page 97 The army had not prepared The army had not prepared: For details on the conditions along the thirty-eighth parallel, I have drawn from descriptions in James Brady, The Coldest War The Coldest War.
page 99 "Krian war": "Krian war": This and subsequent quotes from "Thailand" are from Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "Thailand" are from Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 433436.
page 100 "style of the age": "style of the age": Erich Auerbach, "Philology and Weltliteratur," trans. by Edward and Maria Said, in Erich Auerbach, "Philology and Weltliteratur," trans. by Edward and Maria Said, in Centennial Review Centennial Review 13 (1969): 1. 13 (1969): 1.
12. No b.u.t.terfly page 102 "THE GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL": "THE GREAT AMERICAN NOVEL": This and subsequent quotes from Don"s letters to Joe Maranto or to his immediate family are from Helen Moore Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from Don"s letters to Joe Maranto or to his immediate family are from Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 2234. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 2234.
page 103 "[I] am working on a major fiction project"; "[W]e"re short-handed": "[I] am working on a major fiction project"; "[W]e"re short-handed": Donald Barthelme, letter to Mr. and Mrs. George Marrs, February 1954; courtesy, Marilyn Gillet. Donald Barthelme, letter to Mr. and Mrs. George Marrs, February 1954; courtesy, Marilyn Gillet.
page 103 "[In] Tokyo...[h]e was once in bed": "[In] Tokyo...[h]e was once in bed": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, Forty Stories Forty Stories (New York: Putnam, 1987), 108. (New York: Putnam, 1987), 108.
page 104 "Don described the experience later": "Don described the experience later": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 28.
page 104 "The transformation of everyday reality": "The transformation of everyday reality": Barthelme, "Parachutes in the Trees," in Barthelme, "Parachutes in the Trees," in Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews, ed. Kim Herzinger (New York: Random House, 1997), 109.
page 104 admired it "more than any other building": admired it "more than any other building": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 27.
page 104 "worthy tradition": "worthy tradition": Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Lloyd Wright, Sixty Years of Living Architecture: The Work of Frank Lloyd Wright Sixty Years of Living Architecture: The Work of Frank Lloyd Wright (Los Angeles: Munic.i.p.al Art Patrons and Art Commission of Los Angeles, 1953), 89. (Los Angeles: Munic.i.p.al Art Patrons and Art Commission of Los Angeles, 1953), 89.
page 104 "There were little terraces and little courts": "There were little terraces and little courts": Peter Blake, Peter Blake, Frank Lloyd Wright: Architecture and s.p.a.ce Frank Lloyd Wright: Architecture and s.p.a.ce (Baltimore: Penguin Books, 1960), 69, 72. For more information on the Imperial Hotel, see Frank Lloyd Wright, (Baltimore: Penguin Books, 1960), 69, 72. For more information on the Imperial Hotel, see Frank Lloyd Wright, An American Architecture An American Architecture (New York: Horizon Press, 1955), 149159; and Robert King Reitherman. "Frank Lloyd Wright"s Imperial Hotel: A Seismic Reevaluation," posted at (New York: Horizon Press, 1955), 149159; and Robert King Reitherman. "Frank Lloyd Wright"s Imperial Hotel: A Seismic Reevaluation," posted at www.nisee.berkeley.edu/kanto/kanto.html.
page 105 A pair of j.a.panese jazz drummers: A pair of j.a.panese jazz drummers: For more information on j.a.panese jazz, see Mathew Gregory, "Jazz Kissa Radicals: Tokyo Free Jazz and the Anti Appo Uprising," posted at www.newschool.edu/gf/historymatters/papers/conf03_mathewgregory_free%jazz.pdf. For more information on j.a.panese jazz, see Mathew Gregory, "Jazz Kissa Radicals: Tokyo Free Jazz and the Anti Appo Uprising," posted at www.newschool.edu/gf/historymatters/papers/conf03_mathewgregory_free%jazz.pdf.
page 105 "Tell me, is the Tennessee Tea Room still the top jazz place": "Tell me, is the Tennessee Tea Room still the top jazz place": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories (New York: Putnam, 1981), 355. (New York: Putnam, 1981), 355.
