Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Infinite Jest, romance

Brothers Orin and Hal Incandenza are talking on the telephone. Orin can’t remember the name of the woman he is attempting to seduce:

“I guess I’ll have to get back to you on that.”

“Boy, you really put the small r in romance, don’t you.”

David Foster Wallace, Infinite Jest (Boston: Little, Brown, 1996).
Other Infinite Jest posts
Attention : Description : Telephony

comments: 4

Unknown said...

I have never read DFW, but have heard about him and have wanted to read him. Your posts here have put wanting to read him back in my thoughts. Can you suggest something of his that I could start with?

Michael Leddy said...

I would start with the commencement speech that he gave at Kenyon College in 2005. There are several collections of short stories and essays, and two novels, the second of which, Infinite Jest, would be considered the book to read. There’s also an unfinished novel that’s supposed to come out next year. Reading the commencement speech made me decide that I had to read Infinite Jest.

Unknown said...

I just read the commencement speech and the following comments. I thought it was interesting how some of the commenters "judged" the speech and other comments through the lens of their own selves, doing exactly what DFW was talking about, without realizing it. I also realized that I have read bits of DFW's work in the New Yorker- I think part of consider the lobster was in there shortly after David died. I'm going to go put Infinite Jest on hold for myself at the library. Thanks, Michael.

Michael Leddy said...

The recorded speech just came out from Audible.com.

About Infinite Jest, I hope your library offers generous renewals. You’ll see what I mean. : )