Crying of Lot 49: Chapter 1

So far the thing that most stands out to me is how tragically insane Oedipa's life is. She doesn't seem to have any strong connection with any of the characters outlined so far except Pierce, who is now dead. Her husband seems to be a typical male drama queen who will find any excuse for a moral vendetta at whatever job he has. While dishonesty may have marked his job at the lot, the fact that he no longer works there should count for something, but it doesn't seem to. It seems he's overreacting because on page 6 Oedipa reflects on the idea that maybe if he'd gone through a horrific war he'd get over the post traumatic stress sooner than he would having worked at the car lot. This seems a bit extreme. Even at his radio station job he takes out a vendetta against the censorship of his calls with his listeners. When Oedipa shows him the letter about Pierce's will and asks his advice, he dismisses it and says it's not his expertise. To me so far he seems a bit self-involved and over dramatic, providing hardly the emotional support that Oedipa seems to need. Another weird character is Roseman, the lawyer. At their business lunch, he tries to play footsie with Oedipa. This is particularly unprofessional and offensive because he knows she is married to Mucho. Even Oedipa's therapist seems shady, as he calls her at 3am to try to persuade her once again to participate in a study about LSD. Oedipa is surrounded by dysfunctional men who can't seem to "rescue" her from the tower she imagines herself locked in. She does paint Pierce as her knight in shining armor, but that is of little use now because he is dead. There is a sense of helpless resiliency in Oedipa and it will be interesting to see where it develops.