page 106 tiny bars, overpriced liquor; "love hotels": tiny bars, overpriced liquor; "love hotels": Rick Chernitzer, "Tokyo"s Hardy Barracks Was Home Away from Home for U. S. Soldiers in 1950s," in Rick Chernitzer, "Tokyo"s Hardy Barracks Was Home Away from Home for U. S. Soldiers in 1950s," in Stripes Sunday Magazine Stripes Sunday Magazine ( (Stars and Stripes), November 10, 2002; posted at www.estripes.com/article.asp?section=126&article=11528&archive=true.
page 106 "only concerned [itself] with customers" yen": "only concerned [itself] with customers" yen": ibid. ibid.
page 107 "At 2200 hours": "At 2200 hours": Donald Barthelme quoted in Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme quoted in Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 3031.
page 108 "most nerve shattering" "most nerve shattering" to to "browbeating the poor devil": "browbeating the poor devil": ibid., 30. ibid., 30.
page 109 "[I sat] in the bow fifty miles out": "[I sat] in the bow fifty miles out": Barthelme, Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 102.
13. c.o.c.kypap page 110 "I got a card from the Apache Distributing Company": "I got a card from the Apache Distributing Company": See See www.americanradiowork.publicradio.org/features/korea/archive/index ho mecomingtrans.php#jackson.
page 111 his son"s "veteran face"; "My clothes looked old and wrong": "city looked new": his son"s "veteran face"; "My clothes looked old and wrong": "city looked new": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories (New York: Putnam, 1981), 102. (New York: Putnam, 1981), 102.
page 111 "There just wasn"t much to Houston": "There just wasn"t much to Houston": Philip Johnson quoted in Frank D. Welch, Philip Johnson quoted in Frank D. Welch, Philip Johnson and Texas Philip Johnson and Texas (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2000), 42. (Austin: University of Texas Press, 2000), 42.
page 111 "What is coming will be of more value": "What is coming will be of more value": Stephen Fox, Stephen Fox, Houston Architectural Guide Houston Architectural Guide (Houston: American Inst.i.tute of Architects, Houston Chapter, and Herring Press, 1990), v. 21. (Houston: American Inst.i.tute of Architects, Houston Chapter, and Herring Press, 1990), v. 21.
page 111 "full of the "nothing" to which Mies": "full of the "nothing" to which Mies": ibid., 105. ibid., 105.
page 112 "We have to have cheerleaders": "We have to have cheerleaders": Barthelme, Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 102.
page 112 "Tiny Diva Warms Shamrock"; "John Wayne Goes to the Bottom": "Tiny Diva Warms Shamrock"; "John Wayne Goes to the Bottom": Jerome Klinkowitz, Asa B. Pierrat, Jr., and Robert Murray Davis, Jerome Klinkowitz, Asa B. Pierrat, Jr., and Robert Murray Davis, Donald Barthelme: A Comprehensive Bibliography Donald Barthelme: A Comprehensive Bibliography (Hamden, Connecticut: Shoestring Press/Archon Books, 1977), 94, 96. (Hamden, Connecticut: Shoestring Press/Archon Books, 1977), 94, 96.
page 113 "the cops decided to show": "the cops decided to show": Barthelme, Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 194.
page 113 "[Pete and I] were always together"; "I began to realize he was an attractive man": "[Pete and I] were always together"; "I began to realize he was an attractive man": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 35. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 35.
page 113 "Talk to Farris Block": "Talk to Farris Block": ibid., 36. ibid., 36.
page 113 "old school": "old school": This and subsequent quotes from "See the Moon?" are from Barthelme, This and subsequent quotes from "See the Moon?" are from Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 103.
page 114 "I had never...[worked] in the daytime before": "I had never...[worked] in the daytime before": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, Forty Stories Forty Stories (New York: Putnam, 1987), 28. (New York: Putnam, 1987), 28.
page 114 "I"d read his [movie] reviews": "I"d read his [movie] reviews": This and subsequent Gollob quotes, except those noted hereafter, are from Herman Gollob, This and subsequent Gollob quotes, except those noted hereafter, are from Herman Gollob, Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with the Bard Me and Shakespeare: Adventures with the Bard (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 166168. (New York: Doubleday, 2002), 166168.
page 115 "Ah Martha coom now": "Ah Martha coom now": Barthelme, Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 3738.
page 115 "I"ve never been a good drinker": "I"ve never been a good drinker": Marilyn Gillet, in a conversation with the author, November 17, 2004. Marilyn Gillet, in a conversation with the author, November 17, 2004.
