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Infinite Jest by D.F. Wallace, WEEK 17
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John wrote: In short, The medical attache that Avril was sleeping with was an expert in the exact condition that afflicted Hal."
Didn't catch that either. Do you think it's important at all?
One thing I don't agree with (other than the issue of who is Mario's father as I think it's CT) is that John Wayne is killed by the AFR. I see no evidence for this at all. I'm sure he was a plant and his job was to get information on the Entertainment. When they were digging up the head he was wearing a mask, which would indicate that he was there in 'official' capacity. But they were 'too late'. That's all well and good but I don't then think he would have been murdered by the AFR for it. Why, what would be their reasons? Ami said it was 'just what they do' but that's not true. They do that to people outside of their organisation and people who betray them but there is nothing which indicates that they turn on their own. Even when they need people to check the cartridges everyone is aware of the risks and they all take equal turns and chances. John Wayne hadn't betrayed them and he'd succeeded in digging up the JOI's head, it was too late but that was hardly his fault.I think John Wayne just left after failing to retrieve the Master, after all his cover had been blown (getting Hal and Gately to dig up JOI's head while he watches wearing a mask is not exactly something which can be explained away) he could hardly hang around, and that is why he didn't play at the Whataburger.
Was there anything in IJ which hinted that he has been 'offed'?
Linda wrote: Did John Wayne just up and leave tennis altogether after this, that he was at ETA solely because he was infiltrating for the AFR, and now his job was done? "Following up on my John Wayne tennis belief, my answer to this is 'yes' John Wayne doesn't give a shite about tennis, he is only concerned with the AFR's agenda. He remains aloof from the other guys, he sleeps with Avril, he is cold and passionless in his playing style (another indicator that he doesn't care all that much about the game). The AFR haven't wanted to move directly against the Incandenza family because they are in the public eye but eventually they get desperate, John blows his cover and that's a non starter and we aren't told what happens about the whole abducting plan but somehow that's a bust too so eventually they nab Orin.
If you haven't seen this already this is good for a basic outline and has links to other theories. This one is particularly good i think as it doesn't say 'this is the answer'. It gives brief statements as to the most popular and will lean towards one or the other.https://tradepaperbacks.wordpress.com...
Nicola wrote: "he could hardly hang around, and that is why he didn't play at the Whataburger.Was there anything in IJ which hinted that he has been 'offed'?
...Following up on my John Wayne tennis belief, my answer to this is 'yes' John Wayne doesn't give a shite about tennis, he is only concerned with the AFR's agenda."
Yeah, I don't remember any hints that John Wayne had been offed, just trying to figure out why he didn't play in the Whataburger. I think your theory sounds quite plausible, Nicola. But having the AFR off John Wayne is a bit more exciting. :) Maybe you'll pick up on some other bits during your rereading?
This book is definitely a strange case.I have read the quote you referred to, where DFW said that he "failed as a writer" if readers felt this way. Well...I hate to say it, but - by his own measure - he did fail, because from what I've read the majority of the readers felt this way. (although most of these, like me, still felt that the book was great in spite of their dissatisfaction.)
Regarding the AFR Abduction attempt and how Wayne, Gately, and Hal ended up at JOI's grave - I'm not really interested in speculation if there's no way to even vaguely confirm or disconfirm it. All of the explanations I've read have been so speculative that it's basically like the fans are writing their own endings. Which is not something I want to do after investing so much reading time.
Nicola wrote: "However he did also indicate that what he tied up were the 'important' bits of IJ. Things like relationships he doesn't consider 'important' as they weren't what the book was about. "
What do you think were the "important bits" he that tied up?
I don't think I've read that liveblog you linked to, I will definitely check that out.
As I said before, if there are some deeply-buried clues that I haven't found which provide satisfaction, I will happily retract any negative feelings I have about the ending.
