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Summary
V. Went to the Animals' Fair
Rumblings over a possible world war begin when a war in Sarajevo breaks out. George and Ellen arrive at a club in Canarsie. There has been a murder nearby just a few nights before and the club is crowded. Ellen is introduced to Gus and Nellie, who are also at the bar. George professes his love for Ellen and explains that he is restless. Much like Harry, he feels he has achieved professional success and it is time to focus on things he considers more important. Ellen tries to deflect George’s show of emotion; she has no intention of making a commitment to him.
Jimmy is at the same club with fellow reporter Grant Bullock, Tony Hunter, and a man named Framingham. Bullock says that the Black Hand, or a group of anarchists who have made their way to the United States, committed the Canarsie murder. He wants to get to the bottom of the murder but knows that news of a possible war will take the front page. Jimmy shares that he wants to be a war correspondent and doesn’t seem as moved by the Canarsie murder as he is by what is happening in Europe. Congo is tending bar at the club and gives Bullock a tip he thinks he can use for his story. Gus comes to the bar and starts telling Bullock that the average man can make a killing in the stock market during a time of panic. Congo feels that the war is being started on purpose so that the working men cannot have a revolution.
Ellen comes over and asks Jimmy for help, as she’s no longer comfortable with George. They talk to Congo for a while and Jimmy warns Ellen that she should make Stan stop drinking. Ellen and Jimmy dance. When Ellen decides to leave, she’s confronted by George, who pulls out a gun. Gus quickly appears, takes the gun from George, and immediately downplays the situation. Jimmy wants to make sure Ellen gets home safe, but she makes him let her go home alone.
George is distracted by what has happened and Nellie watches him leave from across the bar. Gus and Bullock, now joined by Joe O’Keefe discuss the potential war. There is speculation that the stock exchanges might close and there is a lot of uncertainty.
Jimmy and Tony Hunter walk home together, and Tony confides in Jimmy. He tells Jimmy that he was abused as a boy and now he’s gay and ashamed about it. He wishes he was not like this and says he has tried to like girls but can’t. Not only does it make his personal life difficult, but he fears for his career if anyone finds out. Jimmy tries to comfort him saying that there are plenty of gay men in the theater. The conversation makes Jimmy realize how hard it must be for Tony. He knows that life is difficult as a straight man, and Tony has to deal with so much more.
Analysis
With war looming, a heavy uncertainty hangs over the characters. Many of them are gathered in the same place for the first time in the novel. They are in a club just a few doors down from where a gruesome murder occurred days earlier. This morbid event as well as the war often figures into the conversation as characters who are connected but have never met interact for the first time. For some, concern about the war is superficial. They speculate about what will happen to the stock market and how business will be affected. Others see possible connections between the Canarsie murder and the war. While there have been allusions to the monopoly of labor unions in New York, the working man’s struggle against the establishment appears as a prominent theme in this section. The characters who are at the bottom of the social and financial ladder wonder if the war is just a big distraction from a long overdue worker’s revolution.
As with many topics, including their relationship, George and Ellen have different perspectives about the war. George is troubled by this prospect of it, but only because of the effects it will have on Wall Street. Ellen always shies away from conversations about substantive issues and does not think much about it. George once again professes his love for Ellen at the club, and she tries to avoid hearing his advances. Ellen shows her self-destructive streak here. She is already in love with Stan. At the same time, Stan is not reliable and disappears for days on end. He is not at the club in Canarsie that night, and it is implied that Ellen goes out with George because she has nothing else to do. She does not want to hear about George’s feelings for her, and yet she repeatedly spends time with him. Ellen punishes George by doing this, though her behavior is also causing self-inflicted pain.
Jimmy too has his weaknesses and uncertainty on display at the club in Canarsie, yet his presence there provides the character with introspection and development. He mentions more than once during the evening that he would like to be a war correspondent. As a reporter, Jimmy thinks this is what he should say. Being on location during a war would be the dream of any reporter worth his salt. However, Jimmy’s heart has never been in journalism. He loves the idea of this life, but he is not motivated enough to take any meaningful steps in this direction. He finds himself paralyzed by his choices. Regardless of Jimmy’s inability to find his way in life, he has become a trusted friend for several of the characters. It's at the club in Canarsie that George hits a low point and experiences a mental break. He’s been driven mad by his desire for Ellen and her constant rebuffs. Since Stan is absent from the gathering at the bar, Ellen finds Jimmy when she needs helps. Tony also trusts Jimmy enough to tell him that he is gay. Jimmy rarely shows emotion or addresses his feelings, but he is one of the few characters that others feel comfortable confiding in. Jimmy genuinely empathizes with Tony as he tries to see the world through his eyes. These events set Jimmy up as a compassionate person willing to help others even as his own life is out of control.