page 115 "She wasn"t relaxed or natural"; "We were all drinking": "She wasn"t relaxed or natural"; "We were all drinking": Herman Gollob, in a conversation with the author, April 19, 2007. Herman Gollob, in a conversation with the author, April 19, 2007.
page 116 it was Maggie who "no longer wanted to be married": it was Maggie who "no longer wanted to be married": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 36.
page 116 " " By the time Don came back from Korea"; "I think Donald always wanted": By the time Don came back from Korea"; "I think Donald always wanted": Marilyn Gillet, in a conversation with the author, November 17, 2004. Marilyn Gillet, in a conversation with the author, November 17, 2004.
page 116 "too scared to unboard": "too scared to unboard": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 3637.
page 117 "[You] go to college": "[You] go to college": "Interview with Charles Ruas and Judith Sherman, 1975," in "Interview with Charles Ruas and Judith Sherman, 1975," in Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews, ed. Kim Herzinger (New York; Random House, 1997), 208.
page 118 "He was a lovely man": "He was a lovely man": Eileen Pollock, in a conversation with the author, June 5, 2005. Eileen Pollock, in a conversation with the author, June 5, 2005.
page 118 "Purity of heart is to will one thing": "Purity of heart is to will one thing": Barthelme, Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 384.
14. The Object page 119 "But that"s more than some of our "But that"s more than some of our male male faculty members earn!": faculty members earn!": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 44. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 44.
page 120 "I felt quite alone in my marriage": "I felt quite alone in my marriage": ibid., 3738. ibid., 3738.
page 120 In her memoir, Helen claims that she started the newsletter: In her memoir, Helen claims that she started the newsletter: ibid., 71. ibid., 71.
page 120 Lee Pryor, a UH English professor: Lee Pryor, a UH English professor: Suzanne Shumway, "Creative Writing Program: A Haven for Future Literati," Suzanne Shumway, "Creative Writing Program: A Haven for Future Literati," Collegium Online Collegium Online (University of Houston): Winter 1997. (University of Houston): Winter 1997.
page 120 Acta Diurna Acta Diurna"s format should be revised: Donald Barthelme, memo to Douglas McClaury, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries. Donald Barthelme, memo to Douglas McClaury, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries.
page 120 "As to material used": "As to material used": Donald Barthelme, letter to Pat Nicholson, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries. Donald Barthelme, letter to Pat Nicholson, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries.
page 120 "as part of our public relations program": "as part of our public relations program": Donald Barthelme, public relations announcement, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries. Donald Barthelme, public relations announcement, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries.
page 120 "The level of readership we are aiming at": "The level of readership we are aiming at": Donald Barthelme, letter to Dr. Richard A. Younger, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries. Donald Barthelme, letter to Dr. Richard A. Younger, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries.
page 121 "Kierkegaard is Hegel"s punishment": "Kierkegaard is Hegel"s punishment": Maurice Natanson, Maurice Natanson, A Critique of Jean-Paul Sartre"s Ontology A Critique of Jean-Paul Sartre"s Ontology (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1951), 5. (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1951), 5.
page 121 "[After] Sartre": "[After] Sartre": Maurice Natanson, Maurice Natanson, Edmund Husserl: Philosopher of Infinite Tasks Edmund Husserl: Philosopher of Infinite Tasks (Evanston, Illinois: Northwestern University Press, 1973), 3. (Evanston, Illinois: Northwestern University Press, 1973), 3.
page 121 "Although it has always been known": "Although it has always been known": ibid. ibid.
page 121 "the story of...philosophy": "the story of...philosophy": Natanson, Natanson, A Critique of Jean-Paul Sartre"s Ontology A Critique of Jean-Paul Sartre"s Ontology, 5.
page 121 "Kierkegaard found his novelist": "Kierkegaard found his novelist": ibid., 7. ibid., 7.
page 121 "I was conscious every moment": "I was conscious every moment": Fyodor Dostoevsky, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Notes from Underground Notes from Underground, trans. Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky (New York: Vintage Books, 1993), 5.
page 122 "chain of thought [that was] stated with agonizing force by Kierkegaard": "chain of thought [that was] stated with agonizing force by Kierkegaard": Natanson, Natanson, A Critique of Jean-Paul Sartre"s Ontology A Critique of Jean-Paul Sartre"s Ontology, 9.
