For Esme....rough Draft 1

Meghan Brockmeyer Mrs. Lake AP Literature, A4 9/11/08 J.D. Salinger’s “For Esme-With Love and Squalor” depicts an American soldier who becomes captivated by a young girl he encounters while stationed in France. Although juvenile in appearance, the girl, Esme, is startlingly bright, attractive, and outgoing. She dominates the narrator’s thoughts to the extent that the second half of the story is dedicated to her. The characterization of the young girl, Esme, in J.D. Salinger’s “For Esme-With Love and Squalor” is intricately developed, as Esme becomes the central character through careful attention paid to her description, dialogue, and personal motives. The narrator’s portrayal of Esme depicts her as a double-sided character. Esme possesses both childish and adult attributes, which ultimately mirror her aspiration to be perceived older than the young, innocent age of thirteen. The literal description of Esme portrays her as a delicate representation of childhood innocence, ironically contrasting her behavior and disposition. Her physical appearance possesses beauty, poise and grace, as she is a “enviable, sweet-sounding young lady” with an “exquisite forehead and a small, qualified smile” (1-2). She presents herself aesthetically, as she keeps her spine “easily and beautifully strait” and exhibits a “wonderful dress for a rainy day” (2).Esme appears to be more mature than expected as she seeks male affirmation of her beauty, and claims she “has probably been hideous to look at,” to which the narrator replies she surely isn’t’ so. Her “pretty executions” impress him, as Esme represents the only female

character positively represented in his story (3). Although Esme appears to be naïve and innocent, she is anything but. She uses her powers to prompt the narrator’s dedication and writing of the story containing General X, as well as the story’s title. The overall presentation of Esme’s juxtaposition suggests that she is a more complex character than she initially appears, adding to the story’s variety and intricacy. Although she is described favorably, Esme’s engagement of the narrator suggests that her psychological characterization is that of girl seeking to become a young woman. Esme apparently has the characteristics of a “truth-lover” and a “statistics lover,” two contrasting traits that reveal her calculating and less childish nature. If she indeed possesses those qualities, Esme is a manipulator. This is verified by subtle behavior, such as putting her “wrists farther forward on the table” and moving her chair an inch so that her “back [breaks] all possible further communication with the home table,” that shows how detached everything is to her except the attention of the narrator. (2). Esme’s body language suggests that she wants to captivate him, drawing him closer to her and thereby developing a more intimate relationship. She appears to be seeking some sort of male approval she did not receive from her father, due to his claim that she was “unequipped to meet life” because she had “no sense of humor” (3). It is as if her erudite speech and over excessive use of seemingly mature words, “squalor” in particular, is her own personal way of redeeming herself and becoming that “intellectual companion” Esme claims her father deserved. Esme’s dialogue and conversation with the narrator reveals her crafty manipulation of the men around her. Through her words she is able to dominate their actions and feelings. She exhibits complete control over her brother, Charles, constantly

telling him to “stop that” or “sit up!” (5). Additionally, she removes Charles’ hat “as if it were a laboratory specimen,” immediately implying that she is the scientist in charge of the “experiment,” whether it be males or her manipulation skills (2). Esme is quite interrogative, asking within the beginning of her conversation if the narrator is “deeply in love with [his] wife” and later if he would “write a story exclusively for [her]” (3, 4). She is so persistent on his attentions that Esme seems mildly jealous of women that might interfere with her private endeavor. She makes such an impression on the narratorthat he spends the remainder of the story writing an anecdote for her in which he dramatizes that the main character, General X, was previously in a hospital and speaks French, (both qualities Esme denied the validity of in the narrator). This indication establishes a possible ulterior motive in which he tries to then demonstrate his worthiness of her. Throughout “For Esme-With Love and Squalor,” the characterization of Esme dictates the direction of the story. The development of Esme as the strong female character leads to her domination and control of the supporting male characters. Her ironic child-like appearance represents a contrasting literary element that adds to the stories overall strength and intensity. Salinger’s illustration, conversation, and insight into Esme provides intricate and convoluted depth into the story’s overall characterization and composition.