Infinite Summer

Formed in the summer of 2009 to read David Foster Wallace's masterwork "Infinite Jest".
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The Inficratic Oath: first, post no spoilers. Limit your I.J. discussion to only those events that take place on or before the page 981 (100%).



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 Post subject: Incandenzas vs other characters
PostPosted: Wed Jun 24, 2009 7:34 pm 
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Joined: Tue Jun 23, 2009 11:10 am
Posts: 4
I was noticing that it felt to me like we are getting a more personal approach to the Incandenzas than the other characters: Erdidy and the medical attache, but couldn't think of why. Obviously Hal has the opening pages in first person, but still...

Then I realized that their is no dialogue except when Hal is around, thus far. I expect this changes later (I hope; I like dialogue.), but it gives an immediacy to Hal that our other characters don't have.

It gives the feeling that all these people are stuck in their own minds. Except for Hal-in-the-past. At least, I'm assuming this must be the past since the Hal we were introduced to has some issues.


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 Post subject: Re: Incandenzas vs other characters
PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 6:33 am 
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Joined: Sun Jun 21, 2009 3:11 pm
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Location: Dayton, OH, USA
I don't have a great answer for that (this is my first read, and I am right on track -- at about pg 55), but it occurs to me that what this narrative approach does, functionally, is to place Hal at the center of the novel. He's the POV character, in a sense, despite the (frequently) third person narration (and inclusion of other characters).

I hadn't quite picked up on the dialogue aspect, but that's a really good point for chewing over.

- jess


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 Post subject: Re: Incandenzas vs other characters
PostPosted: Thu Jun 25, 2009 8:14 am 
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Joined: Mon Jun 22, 2009 10:31 am
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Hm! An interesting observation. This is my first reading, so I don't know if this continues, but at least up to the spoiler line Hal doesn't even speak (at least not so that the other characters seem to be able to hear him), which makes it even more interesting...


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