page 122 "a means of blending"; "a means of blending"; " " insignificantseeming details": insignificantseeming details": Ronald Hayman, Ronald Hayman, Sartre: A Biography Sartre: A Biography (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1987), 9798. (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1987), 9798.
page 122 "the leaves of the tree"; "The waiter poured": "the leaves of the tree"; "The waiter poured": Ernest Hemingway, Ernest Hemingway, The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Other Stories The Snows of Kilimanjaro and Other Stories (New York: Scribner"s, 1961), 29, 30. (New York: Scribner"s, 1961), 29, 30.
page 123 "pressed itself against my eyes": "pressed itself against my eyes": Jean-Paul Sartre, Jean-Paul Sartre, Nausea Nausea, trans. Lloyd Alexander (New York: New Directions, 1964), 127128.
page 123 "A man is involved in life": "A man is involved in life": Jean-Paul Sartre, Jean-Paul Sartre, Existentialism Existentialism, trans. Bernard Frechtman (New York: Philosophical Library, 1947),20.
pages 123124 "With scarcely a pause in our conversation"; "I never imagined falling in love with him": "With scarcely a pause in our conversation"; "I never imagined falling in love with him": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 38.
page 124 "romantic and often expensive"; "excited and happy": "romantic and often expensive"; "excited and happy": ibid., 39. ibid., 39.
page 124 "liked Helen a lot": "liked Helen a lot": Pat Goeters, in an E-mail to the author, April 16, 2004. Pat Goeters, in an E-mail to the author, April 16, 2004.
page 124 "earth mother"; on the "rebound": "earth mother"; on the "rebound": Maggie Maranto, in an E-mail to the author, May 9, 2004. Maggie Maranto, in an E-mail to the author, May 9, 2004.
page 124 "lavish social events": "lavish social events": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 39.
page 125 "uneasy"; "possibility of perfection"; "being with Don was so intensely romantic": "uneasy"; "possibility of perfection"; "being with Don was so intensely romantic": ibid., 40. ibid., 40.
15. The Many Faces of Love page 126 "Then wear the gold hat": "Then wear the gold hat": F. Scott Fitzgerald, F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby The Great Gatsby (New York: Scribner"s, 1953), epigraph. (New York: Scribner"s, 1953), epigraph.
page 126 "What the h.e.l.l is [this poem] all about?": "What the h.e.l.l is [this poem] all about?": F. Scott Fitzgerald, F. Scott Fitzgerald, This Side of Paradise This Side of Paradise, ed. James L. W. West III (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995), 5051.
page 126 "[They"re] not producing among "em one story or novel": "[They"re] not producing among "em one story or novel": F. Scott Fitzgerald, F. Scott Fitzgerald, This Side of Paradise This Side of Paradise (New York: Scribner"s, 1960), 217. (New York: Scribner"s, 1960), 217.
page 126 "exquisite, anachronistic, and decadent": "exquisite, anachronistic, and decadent": Jeffrey Meyers, Jeffrey Meyers, Scott Fitzgerald: A Biography Scott Fitzgerald: A Biography (New York: HarperCollins, 1994), 25. (New York: HarperCollins, 1994), 25.
page 127 "incredibly delicate and dangerous business": "incredibly delicate and dangerous business": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, Sixty Stories: Sixty Stories: (New York: Putnam, 1981), 281. (New York: Putnam, 1981), 281.
page 127 "[He] desired both the beauty": "[He] desired both the beauty": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 41. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 41.
page 127 "snares and often lead us into error": "snares and often lead us into error": Hubert Benoit, Hubert Benoit, The Many Faces of Love The Many Faces of Love, trans. P. Mairet (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1955), 1. A number of Don"s stories seem to echo-and improve upon-pa.s.sages in Benoit. For example, at one point, Benoit said that "people like shame." "In the name of love," he wrote, "human beings humiliate and injure one another in interminable conflicts." In "The Leap," Don wrote, "Love...enables us to see each other without clothes on...in l.u.s.t and shame....[It] allows us to say wounding things to each other which would not be kosher under the ordinary rules of civilized discourse....[It] allows us to live together male and female in small grubby apartments that would only hold one sane person, normally."