Nicola wrote: "One thing I don't agree with (other than the issue of who is Mario's father as I think it's CT) is that John Wayne is killed by the AFR. I see no evidence for this at all. I'm sure he was a plant..."I thought the patient next to Gately's bed at the hospital who was being fitted for a head brace of sorts was Marathe's wife finally getting treatment in the states...This would lead me to believe Marathe confided to Steeply, thus betraying the AFR...Or else how did Marathe's wife make it into the states under the nose of the AFR, she wasn't in the states, was she? The AFR now know Marathe is a quadruple agent, do you think Marathe is going to live after this treachery? I based the AFR offing John Wayne on what they were going to do to Marathe. Sure, Wayne could be in jail, or something; but there is a consistency in behavior for the AFR in how they treat those that have wronged them, or hurt their bottom line. There is also no concrete evidence Kate Gompert is dead either, but I speculated she fell victim to Marathe's persuasive speech and ended up watching the Entertainment. Again, for me as all my posts are my speculation and to my understanding, because there is a consistency in behavior by the AFR, for me. :)
Another theory I've read:The patient in the bed next to Gately was Hal, after his DMZ dosing. This would be the emergency room visit "exactly 1 year previous" to the Year of Glad incident.
Then, Joelle, upon visiting Don, recognized Hal and brought them up to date with what she learned from Steeply.
The fact that Hal was taken to the hospital is apparently what foiled the AFR's kidnap attampt, although this does not explain why they did not take Mario or Avril. Unless Avril was working with them?
Then, after Gately and Hal were both released from the hospital, Wayne kidnapped them alone in an attempt to win back honor from his disgraced father (Bernard Wayne).
Upon learning that the Master was gone from JOI's skull, Wayne returned to Canada (he couldn't continue at ETA) and Hal somehow made it back home.
John wrote: "I have read the quote you referred to, where DFW said that he "failed as a writer" if readers felt this way. Well...I hate to say it, but - by his own measure - he did fail, because from what I've read the majority of the readers felt this way."I felt very let down at the end of the novel because it didn't end in the traditional sense that I am so used to reading a novel - that there is a definite beginning, starting on page one, and a definite ending, ending on the last page. But, as we know from spending 1000+ pages reading this book, it's obvious it is not a traditional novel. It has its own style that is at the same time both exciting and frustrating. And, since one of the themes of the novel was to not lead a life that is simply a passive existence, I felt that the ending was perfect (after stewing over it for a few days, that is!). It requires the reader to continue working at it. Not to just close the back cover of the book and throw it aside.
At the time I thought the patient in the bed next to Gately was the kid whose head went through the computer monitor during the Eschelon game. It had not occurred to me that it could have been Marathe's wife, though. Interesting.
I do like the Hal theory, though. It would definitely bring Hal and Gately together.
And perhaps part of the reason there is this gap at the end of the story to be worked through is to illustrate that we don't need to just follow what is fed to us, that is, what the author is telling us to be true. We can make our own conclusions (and likewise, lead our own life), by working at it, puzzling through options, making our own decisions. The "ending" of the book is a mirror of our lives.
Linda wrote: "John wrote: "I have read the quote you referred to, where DFW said that he "failed as a writer" if readers felt this way. Well...I hate to say it, but - by his own measure - he did fail, because fr..."At the time I thought the patient in the bed next to Gately was the kid whose head went through the computer monitor during the Eschelon game. It had not occurred to me that it could have been Marathe's wife, though. Interesting.
It is Linda...I saw two separate occasions, thats all.
Ami wrote: "At the time I thought the patient in the bed next to Gately was the kid whose head went through the computer monitor during the Eschelon game. It had not occurred to me that it could have been Marathe's wife, though. Interesting.It is Linda...I saw two separate occasions, thats all. "
Yes, Otis P. Lord had been in the bed next to Gately, but he was discharged and someone else came in afterwards...I think Gately made some comment that they new guy was crying a lot? Hence Hal's uncontrolled emotions?*
In any case, I'm almost positive there was a second person in the bed by the end.
