J. D. Salinger_ A Life - Kenneth Slawenski [141]
It was precisely Mockler’s religious devotion that shaped his marriage with Claire and affected the story “Franny.” According to his second wife, Mockler experienced a profound religious conversion about the time he was married to Claire.1 Having embraced Salinger’s spiritual views, Claire was likely thrown into a crisis, forcing her to choose between her growing Zen and Vedantic convictions and the fundamentalist Christian commitment of her new husband. Claire’s decision appears to have been swift and complete. After only a few months with Mockler, she returned to Salinger and her marriage was annulled.
At the time Claire could not have suited Salinger better had he crafted her himself. Her life bore a remarkable resemblance to that of the fictional character of Esmé. Claire Douglas was born on November 26, 1933, in London. Salinger loved all things British, and Claire’s nationality certainly added to his attraction. Like Esmé, Claire was raised by a governess and her childhood was overwhelmed by the Second World War. In 1939, she and her older half brother, Gavin, were sent from London into the countryside to avoid the blitz, Claire to a convent, while their parents stayed behind in the capital. In 1940, the family’s London home was destroyed by a bomb. To ensure their safety, Claire and Gavin, at ages six and eight, were whisked out of England by their mother, who accompanied them to the United States.
Jean Douglas and the children arrived in New York on July 7, 1940, aboard the SS Scythia.2 Once in America, Claire’s mother remained in New York City awaiting the arrival of her husband, while the children were sent to a series of foster homes for the duration of the war. By 1941, Claire’s parents settled in Manhattan, remaining separated from their children, who continued to be shuttled between foster homes.3 So, though Claire and Gavin’s parents remained alive and well during the war, they were just as separated from their children as the parents of Esmé and Charles had been by death.
Though Salinger could grant spiritual and emotional sustenance to Esmé and Charles in his story, the real-life impact of war left Claire and Gavin bereft of direction. Gavin was especially hard hit by events and not as miraculously preserved as Charles was in “For Esmé.” Anchorless, the Douglas children were bounced from one foster home to another until they had seen seven by war’s end.* Claire was then sent again to stay with nuns, this time to Marydell Convent in Suffern, New York, before moving on to Shipley, where she was enrolled when she met Salinger in 1950.
Claire Douglas as she appeared in 1951. Claire had met Salinger the year before and in 1955 would become his second wife. (Shipley School/Claire Douglas)
Considering her chaotic history, it is easy to understand how Salinger became Claire’s father, teacher, protector, and lover all rolled into one, while to Salinger, Claire’s background, youthful beauty, and delicate charm may well have made her appear as Esmé incarnate. The couple also shared many interests. Both were fascinated by religion, and at Shipley, Claire had excelled at many of the same subjects as Salinger had at Valley Forge: dramatics, languages, and sports. Claire was an intelligent woman, an honors student at some of the most prestigious schools in the nation, and despite her delicate disposition in 1954, she was not an empty vessel to be filled by Salinger’s whims. She was, however, deeply in love with Salinger and possessed an uncanny ability to draw him out of his defenses. When he was around her, he was playful and unguarded, able to reconnect with his own youthful innocence. Claire saved him from loneliness and depression, and she probably knew it. Both were exactly what the other needed at that time in their