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Re: The Tragedy Aspect
Many of you have commented on the pros and cons on the tragedy of the story of Roy's life. I was more interested in the destroyed women left in the wake of the male athletes who have no problems describing their own flaws proudly.
Iris Lemon is ruined by a teenage pregnancy and then later by Roy's almost total abandonment after she breaks his slump. Memo Paris is ruined by literally all the men in her life. Pop drags her around like some kind of mascot and prostitutes her out to the men of the team to keep them happy. While Iris is a more sympathetic, wholesome character because she seems noble, Memo is clearly seeking someone to care for her. She clearly demonstrates symptoms of depression and manic tendencies. Her actions grow more and more desperate as the book progresses.
It is the women in the novel, more than the men, that to me show Malamud's early academic research. He wrote his thesis on Thomas Hardy. NOTHING ever ends well in Hardy, especially for women, so this was not an unforeseen conclusion.
Having said that, I also agree with the Gatsby-esque feel. Replace that blinking green light with the flashing scoreboard and you've got a great parallel.
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