*Avril Incandenza would like to point out that I misused the word "hence" in this comment.
Ami wrote: "It is Linda...I saw two separate occasions, thats all."Ahh...OK! :)
John wrote: "Yes, Otis P. Lord had been in the bed next to Gately, but he was discharged and someone else came in afterwards...I think Gately made some comment that they new guy was crying a lot? Hence Hal's uncontrolled emotions?"Thanks John, I am remembering that now.
Linda wrote: "And perhaps part of the reason there is this gap at the end of the story to be worked through is to illustrate that we don't need to just follow what is fed to us, that is, what the author is telling us to be true. We can make our own conclusions (and likewise, lead our own life), by working at it, puzzling through options, making our own decisions. The "ending" of the book is a mirror of our lives."I don't mean any offense Linda, but I have to admit that I find this idea strongly distasteful. I don't think Wallace would pull something like this. I feel like this would constitute the kind of "trick" or "stunt" that he specifically said he did not intend.
John wrote: "I don't mean any offense Linda, but I have to admit that I find this idea strongly distasteful. I don't think Wallace would pull something like this. I feel like this would constitute the kind of "trick" or "stunt" that he specifically said he did not intend."Oh no, I didn't take any offense at all, John. I just wanted to put out there what my thinking was of the ending after I had thought about it a bit more.
I can see your point of view though, that the end felt like a sort stunt. I guess I just don't view it as such. But, perhaps if it feels like a stunt to a great many people, then in that regard DFW might not have created the novel in the style that he initially set out to create. And if so, then at some level he did fail.
Question:does anyone recall offhand if there was any indication of the time of year that Faklemann's death occurred in? My thinking is that, if it happened during the summer, that may be an indication that the book's final sentence (he came to on the FREEZING sand) actually happened after Gatley's hospitalization. That is, he was waking up from the coma rather than from the drugging.
I will look into this, just wanted to put the question out there.
EDIT: Hmm, no, it kind of looks like Facklemann died in the winter or early spring. So that's a dead end.
I was thinking, what if it was indeed Hal in the Hospital, and John Wayne kidnapped the two of them directly FROM the hospital? Gately would have still been woozy and muddled. So, maybe the bus ride and grave-exhuming that he dreamed about were not dreams at all, but fuzzy recollections of what really happened. This would make more sense than the idea that Don was dreaming the future.
On page 933, Gately dreams he's riding due north on a bus, passing gutted cottagtes. If this is actually not a dream, then this would be the ride through the Concavity? Although, Gately does wake up in the hospital after this...maybe the hospital is the dream at this point?I think I might have to shelve this theory for now.
John wrote: "On page 933, Gately dreams he's riding due north on a bus, passing gutted cottagtes. If this is actually not a dream, then this would be the ride through the Concavity?"Just when I think I've escaped IJ, I'm pulled back in. :)
Interesting idea, John. Unfortunately as you can tell from some of my previous posts, I can't even keep straight how many different people were in the bed next to Gately, so I don't think I'm going to be any help here.
You will NEVER escape! Bwah ha ha!LOL, that's OK Linda! I'm just taking shots in the dark so any idea is a good idea :)
Oh hey, I almost forgot:
Tidbits I didn't catch
Many events in the novel - including, I think, JOI's suicide - and the death of the Medical Attache - occur on April 1...
"April" in French is "Avril"
"1" in Roman numerals is "I"
Therefore, April 1 = Avril I.
OK, so I'm trying to look into John Wayne's history with E.T.A. a couple interesting facts:-the film he was in ("Homo Duplex", the docu about people named John Wayne) was shot Before Subsidation. This means it has to be at least 7 or 8 years old, so Wayne entered E.T.A. as early as age 10 or 11. Edit: according to page 259, Wayne entered ETA at age 6.
- Homo Duplex's production company was "Latrodectus Mactans Productions"...latrodectus mactans is the Latin name for the Black Widow spider. Didn't JOI have a phobia of Black Widows? Edit: Yes, he did...but also many of the other films were under Latrodectus Mactans Productions, so it wasn't just a John Wayne thing.
