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Mortenson's “Xmas Junkies: Debasement and Redemption in the Work of William S. Burroughs and DFW
Article Summary and Analysis
In “Xmas Junkies: Debasement and Redemption in the Work of William S. Burroughs and David Foster Wallace,” Erik R. Mortenson argues that while both authors portray the flaws in drug addicts, they also aim to portray these people as human beings capable of selfless acts.
For this study, Mortenson draws upon “The Junky’s Christmas” and “‘The Priest’ They Called Him’ by Burroughs and Wallace’s Infinite Jest, and contends that “[the works] challenge these preconceived notions. By contrasting images of junkies which confirm our worst fears with depictions of selfless sacrifice and concern for their fellow humans, these writers restore the addict’s humanity and force the reader to consider addicts in a new, and more positive, light” (37). The positive side of the addict is not generally paid any mind. Rather, the addict is, if anything, a figure to feel sympathy for. Instead of considering the addict in such two dimensional ways, both Wallace and Burroughs aim to display characters full of emotional depth. This depth may even be noble at times.
In regards to Burroughs, the image of redemption if much more cut and dry. Both of the Burroughs’ stories feature junkies who start off as seemingly stereotypical characters. Mortenson states, “their actions and thoughts are less immoral than amoral, an inevitable result of their all-consuming need for heroin. Still, this lack of concern for anything but drugs certainly makes them both unsympathetic characters, and sets the reader up for the redemptions at the ends of their respective tales” (40). This redemption involves both characters sacrificing their recently acquired dope for a stranger in massive amounts of pain. Mortenson contends that Wallace draws inspiration from these portrayals and both recreates and makes them more complex.
The primary correlation to Burroughs’ characters comes in the form of yrstruly. The small section depicting the criminal actions of yrstruly, Poor Tony, and C. displays the dark and depraved world of addiction. Rather than simply procuring drugs, the three characters engage in brutal acts of violence to achieve their ends: “This violence is a love of violence, and the calculating choice of victims and the intensity with which the robberies are carried out force the reader to view the Wallace’s crew as not simply addicts dehumanized through their addiction but as malicious threats to society” (42). In spite of this violent introduction, Mortenson argues that yrstruly gains a small amount of redemption without falling into the realm of sentimentality of the Burroughs’ cast.
Yrstruly does little to redeem himself. However, his ability to recognize the errors of his morality serves as a means to humanize him. He does not revel in the acts of violence, and he also comforts C. as he dies. Although yrstruly allowed C. to shoot up first due to his fears of tainted drugs, he does feel guilty about it: “While his actions are certainly not praiseworthy, yrstruly’s conflicting observations do demonstrate an attempt to come to terms with his actions, a fact that serves to humanize him. Yrstruly may not always act in a ‘morally correct’ manner, but he at least realizes that system of morality exists, and feels guilt about his inability to live by it” (43).
Yrstruly’s redemption lies in the fact there is a human being hidden beneath the drug addled shell. The emotional range of this incoherent addict illustrates his human decision making, and makes him more sympathetic and relatable.
In regards to the rest of Infinite Jest itself, this portrayal seems an accurate description of most of the addicted characters. Rather than portraying the characters as either simply pathetic or vile, Wallace allows the reader a chance to make the decision through careful reading. The cut and dry approach of Burroughs is complicated by Wallace, but the result is richer character development. Burroughs’ use of the Christ-like sacrifice of the junkie stands in obvious contrast to Wallace’s use of subtlety. While Wallace presents a Christ-like sacrifice in the form of Don Gately, the majority of the characters are less heroic. Gately himself is even less cut and dry as he is constantly tormented by his past life and the “spider” inside him. The characters are capable of redemption, but it does not come in easily recognizable forms.
Yrstruly and the rest of the addicts of Infinite Jest are problematic characters. The reader must make the judgment call whether there is even redemption or not in many cases. However, Mortenson closes rather appropriately when he sates, “like us, yrstruly is trying to find his place in the wor;d, and while we cannot always agree with him we can at least identify whim as a fellow human being engaged in a common struggle” (45). This idea applies to many of Wallace’s complex gallery of characters.
Works Cited
Mortenson, Erik. "Xmas Junkies: Debasement and Redemption in the Work of William S. Burroughs and David Foster Wallace." Dionysos 9.2 (1999): 37-46.
