The Glass Bathroom By J. D. Salinger

Superior Essays
Similar to how theatre works; the curtain opens and the entire set is visible, then characters go onstage and the focus is drawn to a specific part of the set. The Glass family loves theatre, and shows that even their very lives are a performance. The detailed description of each room leads to the reader being able to imagine what the scene looks like.The Glass family Bathroom, Living Room, Seymour and Buddies old room, and the Parents room are all prime examples of how Salinger describes the setting. Salinger's usage of spaces inside the novel sets the scenes in which the characters are present. The setting plays an important role in how the characters interact with one another and themselves In the Glass Bathroom there are two settings created: …show more content…
This means that the setting is well described for this part of the novel. "The Glasses' living room was about as unready to have its walls repainted as a room can be" (118). This is Significant because its where Franny is spending her time at home. At first Franny doesn't want to listen to Zooey and she doesn't think he will help. The entire apartment is being painted, but the living room is one of the last rooms to be painted. The unpainted walls represent the state of mind Franny was in before she understood her predicament. The newly painted wall represent Franny after she comes to terms with the Jesus Prayer. "The room was not impressively large, even by Manhattan apartment-house standards, but its accumulated furnishings might have lent a snug appearance to a banquet hall in Valhalla" (118). This is significant because it adds to the image of what the living room looked like. The living room walls, cluttered with pictures and scrapbooks, emphasizes how cluttered Franny's mind is before she comes to understand the Jesus Prayer. "There, in almost incestuously closes juxtaposition, seven scrapbooks of newspaper and magazine clippings had been bracketed, at the bindings, directly into the plaster. Year after year, plainly, all seven scrapbooks stood ready to be pursued or pored over by old close friends of the family and casual visitors alike, as well as, presumably the odd part-time cleaning woman" (121). This is significant because it shows how proud Mr. Glass is of his children, even though we never see him in the novel. The two entrances into the living room, also adds to the idea that the apartment is large (121). In the living room several significant events take place. Franny is sleeping on the couch, Zooey gets frustrated with Franny, Zooey has a still moment looking out the window, and Franny turns down consecrated chicken

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