Benoit spoke at length of "adoring" the lover: "The word "adore" implies an idea of "divinity," of the perception of the holy, of the infinite, of something beyond this world." This was a powerful concept for Don. In "The Indian Uprising," he quoted Valery on the subject: "The ardor aroused in men by the beauty of women can only be satisfied by G.o.d."
For Benoit, "intense adoration" is akin to "inebriation." It arises from what Jung called images of the "ideal other" in every person"s psyche. The "essential behavior of the lover" consists "in a pure, static contemplation" of the imagined ideal. The ideal is "projected" onto the "object" of the beloved, who becomes so "necessary to my inner state of adoration...so deeply a.s.sociated with my condition that I depend on her existence and tremble at any threat to it." Don examined Jungian archetypes in a number of stories, most wittily in "Daumier," where he looked at Jungian projection in reverse. Additionally, many of his stories are examples of "pure, static contemplation" of an ideal. For example, "Nakedness...is a delight," he wrote in Presents Presents. "[T]hat is why we are considering all these different ways in which naked young women may be conceptualized, in the privacy of our studies...." Benoit pointed out that fidelity is "incompatible with s.e.xuality upon the plane of images."
Cited above: "people like shame": "people like shame": Benoit, Benoit, The Many Faces of Love The Many Faces of Love, 149; "Love...enables us": "Love...enables us": Barthelme, Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 384; "The ardor aroused in men": "The ardor aroused in men": Barthelme, Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 111; " intense adoration" intense adoration" to to "pure, static contemplation": "pure, static contemplation": Benoit, Benoit, The Many Faces of Love The Many Faces of Love, 11, 16; "necessary to my inner state of adoration": "necessary to my inner state of adoration": Benoit, Benoit, The Many Faces of Love The Many Faces of Love, 10; "Nakedness...is a delight": "Nakedness...is a delight": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, Presents Presents (Dallas: Pressworks, 1980), 21; (Dallas: Pressworks, 1980), 21; "incompatible with s.e.xuality": "incompatible with s.e.xuality": Benoit, Benoit, The Many Faces of Love The Many Faces of Love, 299.
page 127 "As soon as I am in erotic love": "As soon as I am in erotic love": Benoit, Benoit, The Many Faces of Love The Many Faces of Love, 150.
page 127 "without coming into collision"; "intellectual recognition"; "plain language": "without coming into collision"; "intellectual recognition"; "plain language": ibid., 99. ibid., 99.
page 127 "By bypa.s.sing": "By bypa.s.sing": Donald Barthelme, "Interview with Charles Ruas and Judith Sherman," Donald Barthelme, "Interview with Charles Ruas and Judith Sherman," Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews, ed. Kim Herzinger (New York: Random House, 1997), 221.
page 128 "He really wanted nothing less": "He really wanted nothing less": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 40.
pages 128129 "prosperous, empty, uninspiring uniformity": "prosperous, empty, uninspiring uniformity": This and subsequent quotes from "The Glamour of Delinquency" are from Pauline Kael, This and subsequent quotes from "The Glamour of Delinquency" are from Pauline Kael, I Lost It at the Movies I Lost It at the Movies (Boston: Atlantic Monthly Press / Little, Brown, 1965), 46. (Boston: Atlantic Monthly Press / Little, Brown, 1965), 46.
page 129 "I found it exciting": "I found it exciting": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme Donald Barthelme, 46.
page 129 "The problem is": "The problem is": "Interview with Charles Ruas and Judith Sherman, 1975," in "Interview with Charles Ruas and Judith Sherman, 1975," in Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews, ed. Kim Herzinger (New York: Random House, 1997), 225.
page 129 "Nothing to be done": "Nothing to be done": Samuel Beckett, Samuel Beckett, Waiting for G.o.dot Waiting for G.o.dot (New York: Grove Press, 1982), 2. (New York: Grove Press, 1982), 2.
page 129 "don"t seem to be able to depart": "don"t seem to be able to depart": ibid.,50. ibid.,50.
page 130 "That"s the idea": "That"s the idea": ibid., 70. ibid., 70.
page 130 "essential"; "the extra-temporal": "essential"; "the extra-temporal": Samuel Beckett, Samuel Beckett, Proust Proust (London: John Calder, 1999), 75. (London: John Calder, 1999), 75.
page 130 "I sometimes wonder": "I sometimes wonder": Beckett, Beckett, Waiting for G.o.dot Waiting for G.o.dot, 5859.
