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The Pale King

634 statements
125 feature instances
58 referencing feature instances

The Pale King	type	TVTItem
The Pale King	label	The Pale King
The Pale King	page	ThePaleKing
The Pale King	comment	When David Foster Wallace died in 2008, he left behind an unfinished manuscript for his latest novel, along with hundreds of other pages of notes and ideas. Through the combined efforts of his wife, agent, and editor, his final work was released in 2011 as The Pale King. It is a jumbled narrative that combines a memoir with the various stories of a group of IRS employees stationed in Peoria, Illinois in 1985. Despite being incomplete and sometimes incomprehensible, the novel's themes of depression, loneliness, self-awareness, and the tedium of daily life are expressed with a depth and poignancy that only Wallace could muster.Not to be confused with The King in Yellow nor the fictional bug from Hollow Knight.
The Pale King	fetched	2023-06-03T01:57:35Z
The Pale King	parsed	2023-06-03T01:57:35Z
The Pale King	processingComment	Dropped link to Hamlet: Not a Feature - ITEM
The Pale King	isPartOf	DBTropes
The Pale King / int_149ff4b0	type	HilarityEnsues
The Pale King / int_149ff4b0	comment	Hilarity Ensues: Thanks to a screw-up with the IRS's records, David Foster Wallace gets mistaken for David F. Wallace and has to spend his first few days in the Peoria REC attending meetings he knows nothing about. The other David gets stuck in a bureaucratic nightmare because the IRS already has records of him arriving and won't allow him to register.
The Pale King / int_149ff4b0	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_149ff4b0	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_15da4941	type	Badass Adorable
The Pale King / int_15da4941	comment	Badass Adorable: Leonard Stecyk saves his high school wood shop teacher when he gets a thumb chopped off by a machine. Everyone starts taking him much more seriously.
The Pale King / int_15da4941	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_15da4941	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_1779f10e	type	"Well Done, Son" Guy
The Pale King / int_1779f10e	comment	"Well Done, Son" Guy: The entire relationship dynamic between Chris and his father. Chris is fully aware of how disappointed his father is of him, but is usually too stoned or selfish to care. It's not until his father dies that Chris feels guilty enough to change his life. This is made depressingly clear when the father comes home early to find Chris and his buddies in his living room, high out of their minds, surrounded by discarded Taco Bell wrappers, and their feet resting lazily on one his prized pieces of furniture. The father doesn't yell; he simply says, Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!, walks to his bedroom and shuts the door.
The Pale King / int_1779f10e	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_1779f10e	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_18d15922	type	Title Drop
The Pale King / int_18d15922	comment	Title Drop: Mentioned offhand in Chapter 18.
The Pale King / int_18d15922	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_18d15922	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_1b73fada	type	The Dandy
The Pale King / int_1b73fada	comment	The Dandy: Leonard wears a stylish carpenter's apron for his high school wood shop class. It keeps his clothes from getting covered in his teacher's blood during an accident with a machine. It also carries his metric-conversion ruler, which he uses to create a perfectly-tied tourniquet.
The Pale King / int_1b73fada	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_1b73fada	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_1c571556	type	The Tease
The Pale King / int_1c571556	comment	The Tease: Deconstructed with Meredith Rand.
The Pale King / int_1c571556	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_1c571556	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_1da5941e	type	The Quiet One
The Pale King / int_1da5941e	comment	The Quiet One: Shane Drinion. When he does speak, he has a lengthy, thought-provoking conversation with Meredith Rand and completely throws her off her game.
The Pale King / int_1da5941e	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_1da5941e	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_1e584efa	type	Cruel and Unusual Death
The Pale King / int_1e584efa	comment	Cruel and Unusual Death: Chris's father gets his arm stuck in a closing subway door, and is dragged the length of the station and beyond. The authorities find pieces of him roughly 65 yards away from the platform, at which point the train was traveling over 50 miles an hour.