In “Xmas Junkies: Debasement and Redemption in the Work of William S. Burroughs and David Foster Wallace,” Erik R. Mortenson argues that while both authors portray the flaws in drug addicts, they also aim to portray these people as human beings capable of selfless acts.
For this study, Mortenson draws upon “The Junky’s Christmas” and “‘The Priest’ They Called Him’ by Burroughs and Wallace’s Infinite Jest, and contends that “[the works] challenge these preconceived notions. By contrasting images of junkies which confirm our worst fears with depictions of selfless sacrifice and concern for their fellow humans, these writers restore the addict’s humanity and force the reader to consider addicts in a new, and more positive, light” (37). The positive side of the addict is not generally paid any mind. Rather, the addict is, if anything, a figure to feel sympathy for. Instead of considering the addict in such two dimensional ways, both Wallace and Burroughs aim to display characters full of emotional depth. This depth may even be noble at times.
In regards to Burroughs, the image of redemption if much more cut and dry. Both of the Burroughs’ stories feature junkies who start off as seemingly stereotypical characters. Mortenson states, “their actions and thoughts are less immoral than amoral, an inevitable result of their all-consuming need for heroin. Still, this lack of concern for anything but drugs certainly makes them both unsympathetic characters, and sets the reader up for the redemptions at the ends of their respective tales” (40). This redemption involves both characters sacrificing their recently acquired dope for a stranger in massive amounts of pain. Mortenson contends that Wallace draws inspiration from these portrayals and both recreates and makes them more complex.
The primary correlation to Burroughs’ characters comes in the form of yrstruly. The small section depicting the criminal actions of yrstruly, Poor Tony, and C. displays the dark and depraved world of addiction. Rather than simply procuring drugs, the three characters engage in brutal acts of violence to achieve their ends: “This violence is a love of violence, and the calculating choice of victims and the intensity with which the robberies are carried out force the reader to view the Wallace’s crew as not simply addicts dehumanized through their addiction but as malicious threats to society” (42). In spite of this violent introduction, Mortenson argues that yrstruly gains a small amount of redemption without falling into the realm of sentimentality of the Burroughs’ cast.
Yrstruly does little to redeem himself. However, his ability to recognize the errors of his morality serves as a means to humanize him. He does not revel in the acts of violence, and he also comforts C. as he dies. Although yrstruly allowed C. to shoot up first due to his fears of tainted drugs, he does feel guilty about it: “While his actions are certainly not praiseworthy, yrstruly’s conflicting observations do demonstrate an attempt to come to terms with his actions, a fact that serves to humanize him. Yrstruly may not always act in a ‘morally correct’ manner, but he at least realizes that system of morality exists, and feels guilt about his inability to live by it” (43).
Yrstruly’s redemption lies in the fact there is a human being hidden beneath the drug addled shell. The emotional range of this incoherent addict illustrates his human decision making, and makes him more sympathetic and relatable.
In regards to the rest of Infinite Jest itself, this portrayal seems an accurate description of most of the addicted characters. Rather than portraying the characters as either simply pathetic or vile, Wallace allows the reader a chance to make the decision through careful reading. The cut and dry approach of Burroughs is complicated by Wallace, but the result is richer character development. Burroughs’ use of the Christ-like sacrifice of the junkie stands in obvious contrast to Wallace’s use of subtlety. While Wallace presents a Christ-like sacrifice in the form of Don Gately, the majority of the characters are less heroic. Gately himself is even less cut and dry as he is constantly tormented by his past life and the “spider” inside him. The characters are capable of redemption, but it does not come in easily recognizable forms.
Yrstruly and the rest of the addicts of Infinite Jest are problematic characters. The reader must make the judgment call whether there is even redemption or not in many cases. However, Mortenson closes rather appropriately when he sates, “like us, yrstruly is trying to find his place in the wor;d, and while we cannot always agree with him we can at least identify whim as a fellow human being engaged in a common struggle” (45). This idea applies to many of Wallace’s complex gallery of characters.
Works Cited
Mortenson, Erik. "Xmas Junkies: Debasement and Redemption in the Work of William S. Burroughs and David Foster Wallace." Dionysos 9.2 (1999): 37-46.
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