John wrote: What do you think were the "important bits" he that tied up?
"
1. That Orin was the source of the copies being sent around
2. That the AFR failed to retrieve the Master from the head, it was already gone which points us back to 1.
3. That the AFR got the Master from Orin
4. That the Incandenza family are 'ok' ie not dead
5. That there is likely some sort of war going on or similar and that the AFR have succeeded in at least some of their aims. They've 'won'.
Those to me are the most important bits of the book. Everything else is gravy. Although I would be interested to know for sure what caused Hals long degeneration into the state he is in at the start of the book. There are a lot of hints pointing towards the DMZ/mould/sugar/genetics/cocktail of drugs doing this to him but the final interpretation is left open I think. We only know that it has happened and that Hal, now that he is unable to communicate, is actually a warm and complex being, a direct reversal from how he has been for the rest of the book.
Ami wrote: This would lead me to believe Marathe confided to Steeply, thus betraying the AFR...."There was the quote that Marathe 'made his call'. Some have interpreted that as ringing Steeply. I thought it was a 'choose his side' and after the pep talk from Kate had stuck to the AFR.
Ami wrote: The AFR now know Marathe is a quadruple agent, do you think Marathe is going to live after this treachery? He wouldn't but is there any evidence to say that they did know? I don't remember that.
Sure, Wayne could be in jail, or something; but there is a consistency in behavior for the AFR in how they treat those that have wronged them, or hurt their bottom line.
Oh there certainly is but I don't see that there is any evidence pointing to him doing that, from what I can see he is doing exactly what he has been told to do and that means that afterwards he had to leave. I don't think he's in jail, I think he's back with the AFR.
John wrote: The fact that Hal was taken to the hospital is apparently what foiled the AFR's kidnap attampt, although this does not explain why they did not take Mario or Avril. Unless Avril was working with them?"If Hal was in hospital then I doubt very much that Avril and Mario would have gone to the tournament, they'd be close by his side. Seeing as that was the case the attempt wouldn't have been made. This is what I thought had happened doing a forward projection based on a likely scenario.
Linda wrote: "John wrote: "Yes, Otis P. Lord had been in the bed next to Gately, but he was discharged and someone else came in afterwards...I think Gately made some comment that they new guy was crying a lot? H..."Yes, that might very well be Hal, it fits in with the timeline of events in my head.
John wrote: "I was thinking, what if it was indeed Hal in the Hospital, and John Wayne kidnapped the two of them directly FROM the hospital? Gately would have still been woozy and muddled. So, maybe the bus rid..."I never thought they were. I assumed they were memories which dovetail with Hals at the start of the book. His are at the end, Hals are at the start but they are both in some sort of medical state and they link in with each other, creating a (infinite) loop.
If they are dreams of the future somehow then that adds an element of crazy. I'd have to reread this part, perhaps the ghost is projecting.
John wrote: "On page 933, Gately dreams he's riding due north on a bus, passing gutted cottagtes. If this is actually not a dream, then this would be the ride through the Concavity? Although, Gately does wake u..."Ah yes of course, the gutted cottages would be from the Concavity. However the fact that he 'remembers' being on a bus is odd. Perhaps they stole the bus from the Academy or the AFR provided it. It certainly won't be public transport if they are driving through the Concavity...
John wrote: Tidbits I didn't catchMany events in the novel - including, I think, JOI's suicide - and the death of the Medical Attache - occur on April 1...
"April" in French is "Avril"
"1" in Roman numerals is "I"
Therefore, April 1 = Avril I. "
Oh she is such a creepy woman...
John wrote: "On page 933, Gately dreams he's riding due north on a bus, passing gutted cottagtes. If this is actually not a dream, then this would be the ride through the Concavity? Although, Gately does wake u..."Ah yes of course, the gutted cottages would be from the Concavity. However the fact that he 'remembers' being on a bus is odd. Perhaps they stole the bus from the Academy or the AFR provided it. It certainly won't be public transport if they are driving through the Concavity...