16. Forum page 131 his philosophical studies: his philosophical studies: Don"s line "Fragments are the only forms I trust" from "See the Moon?" pulses with Kierkegaard. In 1844, Kierkegaard published Don"s line "Fragments are the only forms I trust" from "See the Moon?" pulses with Kierkegaard. In 1844, Kierkegaard published Philosophical Fragments Philosophical Fragments. In it, he wrote, "What is offered here is only a pamphlet." It "is impossible for anyone to dream of attributing...importance to a pamphlet." In fact, Kierkegaard intended his fragments to be an important alternative to Hegel"s weighty volumes, which had proposed nothing less than a history of the universe. Kierkegaard"s "modest" work mocks such grandiose ambitions: A pamphlet by a self-doubting author is far more trustworthy than the man who claims to know it all.
After over a hundred pages investigating what can and cannot be known, Kierkegaard ended by saying, "... how shall we ever manage to begin?" In "The Dolt," Don would write, "Endings are elusive, middles are nowhere to be found, but worst of all is to begin, to begin, to begin."
As Kierkegaard stands to German philosophy, Don would stake himself (in more modest fashion) with regard to Western fiction; as Kierkegaard questioned rational and systematic thought, Don would prod a suspicious finger at omniscience and realism...not to deny the strength of traditional forms (Kierkegaard didn"t doubt Hegel"s greatness), just to offer a polite or humorous "But," a quiet "Or."
Cited above: "Fragments are the only forms I trust": "Fragments are the only forms I trust": Donald Barthelme, Donald Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories (New York: Putnam, 1981), 98; (New York: Putnam, 1981), 98; "What is offered here is only a pamphlet"; "how shall we ever manage to begin?": "What is offered here is only a pamphlet"; "how shall we ever manage to begin?": Sren Kierkegaard, Sren Kierkegaard, Philosophical Fragments / Johannes Climacus Philosophical Fragments / Johannes Climacus, ed. and trans. Howard V. Hong and Edna H. Hong (Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1985), 5, 110; " Endings are elusive": Endings are elusive": Barthelme, Barthelme, Sixty Stories Sixty Stories, 96.
page 131 "today refers to faddism": "today refers to faddism": Maurice Natanson, Maurice Natanson, A Critique of Jean-Paul Sartre"s Ontology A Critique of Jean-Paul Sartre"s Ontology (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1951), 5. (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1951), 5.
page 131 "in spite of every imaginable obstacle": "in spite of every imaginable obstacle": Helen Moore Barthelme, Helen Moore Barthelme, Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound Donald Barthelme: The Genesis of a Cool Sound (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 70. (College Station: Texas A & M University Press, 2001), 70.
page 132 "Don was concerned that his mother should understand": "Don was concerned that his mother should understand": ibid., 41. ibid., 41.
page 132 "Don had filled the entire apartment": "Don had filled the entire apartment": ibid., 42. ibid., 42.
page 133 In the French Quarter: In the French Quarter: For Helen"s account of their honeymoon, see ibid., 4243. For Helen"s account of their honeymoon, see ibid., 4243.
page 133 her "authority": her "authority": This and subsequent quotes regarding the early days of Helen"s marriage to Don are from ibid., 45, 4855. This and subsequent quotes regarding the early days of Helen"s marriage to Don are from ibid., 45, 4855.
page 135 "at present a circulation of 3,000": "at present a circulation of 3,000": Donald Barthelme, template for advertising solicitation letter for Donald Barthelme, template for advertising solicitation letter for Forum Forum, 1957, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries.
page 135 "The magazine is, in a sense, experimental": "The magazine is, in a sense, experimental": Donald Barthelme, letter to Dr. William J. Handy, March 13, 1957, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries. Donald Barthelme, letter to Dr. William J. Handy, March 13, 1957, Special Collections and Archives, University of Houston Libraries.
page 136 unfettered emotions: unfettered emotions: This and subsequent quotes from this essay are from Donald Barthelme, "A Note on Elia Kazan," in This and subsequent quotes from this essay are from Donald Barthelme, "A Note on Elia Kazan," in Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews Not-Knowing: The Essays and Interviews, ed. Kim Herzinger (New York, Random House, 1997), 99. This essay was originally published in Forum Forum 1 (1956). 1 (1956).