Infinite Jest: "I just need to put the book down and go for a walk"

Infinite Jest: "I just need to put the book down and go for a walk"

From Mapping the Zone: A Thomas Pynchon discussion podcast by Thomas Pynchon books discussed here!

May 1, 2026 · 3h 43m

About this episode

The episode discusses the beautifully tragic and humorous scenes from 'Infinite Jest', focusing on the complexities of its characters.

It's a beautifully tragic series of scenes we get with this section of the book. While this is some of the best writing in the novel, thus far, it's also tremendously upsetting and hard to get through. There's still plenty of humor and weirdness to be found, so join us as we talk about the ups ad downs of this motley cast of characters. If you like what we're doing and want to support the show, please consider making a donation on Ko-Fi. Funds we receive will be used to upgrade equipment, pay hosting fees, and help make the show better. https://ko-fi.com/mappingthezone As always, thanks so much for listening! Email: ⁠ mappingthezonepod@gmail.com ⁠ Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/mappingthezone.bsky.social Twitter: https://twitter.com/pynchonpod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mappingthezonepodcast/ Merch: mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com Show art by Brad Wetzel: @bradspersecond (on IG and Reddit) bradspersecond.com

Topics covered

  • literature
  • character analysis
  • humor
  • tragedy
  • writing style
  • book discussion

Keywords

  • Infinite Jest
  • Pynchon
  • literature
  • character analysis
  • humor
  • tragedy
  • book discussion
  • writing style

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Ko-Fi, mappingthezonepod@gmail.com, mapping-the-zone.myspreadshop.com, Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky

Books & works: Infinite Jest

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