The Pale King / int_1e584efa	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_1e584efa	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_1f799027	type	Obstructive Bureaucrat
The Pale King / int_1f799027	comment	Obstructive Bureaucrat: The Author's Foreword includes a lengthy description of all the legal issues that went along with the creation of the book. The horrendously complex and ultimately bungled wrongful death lawsuit after Chris Fogle's father dies. After his experience in Advanced Tax class, Chris tries to make up for his mistakes by going to the dean and begging for a chance to salvage his college career. The dean laughs in his face.
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The Pale King / int_203141e3	type	Cute and Psycho
The Pale King / int_203141e3	comment	Cute and Psycho: Toni really loves her dogs: So do not mess with this girl; this girl is damaged goods.
The Pale King / int_203141e3	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_21d70919	type	Crapsack World
The Pale King / int_21d70919	comment	Crapsack World: The New Mexico trailer park and the rest of Chapter 8 provide a grim portrayal of a teenage girl trying to survive with her drifter of a mother.
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The Pale King / int_22cf536c	type	Chekhov's Gun
The Pale King / int_22cf536c	comment	Chekhov's Gun: Director Glendenning's pathological hatred of mosquitoes.
The Pale King / int_22cf536c	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_22cf536c	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_231e8193	type	Mistaken Identity
The Pale King / int_231e8193	comment	Mistaken Identity: David Foster Wallace is mistaken for another David F. Wallace who was scheduled to show up at the same time. He gets an expedited entry into the Peoria REC, a promotion, and a consultation with the Iranian Crisis. It takes a few days for the IRS to figure it out, and he faces impersonation charges for months.
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The Pale King / int_23a06c52	type	TheUnReveal
The Pale King / int_23a06c52	comment	The Un-Reveal: Practically everything, considering that the book was unfinished. The individualized phantoms for each examiner. The fate of the nearly all the characters, especially Lane Dean, the Iranian Crisis, and the kid contortionist and his father. The legal proceedings once David Foster Wallace is accused of impersonating David F. Wallace. What Shane Drinion really is, and his relation to Keith Sabusawa. If Mr. Manshardt's eventually Dr. Lehrl's child can actually speak, or if the person who hears it is insane. Toni Ware's eccentricities. The full extent of Claude's powers. The origins of the nicknames introduced in Chapter 25, particularly Bob 'Second-Knuckle' Mckenzie.
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The Pale King / int_24321e44	type	Only Sane Man
The Pale King / int_24321e44	comment	Only Sane Man: Chris, as revealed at the end of Claude's investigation.
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The Pale King / int_2482df9c	type	Companion Cube
The Pale King / int_2482df9c	comment	The owner of the Doberman Hand Puppet is Dr Lehrl.
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The Pale King / int_26d1f65f	type	Verbal Tic
The Pale King / int_26d1f65f	comment	Verbal Tic: Kenneth 'Type of Thing' Hindle.
The Pale King / int_26d1f65f	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_2a015a74	type	Beauty Equals Goodness
The Pale King / int_2a015a74	comment	Beauty Equals Goodness: Subverted with Meredith, who becomes a vain, neurotic mess if you let her talk about her problems long enough.
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The Pale King / int_2ae7bc4b	type	Captain Oblivious
The Pale King / int_2ae7bc4b	comment	Captain Oblivious: Chris, during his wasteoid years. Even his life-changing event was the result of him going to the wrong classroom and experiencing something completely different from his own world view.
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The Pale King / int_2bdae2ae	type	Awesome, but Impractical
The Pale King / int_2bdae2ae	comment	Awesome, but Impractical: The parking lot of the Peoria REC: In essence, the baronial splendor of the REC’s grass was a testament to the idiocy and hassle of the whole thing’s planning.
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The Pale King / int_2dba7575	type	Wacky Fratboy Hijinx
The Pale King / int_2dba7575	comment	Wacky Fratboy Hijinx: The confrontation between Fat Marcus the Moneylender and Diablo the Left-Handed Surrealist. Didn't anybody at your school ever have names like Joe or Bill?
