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Zusi This is the only Vidal book I've read, so I have nothing to compare it too. My take on Jim was that he fell for Bob but lost him. He went looking, but…moreThis is the only Vidal book I've read, so I have nothing to compare it too. My take on Jim was that he fell for Bob but lost him. He went looking, but couldn't find him so settled for other lovers. As time went on, Jim was looking back at the relationship with Bob through rose tinted glasses, but he still couldn't settle with anyone. When he did find Bob again and tried to show physical affection, he was violently rejected. At this point, I think Jim's dreams were shattered. I think he responded violently out of anger. Not to sure who the anger was aimed at - himself for being so stupid and believing in this dream version of Bob which didn't allow him to move on in his life, or Bob for not being the same person he was at school or the person Jim had built him up to be.

The preface, written by Vidal, says that when it was first printed in the 40s, he had to change the end, and on a later edition he was able to re-instate it. It isn't easy to read, even though it's not as graphic as some works these days. While it is horrible, I feel that for Jim to have just walked away would have been wrong and out of character. Saying that, Jim needed to react, but violent rape felt out of character too.

For most of the twentieth century, homosexuality was illegal in the US, as it was in many other countries. Coming out meant moving to a larger, more crowded closet with other people. If you were caught then you face prosecution and prison. The original audience found this shocking. Vidal has stated that at that time, most literature portrayed homosexuals as effeminate and they usually died. No happy ever after for them. He wanted to write a different story. Jim and Bob were athletes, then soldiers and sailors - masculine men. Through Jim, we meet a whole spectrum on men and so Vidal challenges views.

What also struck me about the 1940s being a different world was the use of negro and nigger. While these words were still used on TV when I was a child, they were never words I used or heard used at home growing up. I still feel a little shocked when I hear them.

Just my thoughts.(less)

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