What would Oswald think?
The assassination of JFK sent shockwaves through the U.S. It was described as the country’s trauma, and many people who were around at the time remembers exactly where they were when it happened. Of course with this much emotion surrounding the case, the main suspect of the assassination will get just as much attention. In this case, Lee Harvey Oswald. Beyond the attention that Oswald received, many conspiracy theories sprang up regarding the assassination. People didn’t want to think that one random guy was able to take out one of the most famous and influential people in the world. But to be fair, there was a decent amount of evidence that it might not have been Oswald working by himself. These conspiracy theories vary in many different ways, with some people even theorizing that the driver turned around and shot Kennedy. I want to think about what Oswald would think about the current landscape of theories regarding the JFK assassination as Oswald is depicted in Libra.
Oswald is depicted in his early life as a bit narcissistic. The best example of this is his “smirk”. He takes pride in knowing things that other people don’t, and he thinks that he knows more than everyone else done. Especially about communism and the Soviet Union. Delillo also shows that Oswald has a grand idea of him being some sort of revolutionary and famous figure. A symbol of revolution and new ideas.
I think that Oswald would take pride and be happy about this never ending amount of conspiracy theories about the JFK assassination and about him. Despite what he might say to the police (he denies knowing anything at all), I think that based off of Libra he’s one of the few people who knows exactly what happened. I think that Oswald would thoroughly enjoy being one of the only people who knows what happened when everyone is trying to figure it out. As I said earlier, he takes pride in knowing more than others, and I think that this is one of the most extreme possible examples of knowing something everyone wants to know.
Another reason why Oswald would like it is because of the attention he would receive. He is only primary source, so loads of people would want to ask him questions and he would be world famous like he always wanted to be. We see him convey this in the book before he gets murdered.
I do think one thing he wouldn’t like is how his mother’s testimony is the basis for a lot of the theories and the only thing we really know about Oswald’s childhood. I think Oswald would kind of want to be this mysterious badass killer if he was convicted instead of some little poor boy that was easily manipulated into doing this horrible act, even if to some level that is kind of what happened.
I agree with you entirely on this matter. Oswald would definitely love all the attention he gets through all the conspiracy theories. He would even be happy about how much his life is scrutinized, even if some of it is because of his mother's testimony. It would make him feel like every aspect of his life had some level of significance. And we can't forget that he would instantly draw a connection between that and the fact that the most famous people in history also have their entire lives - including childhood - well known to the world. Overall, great post.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that he would love all the attention that he gets these days posthumously, although I feel like he would've liked to enjoy it in his life. His smirk is really telling of this, because he likes to feel like he knows more about the world than everyone else. However, Lee Harvey Oswald is definitely not portrayed as a revolutionary and someone who fought for the oppressed classes, an image he would've liked to have. I don't know if he would've appreciated his mother telling his story rather than him, but she does defend him a lot and try to portray him positively so I'm mixed on there. Great analysis!
ReplyDeleteInteresting post. I like how you described Oswald’s defining feature as his smirk. He wants to be an infamous man of mystery, a man that’s impact on history is great but uncertain at the same time. The idea of him having this “smirk” goes back to earlier in the book (“In Atsugi”) where he likes to keep everyone in the dark, no matter what he really believes or what the truth really is. As you stated, there’s a lot of competing evidence on who was really responsible in this murder and in this way, Oswald gets all the attention from the uncertainty surrounding these conspiracy theories. I like your analysis of Oswald’s emotions during this time. Great job on the blog!
ReplyDeleteI think you're right about the suggestion that Lee would NOT be pleased to have his mother be his main spokesperson and representative after his death. Remember, he was completely out of touch with her for a year at the time of his death, and she hadn't even been informed that her second grandchild was born--for whatever reasons, Lee was insistent on cutting her out of his life. And also remember when she tells him her plans to write a book about him being "sent" to Russia: "You're not writing a book, Mother. No book." It's ironic that, immediately upon his death, she formulates plans to *write a book*. Marina did end up co-writing a memoir, but Marguerite never published. She did give a number of interviews, though, and her testimony to the Warren Commission is about as a long as a short novel.
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