A little trick DeLillo uses to make Libra interesting is the conflicting portrayal of historical and fictional characters. With timid and conservative fictional characters, the inventions in the book are all very understandable and believable. Although that does muddy the line between fiction and fact, in this particular case many of the facts are quite bizarre by themselves without any author's embellishment. By having this contrast between actual people and invented, but hyper-realistic characters, Libra calls into question all the previously understood facts. By bringing up and proving the possibility of this particular conspiracy theory, it leaves the history of the Kennedy assassination open to speculation and more theories. It also facilitates the narrative inside the narrative, since Libra itself acts a tell-all story about American undercover operations that Win Everett wants to reveal as part of his "Let's Almost Kill Kennedy" plot. The outline of the novel is properly convoluted, with many characters coming and going with different and often times secret interactions that make it hard to keep track of. This too only makes the conspiracy more real since it shows the difficulties with organizing such a complex scheme. In the end, the character writing results in making the fictional characters more believable than the actual historical figures.
One of the more unbelievable but real characters, George de Mohrenschildt is the best way to describe the CIA, representing the easy duplicity of the organization. On one hand, from Lee's perspective we see a kindly and intelligent father figure that fills a void in Lee's life. If that weren't enough, George also befriends Lee and his new wife and helps them settle in in the new area. But then we also see the same story from de Mohrenschildt's perspective, who sees Lee as the potential asset that he is to the CIA, having defected to and from the Soviet Union makes him a person of interest with potentially useful knowledge. Even beyond that there's also George's hint that Lee took the shot at General Walker under some influence from Mohrenschildt. In Lee's mind, the General was a fascist leader, but it is impossible to tell how much of that was his own ideas and how much was ingrained by the superspy. The end result is a very conflicted view of the character since his motives are so muddled. His affection towards Lee is obvious, but especially with his discussion with Parmenter, it puts Oswald closer to the center of a conspiracy theory where he is the scapegoat. Overall, I'm still impressed with the smooth skill and ability that Mohrenschmidt has, bringing many different underground connections to the table. Like the rest of the character writing, the final goal is to have a believable conspiracy theory invented by DeLillo, then described as the real thing to prove that not all the history is set in stone.
There's always going to be holes in any conspiracy theory surrounding JFK's death. DeLillo is presenting his own, basing it on the accepted facts and writing in fictional characters and plots to plug those holes as best he can. The story definitely works well as a possible theory to the events leading up to the president's shooting because DeLillo tends to make his fictional elements as elegant and believable as possible, so the reader doesn't have to suspend their disbelief too much.
ReplyDeleteI'm not yet sure that DeLillo is aiming for a conspiracy theory. To me, it seems more likely that the CIA will start talking to Lee about their plan, and in this talk mention some reasons for killing president Kennedy. Then, Lee goes and acts as an independent, but heavily influenced, agent and kills the president. I see this book developing more as a conspiracy theory gone wrong than an actual plot by the CIA that ends up killing the president.
ReplyDeleteDeLillo's fictional characters are generally designed to "fill the gaps" in the official record, but they're not entirely whimsical inventions. There actually were CIA agents in Win's position (guys who were part of the plots against Castro, kept up ties with Cubans exiles, etc.), another agent really did file an expedite check on de Mohrenschildt on 26 April 1963, circumstances unknown.
ReplyDeleteIn part, DeLillo is able to improvise these details so plausibly because (as he repeatedly reminds us) the CIA itself works in a kind of semi-fictional realm, with false identities and cover stories and planted evidence as part of everyday business. An accurate, old-fashioned "history" of the CIA is therefore an inherently complicated proposition. As a fiction writer, DeLillo is in a sense playing their game.