Books Apr 13, 2011 at 4:00 am

The King Is Dead

David Foster Wallace's Last Novel

Paul Constant
Took his own life halfway through writing The Pale King. Giovanni Giovannetti / Effigie
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Comments

1
Lovely, Paul. Lovely and worthy.
TVDinner on April 13, 2011 at 6:54 PM Report this
2
fucking paul constant, always writing shit that makes me wish I were smarter. sigh.
on April 13, 2011 at 6:58 PM Report this
3
i was just thinking about how much i missed dfw being in the world the other day. i'm glad this is coming out, and sad it won't be finished the way he would have if he could have. reading "infinite jest" at 17, too young to understand it, but old enough for it to help me ace the SAT vocab sections are part of what made me who i am today.
erin on April 13, 2011 at 11:27 PM Report this
4
no ending is a good way
on April 14, 2011 at 11:23 PM Report this
6
The disruption of the maudlin emotional tribute by the cold absurdity of capitalism... lls82, I totally see where you're going. Very DFW.
MikeP on April 15, 2011 at 7:39 PM Report this
7
I miss the feeling: knowing that DFW was out there somehere. It was like knowing that superman was out there to save us all.

I am also keenly aware that this very feeling (multiplied by thousands of individuals around the world) contributed to the depression that ultimately took DFW from the world.
johnnycache on April 17, 2011 at 4:39 PM Report this
8
Paul, this is my favorite piece you've written so far. Well done.
Peter F on April 17, 2011 at 4:58 PM Report this
9
What a fitting homage to bureaucracy that he never finished the novel...

Anyway, also one of my favorite pieces of yours...
sikandro on April 18, 2011 at 10:25 AM Report this
10
There are many analog computers that are not binary.
ejamadoodle on April 18, 2011 at 11:35 AM Report this
11
Reminds me of Twain's Mysterious Stranger. Except DeVoto did a lousy job "finishing" it.
Sachi on April 18, 2011 at 12:15 PM Report this
12
Long live the king.
augurgirl on April 18, 2011 at 12:19 PM Report this
13
Franzen was right. He chose you over his family. Strangers over intimates; abstraction over reality. The adulation of morons and analysis of pedants. He was too honest with the faceless and nameless. And after reading this, I can sense the anger in those who actually knew him and are hurt. Good review, I guess.
on April 18, 2011 at 12:21 PM Report this
14
Brilliant writing, Paul.
Canadian Nurse on April 19, 2011 at 10:20 AM Report this
16
Your opening reminded me of the book that 'Rolling Stone' writer wrote about touring the country w/ DFW. At one bookstore stop some handler says, "We're going to record the Q&A digitally, if that's okay.." and DFW says, "You mean only yes or no answers?" Or something like that.
conjurator on April 19, 2011 at 9:52 PM Report this
17
Thanks for this, Paul. I've had mixed feelings about this book being published, but I do look forward to reading it.
Levislade on April 22, 2011 at 4:11 PM Report this
18
My first question after getting started on this book was:

"Do IRS agents really get a new SSN that starts with a 9?!"

So I called up someone who works for the IRS and was told that this is not currently true, but may have been in the mid-80s. More specifically, people who are unable to get a legit SSN but still want to pay taxes (or, more likely, claim a child for a tax break on taxes they are paying under a stolen SSN), can be issued a special type of SSN that does start with a 9. It's called an ITIN.

Now, without spoiling anything, think about what he is telling you in the chapter where he drops this information. He is giving you a very important message about the book, and then starts by lying to you (assuming it wasn't true during the 80s as well).

Lovin' it.
Swearengen on April 22, 2011 at 4:31 PM Report this
19
Paul
this is a lushious reply to dave's wondrous text, yet get beyond the horses, section 1 (previously titled "Peoria (4)," is an essentializing of the text in one of the most finely crafted prose poems this experienced poet has seen, let alone from the lad who used to scoff at the poets in fiction workshops who wanted to "talk about the language."

the craft of the piece's catalog of weeds turned by the winds alone is a rhythmic dream sequence; as w.c. williams always said, "No ideas but in things." Then the section's ultimate command, "Read these." coming directly after the depiction of the dried tracks of the horsepatties turned up by the crows in search of nourishment, now that's a map of what follows, is it not?

such quibbles aside, the piece of yours overall is quite a bit better than droll, and spot on in the notion that one of the key aspects of incompletion is the obvious need for each reader to offer one's own diagram, if not full text, to connect the shreds left flailing like tin in the breeze following behind a big wind.

moral monsters of the id, no, super ego, oh.
nevermind
on April 30, 2011 at 2:21 PM Report this

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