Edit: Considering he doesn't see John Wayne I'm leaning towards the ghost trying to communicate. He's being told that it's too late and that the tape is already gone.
He dreams he’s with a very sad kid and they’re in a graveyard digging some dead guy’s head up and it’s really important, like Continental-Emergency important, and Gately’s the best digger but he’s wicked hungry, like irresistibly hungry, and he’s eating with both hands out of huge economy-size bags of corporate snacks so he can’t really dig, while it gets later and later and the sad kid is trying to scream at Gately that the important thing was buried in the guy’s head and to divert the Continental Emergency to start digging the guy’s head up before it’s too late, but the kid moves his mouth but nothing comes out, and Joelle van D. appears … while the sad kid holds something terrible up by the hair and makes the face of somebody shouting in panic: Too Late.
Note that the kid is referred to as 'sad' and person in the bed next to him was crying a lot. It's going to be Hal. And there is an example of being able to forward project along a trajectory :-)
I also like the bit about Gately being hungry - I think that is a reference to having 'the munchies'. Oh dear...
John wrote: I have read the quote you referred to, where DFW said that he "failed as a writer" if readers felt this way. Well...I hate to say it, but - by his own measure - he did fail, because from what I've read the majority of the readers felt this way. (although most of these, like me, still felt that the book was great in spite of their dissatisfaction.)"Well he actually said something like being able to project the ending by following the trajectory of the paths forward to some point in the future. Which is a little more difficult but I love a good challenge ;-)
Linda wrote:And perhaps part of the reason there is this gap at the end of the story to be worked through is to illustrate that we don't need to just follow what is fed to us, that is, what the author is telling us to be true. We can make our own conclusions (and likewise, lead our own life), by working at it, puzzling through options, making our own decisions. The "ending" of the book is a mirror of our lives. "I think he gives us a little more than that to go on. I think there are definite resolutions to a lot of the questions. For some of the 'lesser' mysterious perhaps that was the intention (leaving us to puzzle over them forever) but I'm not sure.
Just had a crazy thought:I think of John N.R. Wayne, who would have won this year’s WhataBurger, standing watch in a mask as Donald Gately and I dig up my father’s head. There’s very little doubt that Wayne would have won.
Hal, who is thinking back, definitely states that it is John Wayne in a mask watching them dig. Gately doesn't mention him (and if the ghost is trying to communicate with him that would make sense because the ghost would have no idea that John Wayne would be there) but he does briefly see Joelle... who wears a mask...
Nicola wrote: "Ami wrote: The AFR now know Marathe is a quadruple agent, do you think Marathe is going to live after this treachery? He wouldn't but is there any evidence to say that they did know? I don't rem..."
Yes, I don't have my notes in front of me to give you page numbers. you're also re reading it; so, hopefully you'll find the specifics you're looking for during your second read through... This might be the best case scenario for you. Good luck :)
ResolutionsNicola, I suppose you're right that those are the really vital points, from an objective viewpoint. It's hard to accept though because I think most readers care about the other characters just as much -- the Ennett house residents are just as important as the Incandenzas to us, and they could all be watching the Entertainment now, for all we know.
It is suggested at least twice that Johnette will play the Entertainment in Ennett House, and then when Joelle sees the police car outside, I thought for sure that meant that they were all gone...however some people interpreted this as the police car simply belonged to the ADA.
Oh, as far as Kate is concerned -- In the hospital, Calvin Thrust tells Gately that Gompert never returned after the mugging...I think we can take this as confirmation that she went with Marathe to her doom.
Question:
In the final scene when Facklemann dies, there are three transvestites in red dresses. Wasnt' there something earlier about Poor Tony joining a group of transvestites in red dresses for some kind of mob distraction having to do with the FLQ or something? Are these connected?
