Summary and Response To Tom LeClair

This week I read Tom LeClair's critical essay response to the novel "White Noise."  Tom LeClair is a teacher at the University of Cincinnati, author of several books, and has book reviews in nationally know publications.  LeClair provides a helpful overview of the novel's bigger themes and all the minor supportive details that can be easily missed.  I found his essay critically important in better understanding many of DeLillo's characters, settings, and environment.  The name of LeClair's essay is “Closing The Loop: White Noise” and this refers to Delillo's attempt to "closing the loop" between dying both on macro and micro level (LeClair pg. 387).  This is interesting and helpful to see death as such a major theme of the novel.  At first, I thought death might be a major theme, but then various other themes were introduced causing some confusion, as to what the major theme might be.  In reading LeClair's essay I can more clearly see how death is a major theme and the many examples given to support it.

As the essay talks about the major themes of death and consumerism.  There are also many minor parts that support the overall bigger picture.  Some of the minor parts that LeClair refers to are scenes or instances that involve shopping both in the grocery store and in the shopping mall.  One of the parts of the novel that caught my interest the most, LeClair also talks about in his essay.  It is the scene where a person tells Jack he appears to be not so superior or impressive (LeClair pg. 395).  This leads to Jack and the family responding to this comment by shopping a great deal.  LeClair describes Jack's shopping as a way for him to inflate himself after having been made to feel small.  Leclair brings up other issues of size that I read, but frequently missed. Some other examples of this image of size that LeClair focuses on is the small town size of Blacksmith compared to the bigger physical size of Baba and Jack (LeClair 394).  Again these are parts of the novel that I know I clearly read, but missed the idea in reading them.  LeClair was very helpful to me in better understanding many of Delillo's literary images and style of writing.  This critical essay will be extremely helpful in writing the final essay for the semester.

DeLillo, Don. White Noise. New York: Penguin, 1998. Print.