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The Pale King / int_2dc0d2bf	type	Hidden Depths
The Pale King / int_2dc0d2bf	comment	Hidden Depths: Chris is surprised when his father quotes a famous poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley. Then again, he didn't know much about his father in the first place...
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The Pale King / int_312c2b80	type	One-Paragraph Chapter
The Pale King / int_312c2b80	comment	One-Paragraph Chapter: Occasionally. Chapter 17 is little more than half a page long.
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The Pale King / int_317629db	type	Embarrassing Nickname
The Pale King / int_317629db	comment	Embarrassing Nickname: ‘Irrelevant’ Chris Fogle, due to his overly detailed narrations. Ms. Neti-Neti is Persian, but some service members call her the 'Iranian Crisis'. Wallace’s skin condition led his college roommate to call him 'the young man carbuncular'. Diablo the Left-Handed Surrealist.
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The Pale King / int_33e48eb9	type	Hysterical Woman
The Pale King / int_33e48eb9	comment	Hysterical Woman: Toni pretends to be one in her final scene, Inelegant Blubbering and all.
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The Pale King / int_39ed1c8a	type	Conspiracy Theorist
The Pale King / int_39ed1c8a	comment	Conspiracy Theorist: There's an old lady later revealed to be Toni Ware's grandmother who believes Jack Benny is attempting to achieve global thought control via radio waves. She covers her house with electrified hubcaps, which jams her neighbors' signals. She ends up getting cited for diverting her household's amperage, so she salvages a generator that runs on kerosene.
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The Pale King / int_3a88a563	type	Vocal Dissonance
The Pale King / int_3a88a563	comment	Vocal Dissonance: Nugent's little sister can imitate Regan MacNeil's voice perfectly, much to the delight of Nugent's bored coworkers.
The Pale King / int_3a88a563	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_3b113b7	type	Character Development
The Pale King / int_3b113b7	comment	More Character Development, with a huge focus on Leonard Steyck.
The Pale King / int_3b113b7	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_3b4f620a	type	No Fourth Wall
The Pale King / int_3b4f620a	comment	No Fourth Wall: Whenever David Foster Wallace is narrating, he addresses the reader directly.
The Pale King / int_3b4f620a	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_3c0a4666	type	Noodle Incident
The Pale King / int_3c0a4666	comment	Noodle Incident: It's never revealed what landed Leonard's mother in the hospital, but it apparently involved the kitchen oven malfunctioning. Nor is it revealed what went down at the annual corporate picnic, but it involved mosquitoes, an infectious disease, and some spiked Kool-Aid.
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The Pale King / int_3ce9c9fa	type	Fortune Teller
The Pale King / int_3ce9c9fa	comment	Fortune Teller: Mother Tia, one of the New Mexican trailer park elders.
The Pale King / int_3ce9c9fa	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_3d2c6d30	type	Skewed Priorities
The Pale King / int_3d2c6d30	comment	Skewed Priorities: Debated among a few characters as the IRS deals with drastic changes brought on by the Spackman Initiative. Focus on ideal output and civil service is shifted toward a free-market approach that attempts to maximize profits.
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The Pale King / int_3d69ca47	type	AmicablyDivorced
The Pale King / int_3d69ca47	comment	Amicably Divorced: Chris's parents try to give off this impression, though both of them are deeply affected by it.
The Pale King / int_3d69ca47	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_3e74b72e	type	The Pollyanna
The Pale King / int_3e74b72e	comment	The Pollyanna: Leonard, to the point where no one can stand being around him. He apparently survives his childhood and pleasantly gives out US Post Office National Zip Code Directories to his new neighbors. He eventually grows out it and ends up being the most competent and stable of the higher-ups at Post 047.
