VLVL 4: War, politics and love

[jbor]

on 28/8/03 12:43 AM, Terrance wrote:

>> 
>> ... RC emerged from the can, with the deep eyes, the mortally
>> cautious bearing, that told of where else he'd been. (36.14)
> 
> Maybe he's been in the CAN. As in prison.

Perhaps; I hadn't noticed the possible pun. But the two quotes put together
("since the war" at 35.26) and this one about RC's "mortally cautious
bearing" suggest to me that he had seen action in Vietnam.

       Zoyd had known the family since the early seventies, having in
    fact met Moonpie on the night of the day his divorce became final,
    which also happened to be the day of his very first window jump, in
    a way both part of the same letter of agreement. (36.5)

He meets RC that night too, of course. US troops were finally withdrawn from
Vietnam in January '73. Seems to me to fit pretty neatly.

It's possible also that he's a draft dodger or deserter, as Elaine
suggested, and it's worth keeping an eye on whether there is something else
to corroborate this theory. That "since the war" referent for their life
together is pretty precise, however.

best