Week Won’t Kill You” is a work of short fiction by J. D. Salinger published in the November-December 1944 issue of Story. The story is included in the 2014 Salinger collection Three Early Stories.
“This Sandwich Has No Mayonnaise” is an uncollected work of short fiction by J. D. Salinger which appeared in the October 1945 issue of Esquire. The story was published in the 1958 anthology The Armchair Esquire, edited by Arnold Gingrich and L. Rust Hills.
Jerome David Salinger was an American author best known for his 1951 novel The Catcher in the Rye. Salinger published several short stories in Story magazine in 1940, before serving in World War II. In 1948, his critically acclaimed story "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" appeared in The New Yorker, which published much of his later work.
Shell shock is a term that originated during World War I to describe the type of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that many soldiers experienced during the war, before PTSD was officially recognized. It is a reaction to the intensity of the bombardment and fighting that produced a helplessness, which could manifest as panic, fear, flight, or an inability to reason, sleep, walk or talk.
"May Day" is a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald published in The Smart Set in the July 1920 issue. The story was included in his 1922 short story collection Tales of the Jazz Age. The plot follows a blithe coterie of privileged Yale alumni who meet for a social dance during the May Day riots of 1919. The riots erupted in multiple cities including Cleveland, Ohio and New York City after socialists protested the conviction of Eugene Debs. The story has been compared to J.D. Salinger's "A Perfect Day for Bananafish."
"The Last and Best of the Peter Pans" is an unpublished short story by J. D. Salinger.
“The Children’s Echelon” is an unpublished work of short fiction by J. D. Salinger written in 1944 when the author was serving in combat during World War II. The work was referred to as both “The Children’s Echelon” and “Total War Diary” in Salinger’s professional correspondence. It can be located in the Firestone Library in Princeton University.
Three Early Stories is a posthumous publication of American author J. D. Salinger, published in 2014, comprising three stories: "The Young Folks", "Go See Eddie" and "Once a Week Won't Kill You".