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Echezona Udeze
Prof. Dinielli
English 674
Paper #2
11/8/14
Yeah Me Too!
Infinite Jest is a novel that speaks of distances. When younger, my step/father was the
kindest man in the world. I was excited when he came over since it was the sun rising over the
barren plain of weekends I always spent at home. When Amos came over, he made sure we
would get to go out and rent movies, or get some food, or he would give me money so I could
have a little fun. But when I came of age he suddenly ceased being the man I was so used to and
became distant. Our only conversations would either be skits on the eternal question mark that is
my mother or comments on the weather and our relationship seemed a clone of Hal and Jamess
in Infinite Jest.
Infinite Jests distances, such as the one between Hal and James Incandenza and myself
and Amos, are part of Foster Wallaces commentary on contemporary Untied-States society.
Proof being found in a book entitled Understanding Foster Wallace. An author of an essay
argues that Wallace mixes two philosophical concerns with the still existing (though considered
irrelevant) ideals of United-States identity. The philosophical concerns of subjectivitys
limitations and the effects of communal mass media are the cited concernss by Giles whose essay
focuses on three notions, transcendentalism, self-reliance, and community spirit. Examining the
novel, one can see Wallace focus on them in the novel is a means of asking if these three notions
we believe(d) a part of our national character are truly irrelevant and if because subjectivity is
flawed we are unable to realize the dream we once believed these lands could be.
Self-reliance is a notion that is inseparable from the United-States self-perception an
example being capitalism and the invisible hand that governs the economy. I have heard and
studied self-reliance numerous instances through Emerson and others since the sixth grade and

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the introduction to the novels protagonist, (where he is not allowed to speak until a last resort), is
a comment on who we really are as opposed to what we believe ourselves to be.
In the first few pages you are introduced to the reality of what people actually value. The
protagonist is touted as a prodigy both in the classroom and athletically, a top ten nationally
ranked junior tennis player, a prodigy whose grades feature so many pluses on As and whose
papers are so advanced that questions on whether or not his transcript is bogus are justified. Still,
while Hal Incandenza is on a recruiting visit, it has been decided away from the meeting by the
tennis coach and his uncle Tavis, that he should not speak while they sing his praises. Why a
gifted scholar/athlete is not allowed to speak during the meeting is shown when a prying
professor request to hear from the child himself. Hal frightens them with his assertion of
individuality and intelligence. This leaves them frightened to the point where they restrain him
and ask if calling an ambulance is necessary.
Subjectivitys limits are exposed.
The notion that self-reliance is valued is skewered since once Hal asserts he can be selfreliant, that he is an individual and not an automaton that is unable to speak for himself, people
who should value individuality believe something is deeply wrong with him. The coach towards
the end begins apologizing for Hals assertion while the administrator and professor are flustered.
This is tied to Wallaces comment on the limits of subjectivity since the reality of who we are
must set in.
Who we believe ourselves to be is further from the truth of who we are than we can
understand. One of subjectivitys limits is the inability to think and see anything other than what
we wish to believe about ourselves and while one would expect college professors and
administrators to value intelligence and individuality, and while one would expect an uncle to
value a nephews opinion, and while one would expect a coach to value his prospects as

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something other than a trophy, and while a professor would be expected to be ecstatic about a
prodigy coming to their college, what one would expect does not define reality.
Moving on to transcendentalism, (another ideal I have been spoon fed since elementary
school), you find that another cherished United States notion is being brought to the light. Hal
Incandenza is an athlete who is described by his instructors as the thinking mans player. Modern
tennis is primarily dominated by athletes who use the power-baseline method, relying on the
players strength and speed to beat their opponent in a systematic and logical way while Hal
attempts to win through constantly looking for openings and exposing the weaknesses he finds in
the opponents game. While he is a top ten nationally ranked player, he is unable to defeat the
ironically named John Wayne whose power baseline centered game has no faults. Though Hal is
the athlete with an intellectual aspect to his game, he never gets a single match in against Wayne.
Subjectivitys limits are exposed.
Many would believe intellect would be able to transcend and push Hal into the victors
position but reality always wins. Hal can beat most people but reality rears an ugly head and he
in the end will not be able to beat a complete top power baseline athlete due to the fact that
intelligence cannot win all battles. While intelligence is closer to what many wish to believe will
and should transcend Hal cannot match Wayne athletically. Sadly, In addition Hal in the end has
a difficult time beating another power baseline player, (and another ironically named player),
Ortho The Darkness Stice. Hal cannot transcend subjectivitys or his own limitations.
Another example of humanity not being able to transcend what we are is found in the
tape called the entertainment. The tape is a metaphor for, among other things, the American
reliance on television for entertainment. A metaphor making a statement on human nature,
stating that we cannot escape our desire to both not be bored or to be entertained. An abnormal
amount of our lives are spent in front of a television screen and there is little we can do about it.