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The Pale King / int_3f7a958b	type	Secret Test of Character
The Pale King / int_3f7a958b	comment	Secret Test of Character: Applying for the IRS involves listening to a lengthy, mind-numbingly boring presentation. The recruitment office is closely monitored to see how would-be applicants react to the dull, tedious nature of the work.
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The Pale King / int_415b3315	type	Stylistic Suck
The Pale King / int_415b3315	comment	Stylistic Suck: Part of Chapter 24 is taken from the packet of IRS orientation materials for new hires, which Wallace states is the reason for the dead, bureaucratic flavor of the narration.
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The Pale King / int_4280d1fd	type	Spock Speak
The Pale King / int_4280d1fd	comment	Spock Speak: Shane Drinion, who may not be human.
The Pale King / int_4280d1fd	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_453871ec	type	What Could Have Been
The Pale King / int_453871ec	comment	What Could Have Been: The last few pages are a quick rundown of ideas that David Foster Wallace was musing over. More Character Development, with a huge focus on Leonard Steyck. Claude and Reynolds are based on Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and were apparently planned to be roommates or even lovers. Chris Fogle apparently knows a sequence of numbers that grant him the power of total concentration when uttered. The themes of humanity versus technology/tradition versus efficiency/civil service versus corporate profit would be much more fleshed-out, including a contest between Shane Drinion and the latest scanning machine. A deeper exploration of Meredith's marriage and Blumquist's past, with Meredith possibly falling for Drinion in a "savior" type of way just like with her husband while she was in the psych ward. A intriguing plan courtesy of Dr. Lehrl.
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The Pale King / int_477bcc9f	type	Greasy Spoon
The Pale King / int_477bcc9f	comment	Greasy Spoon: Chapter 8 ends with the girl eating breakfast at a diner in Plepler, MO, as her mother has sex in the truck outside.
The Pale King / int_477bcc9f	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_479d4e5a	type	Would Hurt a Child
The Pale King / int_479d4e5a	comment	Would Hurt a Child: At least one adult directly attempts to kill Leonard as a child. Another hits him with their car, though it's debatable if that was accidental. The rest of them have a little more restraint. There's also an unnamed man in Chapter 8 who is implied to be a sexual predator. And the man who kills Toni's mother.
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The Pale King / int_47bf7e16	type	Local Hangout
The Pale King / int_47bf7e16	comment	Local Hangout: Meibeyer's, where the majority of main cast spend their Friday afternoons.
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The Pale King / int_47bf7e16	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_4c6f26c	type	Socially Awkward Hero
The Pale King / int_4c6f26c	comment	Socially Awkward Hero: Lane Dean attempts to converse with his fellow IRS employees during his fifteen minute break, and fails miserably.
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The Pale King / int_4c6f26c	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_4d8ff0c	type	Snowed-In
The Pale King / int_4d8ff0c	comment	Snowed-In: Chicago gets hit with a nasty winter storm in 1979. It doesn't stop Chris from reaching the IRS recruitment office.
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The Pale King / int_4e3f6d57	type	What Would X Do?
The Pale King / int_4e3f6d57	comment	What Would X Do?: When faced with the prospect of breaking up with his pregnant, loveless girlfriend or aborting their would-be child, Lane Dean wonders what Jesus would do.
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The Pale King / int_4fbc0887	type	Beneath the Mask
The Pale King / int_4fbc0887	comment	Beneath the Mask: Meredith Rand is so gorgeous that no one realizes how many issues she's hiding. That is, until she starts talking...
The Pale King / int_4fbc0887	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_50f66629	type	Crazy-Prepared
The Pale King / int_50f66629	comment	Crazy-Prepared: Toni's shoplifting techniques.
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The Pale King / int_52d1f46e	type	Not What It Looks Like
The Pale King / int_52d1f46e	comment	Not What It Looks Like: Fat Marcus the Moneylender and his friends get caught doing a prank that everyone thinks looks like a 'prison-type gang-type sexual assault gone wrong'.
