J. D. Salinger_ A Life - Kenneth Slawenski [70]
A child with “heart trouble,” Kenneth is portrayed as being spontaneous, determined to live every moment to the full. He convinces his brother to take him to a place called Lassiter’s for fresh steamers (clams). During the drive they have a conversation about Vincent’s girlfriend, Helen Beebers. Kenneth tells Vincent that he ought to marry Helen as she has exceptional qualities. Among them is her tendency to play checkers without moving her kings from the back row. He asks Vincent about his love for Phoebe and Holden. Kenneth confides that while looking at his baby sister lying in her crib, he actually feels that he is her. He then chides Vincent for being reticent with displays of love.
After eating steamers at Lassiter’s, Vincent instinctively feels that they should drive to a spot on the beach that Holden has christened “The Wise Guy Rock,” a large, flat slab jutting into the ocean and accessed by a series of jumps from stone to stone. On the rock, they survey the water, which Vincent describes as being calm. There Kenneth reads a letter that he received that day from Holden. The letter is humorous and riddled with spelling errors. In it, he complains that the camp stinks and is full of rats. He then proceeds to expose the phoniness of the camp counselors in a series of amusing yet thoughtful tales.*
Kenneth then picks up a pebble, examining it for flaws. He wonders aloud what will become of Holden, who cannot seem to compromise—even though he knows that life will go smoother for him if he does. Then Kenneth decides to go for a swim. This is against Vincent’s better judgment. The sky grows dark, and the ocean becomes violent. He begins to discourage Kenneth from going into the water but soon feels compelled to allow him. Something inside Vincent realizes that he should not stop his brother, and he restrains himself. After his swim, when Kenneth is almost out of the water, he suddenly falls unconscious. Vincent scoops his body up from the beach and races him home, driving the first mile or so with the brakes on.
When he arrives at the house with Kenneth, Holden is sitting on the porch with his suitcases. He tries to revive his brother but is so clumsy in the attempt that it angers Vincent. They carry Kenneth’s body into the house and call a doctor, who arrives shortly after their parents return home from rehearsals. At ten past eight that night, Kenneth dies. The story ends with Vincent explaining his motivation for telling it: he was seeking through narration to put his brother to rest. Kenneth has been with both himself and Holden since his death, haunting them throughout the war. Vincent feels that Kenneth should no longer be “hanging around.”
There are two sentences within “The Ocean Full of Bowling Balls” that suggest a growing spiritual dimension to Salinger’s work. Short and seemingly insignificant, they acknowledge an awareness of the interconnection of people through love and the power of human connection to transcend death.
Kenneth, in a moment of both disclosure and guidance, asks Vincent, “When you look in that crib they got Phoebe in, are you nuts about her? Don’t you feel like you’re even her?” Vincent claims that he understands his brother’s sentiment, but Kenneth proceeds to lecture him on showing love without restraint. The line hints that Kenneth Caulfield has had an awakening at the crib side of his infant sister. Kenneth speaks not only of love for Phoebe but of the feeling of oneness, of sameness with her. This awareness has taught him the value of expressing love completely, without reservation, a consciousness that Vincent lacks. The experience also allows Kenneth to accept his own death, knowing that he will survive through his siblings. It is an expounded version of the experience that Babe had with Mattie, that the Holden of “I’m Crazy” had at the crib side of his sister Viola and will have again with Phoebe in The Catcher in the Rye.
Kenneth is a symbol of balance. He is a figure