Just laying out some puzzle pieces to get a look at them:Page 809, the narrator states that Gately is perceiving things out of sequence.
Also Page 809, Otis P. Lord is in the bed next to Gately.
Page 817, Otis has been taken away and the bed is empty.
Page 828 seems to be the first mention of Crying Guy. Gately sees that his bed has been moved closer to the crying guy's bed. Are they doing some kind of transfusion? Or is this a dream?
Page 829, Gately says the crying patient "has a very deep voice". This confuses things a bit...could Hal's voice be affected for some reason?
Page 830, Crying guys wakes Gately up with a "gurgle or snore" noise, Gately finds the Wraith there
around page 845 - 850, Gately sees Joelle appear with Winston Churchill's face, and later dreams the content of the Entertainment. Wild Idea: the Wraith possessed Ortho Stice, went to the hospital and Dosed Gately with DMZ, then showed him the Entertainment? Maybe DMZ nullifies the effects of the Entertainment and the Wraith was testing this out on Gately?
I know the state of the Next Bed in Don's room must be mentioned again soon, but I can't find it yet.
Calvin Thrust tells Don that Johnette is planning on watching the cartridges that Clenette brought in. But later in the same discussion, he says that Clenette is on full house restriction since the Fight Scene.During Marathe's interview, Pat tells Johnette about Clenette's cartridges for the first time.
The upshot of all this is that Marathe's interview takes place BEFORE the fight scene with the Canadians. This is not the impression I got previously.
Edit: Actually, I think Marathe's interview took place a couple of days after the fight (the 14th?), and Thrust's visit was a day or two later.
I am trying to figure out the date that the Fight happened on, and the best guess I have is November 11, which seems to be the night that Lenz killed the Canadians' dog.Does this seem right?
John wrote: Page 828 seems to be the first mention of Crying Guy. Gately sees that his bed has been moved closer to the crying guy's bed. Are they doing some kind of transfusion? Or is this a dream?."
As far as this goes the ghost has been messing around with beds in the academy so the inference is probably that he is responsible - trying to bring the two together. In which case, thinking about it some more, it would indicate that he isn't aware that the master tape is missing from his corpse otherwise why would he bother.
John wrote: "I am trying to figure out the date that the Fight happened on, and the best guess I have is November 11, which seems to be the night that Lenz killed the Canadians' dog.Does this seem right?"
The Fight with Gately getting shot? It was the same night that Lenz killed the dog yes - they chased him back to Ennet House and the proverbial hit the fan.
John wrote: around page 845 - 850, Gately sees Joelle appear with Winston Churchill's face, and later dreams the content of the Entertainment. Wild Idea: the Wraith possessed Ortho Stice, went to the hospital and Dosed Gately with DMZ, then showed him the Entertainment? Maybe DMZ nullifies the effects of the Entertainment and the Wraith was testing this out on Gately?"I believed that the reason Gately knew the contents of the tape was though JOI's ghost. Along with all of the words which kept popping into his head, the ghost is trying to communicate. What I don't get is why Gately is able to be a receptacle and other people aren't.
Nicola wrote: "What I don't get is why Gately is able to be a receptacle and other people aren't. "Could it be simply that Gately was staying in one place for a long time, allowing him to perceive JOI in wraith-time? Perhaps the Wraith was just following Hal or Joelle into the hospital room and thought, "Oh look, this one will do nicely".
I seriously can't believe I'm back here posting in this thread again! ROFL :)Once or twice a month,I'll see something about IJ, and then it's so easy to click open the eBook and poke around. It keeps pulling me back in!
I am planning on doing a reread in the first quarter of 2016, so I will start a thread for it. Yes, I plan out my reading that far in advance. :P
Anyway, I am posting because I just want to keep an all-in-one-place log of thoughts to consider when I do the reread and this is as good a place as any.
Here are some compelling ideas I found on a thread at Infinite Summer.
Original thread here: http://infinitesummer.org/forums/view...
