For Esmé—with Love and Squalor

"For Esmé - With Love and Filthiness" is a short story by J.D Salinger. The film tells of a sergeant's encounter with a young girl before he is sent to fight in World War II. Originally published in The New Yorker on April 8, 1950, it was composed in nine Salinger stories two years later (while the collection's American title is nine stories, it is titled For Esmé - with Love & Squalor in most countries). The short story was immediately popular with readers. Less than two weeks after its publication, on April 20, Salinger had already received more messages about "For Esmé" than he had in any story he had published. One of the best literary works of World War II. Author Paul Alexander calls it a "small masterpiece." When Salinger presented the story to The New Yorker in late 1949, it was initially redone, then re-corrected his manuscript, shortening it to six pages. ........The story begins with the narrator having to respond to an invitation to attend a wedding taking place in England, and the narrator will not be able to attend, because the wedding date conflicts with a planned visit from his wife's mother. The narrator does not know the groom, but he knows the bride, and he met her about six years ago. His response to the invitation was to make some written notes regarding the bride. The first two episodes narrated by the narrator occur during a stormy afternoon in Devon, England, in 1944. A group of American recruits finish training in intelligence operations at D-Day landings. The narrator takes a solitary walk through the city, and enters the church to listen to the rehearsal of the children's choir. One of the choir members, a thirteen-year-old girl, has a presence and relay that catches his eye. When he leaves, he finds that he has been strangely touched by the children's "mellow and emotional" singing. The narrator plunges into the tea room to escape the rain, and meets the girl again, this time accompanied by her little brother and their nanny. When feeling lonely, the girl engages the narrator in the conversation. We learned that her name is my name, and that she and her brother Charles Yetman - the mother who died, the father who was killed in North Africa while serving in the British army. She wears his massive military wristwatch as a memory. Esmé is bright, well mannered, and mature for her age, but worries that she might be a "cold person" and strives to be "more empathetic." In the next episode the scene turns into a military one, and there is a deliberate shift in point of view. The narrator no longer refers to himself as "I," but rather to "Sergeant X." Allied forces occupy Europe in the weeks following D-Day. Sergeant X is stationed in Bavaria, and has just returned to his residence after visiting a field hospital where he was treated for a nervous breakdown. He still has symptoms of a mental disorder. "Corporal Z" (nickname Clay), a fellow soldier who served closely with him, casually and harshly comments on the sergeant's physical deterioration. When Clay leaves, Sergeant X begins searching for a batch of unopened letters and discovers a small package, postmarked from Devon about a year ago. It contains a letter from Esmé and Charles, and it encloses her father's wristwatch - a "talisman" - and suggests Sergeant X "wear it for the duration of the war". He moved deeply, and immediately began recovering from his descent into disappointment and spiritual vacancy, and regained his "queens".