Further Thoughts

[Stephanie]

Forget anything you wanted to bring up at the meeting?

Keep the discussion going here.

[Cyndi]

I wanted to clarify about the Talc question:

He is first introduced on pp 127. We are led to believe that it was Ignatius who wrote the note because of the Big Chief tablet paper, the writing style, the anonymous name, and the "I wonder whatever happened to him" statement.

On pp 342, we get the final word about Talc. He comes right out and says that the former student was Mr. Reilly, and that he would try and extract an explanation and confession (pp 343).

Talc knows who wrote the letters.

[Stephanie]

The note came in through the window, right? That's where there is a disconnect. I just can't imagine Ignatius being so active as to go down to the college.

Cyndi wrote: "I wanted to clarify about the Talc question:

He is first introduced on pp 127. We are led to believe that it was Ignatius who wrote the note because of the Big Chief tablet paper, the writing styl..."

[Cyndi]

Both Ignatius and Myrna were in Talc's class. This was during his college years. Also remember that at one point, Ignatius was a professor at the same college (there was a scene where he dumped the students' papers on their heads rather than grading them).

Talc's part in the book is him going through a stack of papers and finding an old note, then remembering Ignatius.

That note happens to be picked up by one of his current students and gets passed around campus, thus the later part in the book where he thinks about going to find Ignatius and have him confess that he wrote it.

When he sees him in the newspaper, and what he's wearing, he basically explains that he will just deny the comments from the note rather than associate with Ignatius in any way.

[Cathleen]

Here is the blog with information about the tour you can take in New Orleans centered around the Confederacy of Dunces locations:

http://ignatiusghost.blogspot.com/