I will summarize the interesting points below:
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The Conversationalist chapter
User ijaddict says:
In a later scene Hal talks about (I'm paraphrasing) "that child actor* who was in a bunch of Himself's movies, including the one where he plays a boy talking to a conversationalist disguised as his father", but he never mentions that this film was based on a real incident, which makes it entirely clear that the passage at the beginning of the book, which is all dialogue and no narration, is just the movie: it never actually happened to Hal.
*note that the child actor is later revealed to be Peter Smothergill, an early student at ETA.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The MIT Student Union building
It is stated repeatedly that the building is shaped like "a head". It is also stated that the building contains 24 tennis courts conferred by a wealthy alumnus. So the obvious speculations are:
1. Did JOI attend MIT? I think there may be something about this somewhere, but I can't remember offhand. If so, he was probably the one who donated the tennis courts.
2. Could it be possible that Master Copy is buried in "JOI's head", actually meaning the student union??
3. During the snowstorm, I believe (could be mistaken) that the tournament was gong to be moved to the MIT tennis courts. If this is the case then they would have been right in the vicinity of the Master Copy.
John wrote: "I seriously can't believe I'm back here posting in this thread again! ROFL :)So funny, John! I saw there was a new post and I wondered who was finally finishing the book in our group, but it turned out to be you. lol.
am planning on doing a reread in the first quarter of 2016, so I will start a thread for it. Yes, I plan out my reading that far in advance.
I apparently am the complete opposite, I read whatever my groups decide to fling at me, and more books on a whim if I can fit them in. Although come to think of it, I do have a Dickens book already lined up for beginning at the end of the year, and a couple more sprinkled here and there to start in the fall.
but he never mentions that this film was based on a real incident, which makes it entirely clear that the passage at the beginning of the book, which is all dialogue and no narration, is just the movie: it never actually happened to Hal.
I'm confused by this when it states there is "no narration"? Isn't the first chapter narrated by Hal in the first person? Or does "no narration" mean there is no 3rd person narrator? In any case, this idea does throw a wrench into my thinking of how the novel wraps up. I'm not sure what I think of this possibility yet, and I haven't been pulled back to IJ as much as you have, John. My big brick of a book has been bedded down on my bookcase for months now!
Could it be possible that Master Copy is buried in "JOI's head", actually meaning the student union??
I like this possibility!
I don't know if I would be ready to reread IJ by the time 2016 rolls around, but I do still like thinking about these various paths of reasoning.
Linda wrote: "I'm confused by this when it states there is "no narration"? Isn't the first chapter narrated by Hal in the first person? "You are correct! That comment was not about the first chapter, actually --it's referring to the "Conversationalist" chapter, where JOI disguises himself to talk to Hal.
If the theory is right, then that is not an event that happens at all, but actually just a transcript of JOI's film "It Was a Great Marvel That He Was In the Father Without Knowing Him"
I believe this idea is one we discussed here before, but I'm mentioning it again because "ijaddict" has pointed out that the theory is reinforced by the fact that Hal, later in the book, describes the film as fiction without mentioning it being based on an actual event.
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ARRGGHHH. Really? Is it really possible that all of the questions are answered in there somewhere, in a NON-BULLSHIT way?
If so then I will bow down to DFW as the greatest writer who ever lived. :D "
Well, as to that, I don't think 'everything' is wrapped up with a nice big bow but nothing in this was so what's changed there? Like you I was furious at the ending but then, also like you I took another look at it and once I'd come up with some of my own theories read the very interesting comments from this group and on the wider Net. After having it percolate in my mind a bit I decided that the ending was both brilliant and in full keeping with the rest of Infinite Jest.
I also read DFW's own comments where he said that if people after reading somehow thought that he was having a big joke at their expense and just dumping a crap ending where nothing is resolved on them then he considered that he had failed as a writer. However he did also indicate that what he tied up were the 'important' bits of IJ. Things like relationships he doesn't consider 'important' as they weren't what the book was about.