Mao II Literary Elements

Fiction, Postmodern Fiction

Set in 1989 during a time of political instability in the Middle East, such as the Lebanese Civil War. The novel is situated in New York, London, Cyprus and an unnamed American town where Bill resides

Third-person omniscient

Tense, anxious, detached, distrustful

Bill Gray is the protagonist and the Maoist Terrorist Cell lead by Abu Rashid is the antagonist

The major conflict is within Bill himself. He doubts his talent as a writer and is unable to finish his latest novel. He begins drinking after a period of sobriety and grows abusive in his household. He eventually flees his house to avoid the pressures of writing, which eventually leads to his death. On a macro-level, there is also the conflict of the Lebanese Civil War, in which a Swiss poet is taken hostage by a Maoist terrorist group, setting the plot into motion.

The novel is without a distinct climax; however, one can be found in the explosion of the bomb in London that derails the hostage negotiations.

The bomb is foreshadowed throughout Bill's time in London. Several threats are called in, though they are assumed to be bluffs. Sensing that the talks are not going to come to fruition, Charles (Bill's former editor, and the organizer of the event) suggests that Bill returns home. Bill refuses, and the bomb is set off, though nobody is killed.

Typical of DeLillo's literary style, the novel is rife with understatement. Instead of describing and explaining in great deal, DeLillo merely presents the events and leaves the interpretation up to the reader. This may, at times, seem jarring and unexplained. For example, Brita and Scott have a sexual encounter without any prior mention of such sentiment on either of their parts. When the bomb explodes in London, it is not melodramatic but tersely described and then left unmentioned. It is examples like these that demonstrate the centrality of understatement in DeLillo's work.

Allusions to the work of Andy Warhol are made throughout the novel. The name of the novel is itself derived from a work done by Warhol depicting Chairman Mao. It is insinuated that Andy Warhol understood the workings of mass media and mass culture, phenomena which plague and threaten the characters of the novel. Though Mao is not an active character in the novel, his figure is employed as someone who helmed a mass movement and possessed the power of mass control.

The most stunning imagery of the novel is found in the prologue, in which Karen participates in a Blessing Ceremony at Yankee Stadium. Thousands of adherents of the Unification Church are too be married at the baseball stadium. The spectacle is described in great detail from the perspective of Karen's parents in the stands. Later in the novel, and in comparison to the Blessing Ceremony, DeLillo depicts the funeral of Ayatollah Khomeini in Iran. Millions march in the street, in a scene of utter pandemonium. They attempt to seize the casket to be blessed by the dead ruler. Both scenes are written with vivid precision.

The most glaring paradox in the novel revolves around Bill's personality. Deeply distrustful of media and celebrity, he retreats from any semblance of publicity. His whereabouts are not even known to the public for several decades. Yet by doing this, Bill creates a frenzy of mystery around himself. His lack of publicity in itself is the greatest form of publicity.

There is a parallel between Bill Gray, Mao, Ayatollah Khomeini and Abu Rashid. All are men with considerable influence of their circumstances. All have their adherents and their detractors. All are governed by their ideologies and world views, and attempt to impart these opinions on their surroundings. Though this comparison is not obliquely posited, it is undeniably apparent.

Chairman Mao Zedong is employed as a figure of power and totalitarianism in a sprawling sense. He could equally be the Pope, Hitler, or any Head of State possessing clout and power.

The World Trade Centers are personified throughout the novel. Brita sees them through her apartment window and often ruminates about their existence. She imagines one as masculine and the other as feminine and assigns them other qualities such as cruelty and coldness.