There's a lot of things going on in the earlier chapters of this section that I could have done without. Still, even though I do find myself moving through the descriptions and explanations with less interest and more speed, every once in awhile something stands out that demands my attention. I'm still enjoying the novel, but I do wish there was a little more Sam Clay in the story, as he is one-half of the title. Here are a few thoughts:
More and more the novel is about exploitation, taking advantage of the helpless (obviously the Jews in the background and the boys with their comic book rights), and feelings of helplessness or ineffectiveness. Joe's anger grows in the early chapters (and his helplessness - he can't even find it in him to join the RAF), and we see him getting mixed up with every German on the street, and even breaking into an Aryn Nation office. I did not find these chapters to be enjoyable, as Joe's character spins out of control and loses a lot of that careful, thoughtful precision we've grown to count on. The ridiculousness (and danger) of his whole transformation comes to a head when the bomb threat is introduced, and it takes a "superhero saves the day and gets the girl" (Dali's choking and Rosa)cliche to bring the character back to me. Meanwhile, Sam is dealing with an incident with two homosexuals (here we have one of Chabon's best moments of imagery: "their mustaches interlocked in a way that had reminded Sammy, for some reason, of the way his mother used to fit his comb into the bristles of the brush on top of his dresser..." (254))making out in an all black kitchen. Note: I very much enjoyed how Chabon captured what I would call the phoniness of a New York City "Artsy" apartment. The Passages and Transformations (metamorphosis) theme is also at work, mostly in the characters of Anapols and Judy Dark, for now. Loss of innocence is seen when Sam witnesses the homosexual kiss, Joe looses his dad, and in the beatings Joe takes. Also, we see Rosa as a woman of many faces and guises (appearances versus reality).
Highlights: The brief explanation of the printing process in Chapter 1 (a strength of the novel is learning about things Ala The DaVinci Code), the development of Joe's art (we see him consider his craft through the work of others in Chapter 2), the vision (albeit a challenge to see) of his father coming off the Rotterdam (and the certainty the reader feels that the time is near for Joe to experience a loss - which he does shortly thereafter), the respect James Love and Al Smith have for Joe (and his work), Dali, bringing Rosa back, the details Chabon gives us of Rosa's room (which is typical for Chabon, but I liked this setting more than others because I felt it had more to do with the main plot), the entire Chapter 11 with Hoffman and the Ark of Miriam ship (which gives Joe and the reader a little hope), Judy Dark & the Book of Lo & Luna Moth (one of the better chapters and something that is needed - like The Escapist legend - in a novel about comic books), and Desey's character development (easy to like as he is on the side of our heroes).
Low lights: Max Schmeling and Joe's obsessions with Germans. The chapter in the office of the Aryn American League (why did he sign the folder "The Escapist"? I know, I know, he does it to spit in the guy's face and it provides some suspense, but why be stupid?), 1/2 of the bomb scare chapter(the history of Love and Smith - do I need this?), details on Longman Harkoo (who cares),not enough Clay, the idea that Clay might be gay, and how the boys get screwed on their rights (this is a personal issue for me, not a flaw with the novel).
Final thoughts: There seems to be a lot more foreshadowing in this part of the novel (Anapol's nervousness = heart attack?, vision of father before death, Ebling,etc.). Here's a quote I liked on page 177: "Joe's work also articulated the simple joy of unfettered movement, of the able body, in a way that captured the yearnings not only of his crippled cousin but of an entire generation of weaklings, stumblebums, and playground goats." This, to me, is truth in literature. Chabon is excellent at seeing into the heart and minds and hopes and dreams and fears of the young and old. It seems to me that literature has many purposes: to escape, to think, to learn, to dream, to marvel, and to help us look within ourselves. I'd say this novel is doing the job.
What does "Jeune homme" mean? My brother? It must have been a hell of a compliment.
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Well, you have a lot of stuff here, which I'm finding is the most difficult thing about this book. It will be difficult to keep the class focused in the fall and I imagine it will give a few students an excuse to not like the book.
I don't want to say too much, lest I give some things away, but here are a couple things. I actually like Joe's fights with Germans. It's sad and futile, but it demonstrates just how desperate he is. It also suggests that he has a kind of death wish or at the very least is trying to experience the pain that he imagines his family is experiencing (which I find interesting). What would you call this? The only word I can think of is sado-masochistic, but that has too much of a sexual connotation. Stoic, maybe, the idea that suffering leads to salvation. The suffering he experiences is a tie to his family. He's also, of course, trying to stand up for himself and his ancestry. His fights make sense, too, when you think of how he feels his comic books are not real and will not have a real impact. The fights, in this sense, are his attempt to experience reality, to escape the illusion of the comic books.
I also find the exploitation theme interesting, not only in light of Anapol (who represents American business), but also with respect to bureaucracy, in general. It ties in with the theme of futility that you mentioned. The American government, for instance, is a frequent frustration for Joe, mostly for its own brand of anti-semitism.
Carl Ebling's character is mostly digressive, but it's still fascinating. It another element in the doppelganger motif. His storyline develops a bit more later, too.
One last thing, Joe's loss of his father ties in with a larger theme of absent fathers. His father is now gone, and Sam's father, who was largely absent, had a big impact, as well.
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