Slothrop, Tchitcherine's uniform

[jbor]

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>From: --- <rosenlake at mac.com>
>

> Thiopental sodium ("truth serum") is just a barbiturate. I think
> Slothrop could handle it.

    These changes on the text "You never did the Kenosha Kid" are occupying
    Slothrop's awareness as the doctor leans in out of the white overhead to
    wake him and begin the session. The needle slips without pain into the
    vein just outboard of the hollow in the crook of his elbow: 10% Sodium
    Amytal, one cc at a time, as needed. (61.13)

Then the Kenosha Kid charade begins to blur in those last two sub-sections,
and from 62.25 when the PISCES doctors begin questioning him until about
71.7 I'd say the drug has kicked in and Slothrop has absolutely no control
over his "awareness" as it is being represented in the text.

In support of your contention, there's also Pointsman talking to Roger about
Slothrop's MMPI, his "falsifications", the fact that he's "a strong
imperturbable" at 90. And Slothrop certainly muses about missing out on a
Section 8 at 114.5 as you say, but that has more to do with him being duped
about why he was in St Veronica's rather than him doing the duping I think.

As well as the apocryphal Kenosha Kid/Welles allusion I think there's more
than a touch of Heller's Yossarian about Slothrop during the stay at St
Veronica's Abreaction Ward, except that Slothrop is nowhere near as clued up
as Yossarian imo. For starters, he wasn't ever actively pursuing a Section
8; rather, he was targeted by Pointy.

best