Mental Illness
One of the main themes throughout the short stories by J.D. Salinger is the concept of mental illness. While there is no clear description of any mental diagnosis in his stories, the behavior of certain characters is often associated and interpreted as some form of mental problem. This can be seen for example in "A Perfect Day for Bananafish", where the main character has erratic reactions to everyday situations and also seemingly spontaneously decides to kill himself in the end. Another example can be found in "Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut". Eloise, the main character, has some past trauma about one that got away and has similar erratic reactions to both her friends and her daughter. In the end she lies on the floor muttering to herself.
The Effects of War
Connected to the first theme, many of the characters in J.D. Salinger's short stories are veterans or have a connection to war. What J.D. Salinger describes would be called PTSD in modern times. One good example can be found in the famous short story "For Esme - with Love and Squalor", where the narrator not only describes his mental problems during war but also displays some personality shift by suddenly referring to himself as Sergeant X. The main character of "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" is also described as a war veteran that might lose control, which he does by killing himself.
Life of the rich and famous
While this is never central to the content of the stories, it is remarkable how many of J.D. Salinger's short stories take place within a well off family. This is true for classics like "A Perfect Day for Bananafish," but also is a central element of "Teddy" or "Uncle Wiggily in Connecticut". These stories, while they use the rich environment of those that have, rarely take the narrative out of this frame and compare it to those that have not. One example where this is partly not true can be found in "Just Before the War with the Eskimos". While the characters are not described as either rich or poor, the monetary situation of Selena makes Ginnie uncomfortable. The Christian undertones of the story only enhance this image.
Encounters
One big theme of J.D. Salinger's short stories is the concept of random encounters. Much of his plot development is based on a random encounter between strangers. In "A Perfect Day for Bananafish" the old soldier meets the young girl on the beach, in "The Laughing Man", the chief's encounter with a woman changes everything. Finally, in "Just Before the War with the Eskimos", the whole plot is basically built upon the concept that Ginnie is meeting a whole lot of strangers in her friends living room. This plot device allows for the stories to discover intricate connections between strangers. Additionally, the audience might ask itself why these characters have met and reach a new level of engagement with the characters and the story.
