Formal Seduction (was MDDM Ch. 25 "the Company Perimeter")

[Bandwraith at aol.com]

 From: jbor <jbor at bigpond.com>

> Though, again, he is the one who pulls out the conversational trump >card:

> "What would Jews have requir'd of them, that Dutchmen would not?" >(152.16)

>This observation is both wry and astute to my reading, and it certainly 
>throws into sharper relief what might be *latent* anti-Semitism in
>Maskelyne's and the Royal Society's thinking and motivations.]

Dixon can sense that Charlie is trying to seem politically important
even as he describes the condescending treatment given him
by Maskelyne. That Maskelyne would even condescend to him
is a backhanded way of demonstrating that Mason travels in more
important circles than Jere could ever hope to, and, that Mason
is privvy to that much more important information. 

And of course, Mason is privvy to more information than Jere,
at least w/r/t the R.S., but Dixon, being the more intuitive, can easily 
smoak when to ask the classic "dumb question" and puncture 
Mason's over-inflated balloon. He doesn't miss a beat.

But these two have been gyved at the hip since the incident 
with the l'Grand and the letter that followed. For better or worse,
they're partners. Each in his own way understands the Form.

> PS Though I think that it's probably hypothetical rum, or gin, there in
> Dixon's hypothetical bootstrap, the other literary echo I'd note at this
> point is of Joseph Heller:

> "There's the Catch, of course," Dixon pretending to be calm. (253.4)]

A little flask of atman, perhaps? Certainly not art, deceiving elf, although- 
a "drop of Roll-me-in-the-Kennel might do the trick. In a pinch, I guess,  
some Golden Virginian and a peep of sot-weed will have to do. To America...