Infinite Jest – David Foster Wallace discussion

This thread is for discussion of pgs. 528-601 in Infinite Jest. Page 601 → Kindle location 14,347 (56%)

This section gives us a closer view of various Ennet House residents- Joelle seems to be blooming in Gately's company- seems more than substance abuse,her problem was loneliness. The first conversation between then sounds so stilted,so clever,you know it's our dear DFW talking (P.531-38), second one is better,more natural.(P.563).
Animal lovers will hate this part cause there is a psycho called Randy Lenz around- I wish somebody would do to him what he has been doing to the poor animals!(P.538-48).

The shocker for me came on P.552-53,although Avril's shenanigans were always hinted at, still her football fantasy play with John'N.R.'Wayne,coming so soon after her "diddle check"with the little girlies,was ironic in the extreme!
And as for 'N.R'- well,still waters run deep!

Orin's love-hate response to the women he beds,is complicated- the fellow sure has unresolved issues.(P.566-67).See the endnote 234.

The plot thickens now- the wheelchair folks have come pretty close to the Ennet House.(P.586-89). There was one even lurking around ETA earlier.

Wallace's ex lover Mary Karr gives some inside info on the writer ( must say I was surprised,but then I haven't read the D.T.Max bio yet).
Here's the link:
http://sometimesagreatnotion.tumblr.c...
As for the book,there were 400 more pages that were not included in the final draft ( Harry Ransom Center has it), perhaps they contained the sex scenes... Some IJ vet shd enlighten us on this very important aspect.
Also have you noticed the misogyny inherent in Wallace's sexual descriptions? It's like he hated women.

Here is something interesting I found in a dissertation byTheuwis, Toon. "The Quest for Infinite Jest: An Inquiry into the Encyclopedic and Postmodernist Nature of David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest."
"The ideology of the Enfield Tennis Academy excludes romance and sexuality. The students at E.T.A. only think about achievement and eventually making it to "The Show" (i.e. The A.T.P. Tour). Dating is strongly discouraged, so as a result "E.T.A. is mostly a comparatively unsexual place" (636). For Hal Incandenza, lifetime virginity is even a conscious goal (636). Hal feels like his brother Orin is having enough acrobatic coitus to make up for the entire family. It is very ironic that from the air the E.T.A. building looks like "a Valentine’s heart" (983).

On the other side of the hill from E.T.A. is a halfway house for recovering addicts. It is a strict rule there that newcomers don't get romantically involved for the first year of sobriety (1054), the reason being that the sudden removal of substances leaves an enormous ragged hole in the psyche of the newcomer. The pain thus caused and which the newcomer is supposed to feel and be driven kneewards by is eventually supposed to be replaced with AA's ideology. "Celibacy's often, the issue that separates those who Hang from those who Go Back Out There" (1054). So both settings, between which most of the narrative in Infinite Jest alternates, are unsexual and unromantic places. Edward Mendelson's observation that none of the encyclopedic narratives culminate in the completed relation of sexual love is clearly and prominently present in Infinite Jest."

"I'm also enjoying that there's no romance/x-rated scenes in this novel. Too many times, it just gets in the way of the story and ruins everything, so the decided lack has been both surprising and a breath of fresh air... Hmm, maybe I belong in E.T.A. "

Haha,different strokes for different folks! As if we needed to add sex to the already deadly combination of drugs,alcohol & entertainment!
That said,the writer has imbued different characters with aspects of his own personality- Orin's sweat & twisted misogyny are Wallace's own so is Hal's constant second-guessing of his own thoughts,the analytical overdrive!
Avril has several personality traits that are based on the writer's own mother & the book is dedicated to his father,that & the whole Hamlet angle... & I wonder if there's more than meets the eye here! Perhaps the biography will tell me. Where are the IJ vets!?
I saw that you are carefully combing the endnotes,keep reading them & you'll come across a very interesting part abt Wayne- I wish Wallace had included it in the text,it was that interesting,srsly!
I still like John 'N.R.' Wayne- some character!

Mala wrote: "The shocker for me came on P.552-53,although Avril's shenanigans were always hinted at, still her football fantasy play with John'N.R.'Wayne,coming so soon after her "diddle check"with the little girlies,was ironic in the extreme!
And as for 'N.R'- well,still waters run deep!..."

I laughed out loud at this revelation. What a hoot!

After laughing, I wondered what Pemulis went to talk to Avril (or Avril & John Wayne, if he already knew of the liason) about. This scene occurs the night before the boys are called into CT's office. This is Pemulis we're talking about....that boy knows all and works angles at everyting.

Speaking of Pemulis, I loved the scene with him and Idris, the blind-folded kid.

I found the segment on high-waste annulating fusion interesting. I'd been wondering how so much garbage could be catapulted into a relatively small area and not become a problem in the sense of filling up the Great Concavity and running out of room (like our garbage dumps nowadays). The idea that the garbage is required to keep the unlivable conditions confined is an interesting solution/idea.