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Not only because programming is designed to keep you stuck to the spot but due to a basic need
of every human is to keep their mind occupied.
Subjectivitys limits are exposed.
Human consciousness is believed to be of an intelligence that is unrivaled by any other
creature on planet earth. Still, we spend a larger amount of time attempting to escape through
television during our stay here than we do trying to make life easier for someone else. We cannot
escape our own skin and Wallace is writing about how we cannot transcend what we are through
the entertainment since it is impossible for us to be anything other than humans who need to
make their own stay here as pleasant as possible for themselves.
The last of Giless examples, community spirit, is mostly present when people are being
entertained. At Enfield when the teleprompter is on they are silent and gather around the fire in
the exact way they do at the recovery house. When everyone finally has a good time communally
in the dining hall at Enfield they are watching a movie directed by Mario Incandenza. At the AA
meetings they gather round and tell each other stories on their individual struggles. And they are
all friends when they do drugs.
Subjectivitys limits are exposed.
The viewing of television itself can be a metaphor on subjectivitys limits. While in a
roomful of people each is in their own separate space and silent while being the sole perceiver of
what they are viewing. So while all objectively watching the same thing, the experience belongs
to one sole being. Drugs are as well one the main entertainments people gather round each other
for in the novel. The rehab house is together due to substance addiction, Gatelys friends from
high school to his work as a collector, to his criminal behavior, to his stay at the recovery house
are all united by a common thread, addiction. Hals friends are united by that common quality as
well. Looking at the Eschaton incident, the only people there who are not alone are the ones
not competing and smoking weed.

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Whether or not there is a common thread that unites the people who are supposed to be a
community, that thread does not bring them closer together. At the rehab house few people mix,
including the crocodiles with their mentees, and at Enfield there are cliques that are united by
common factors such as drugs, cruelty, and age but everything constantly seems separate.
Subjectivitys main limit is that we cannot step outside of ourselves and do anything but please
our superegos. No matter what we do we are unable to do anything other than satisfy our ego
through either the id or the superego and the two are constantly being crossed with the exact
same effect.
Is there an answer?
I believe Wallace is saying we need to connect. One way is through using entertainment
to build connections with people that actually mean something is possible. Hals voyage into his
fathers movies to find out about his father is an example of finding that connection and a
statement on auteur theory. The idea of a sole artist being the one to follow gives you something
to rally around and community is found through finding common interest or a common story.
Another way would be to build lasting and authentic connections around something other than
being alone in a room full of people. Examples are, Gatelys flirting with Joelle and asking her
questions, Marios rides with Schtitt, sharing during the AA meetings, the mentor programs in
both AA meetings and Enfield academy, are examples of people connecting with each other in
more meaningful ways than drugs and competition and I believe that is the answer Wallace is
telling us to find.
My stepfather and I watched every game of a Lakers season and the entire season came
down to one shot. The shot was made by Robert Horry. The celebration that followed would
make anyone watching two grown men, dance, and slap hands, and hug each other, think they
had just won the lottery. Years later I nearly cried when I found out that Robert Horry retired. I
cried a few more years later when Derek Fischer, a key player in all those championships retired

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with the most playoff games played in of any player in the history of the NBA and it felt like
I danced with my father again and I felt like a happy confused fool.

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Works Cited
Cohen, Samuel, ed. The Legacy of David Foster Wallace. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press,
2012. Print.