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The Pale King / int_55940b68	type	Doorstopper
The Pale King / int_55940b68	comment	Doorstopper: The mandatory reading materials for the IRS employment applicants.
The Pale King / int_55940b68	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King / int_55fa41e2	type	NietzscheWannabe
The Pale King / int_55fa41e2	comment	Nietzsche Wannabe: Chris's whole gimmick throughout most of his wasted college education.
The Pale King / int_55fa41e2	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_55fa41e2	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_57efd4c4	type	Growing Up Sucks
The Pale King / int_57efd4c4	comment	Growing Up Sucks: A major theme throughout the novel, but especially prevalent in Chris Fogle's chapter.
The Pale King / int_57efd4c4	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_57efd4c4	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_5abe5b74	type	Everybody Must Get Stoned
The Pale King / int_5abe5b74	comment	Everybody Must Get Stoned: Chris mentions how common and easy it was to obtain drugs in college.
The Pale King / int_5abe5b74	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_5abe5b74	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_62434fe2	type	Sanity Slippage
The Pale King / int_62434fe2	comment	Sanity Slippage: David Cusk's inner monologue slowly spirals into this whenever he gets an anxiety attack. It's so powerful that Claude notices it via his psychic powers. Lane Dean starts losing it as he spends hours examining tax returns. Director Glendenning in one of the last chapters. Sylvanshine is possibly going insane when he hears Manshardt's baby speak. It could have actually happened though.
The Pale King / int_62434fe2	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_62434fe2	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_63389b0b	type	Kids Are Cruel
The Pale King / int_63389b0b	comment	Kids Are Cruel: Leonard gets beaten up by multiple bullies, and someone eventually blows up his locker.
The Pale King / int_63389b0b	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_63389b0b	featureConfidence	1.0
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The Pale King / int_641cf81d	type	Viewers Are Geniuses
The Pale King / int_641cf81d	comment	Viewers Are Geniuses: Garrity's rants include references to Pascal, Marquise du Deffand, Latin, Greek, Metropolis, Kierkegaard, and philology.
The Pale King / int_641cf81d	featureApplicability	1.0
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The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_641cf81d
The Pale King / int_6459cc02	type	I See Dead People
The Pale King / int_6459cc02	comment	I See Dead People: Thanks to his Random Fact Intuition, Claude is the only one who can glean any information about the ghosts that haunt Post 047.
The Pale King / int_6459cc02	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_6459cc02	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_6459cc02
The Pale King / int_66479d0	type	Our Ghosts Are Different
The Pale King / int_66479d0	comment	Our Ghosts Are Different: Post 047 is haunted by two ghosts: Garrity and Blumquist. The former is extremely chatty and distracting, and the latter is silent but companionable.
The Pale King / int_66479d0	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_66479d0	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_66479d0
The Pale King / int_6a3c49f	type	Direct Line to the Author
The Pale King / int_6a3c49f	comment	Direct Line to the Author: The Author's Foreword. He claims that all of it is true, yet he points out the disclaimer on the copyright page states that the characters and events are fictitious. He spends a good portion of the chapter noting the inherent paradox. He also notes that he was not legally allowed to mention his publisher in the text - no one wants to mess with the IRS, after all - despite the fact that the publisher's name is featured on the book's spine.
The Pale King / int_6a3c49f	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_6a3c49f	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_6a3c49f
The Pale King / int_6b2b3b59	type	The Reveal
The Pale King / int_6b2b3b59	comment	The Reveal: Only a few, and even then they're only explained in passing or subtly hinted. The owner of the Doberman Hand Puppet is Dr Lehrl. The identity of drifter girl and the fate of her mother. The identity of Mr. X. It makes the Uncomfortable Elevator Moment chapter read completely different the second time through. The fate of Lane Dean's girlfriend and their unborn child. The true purpose of Claude's investigation. Chris Fogle's role. Dr. Lehrl's intentions for Post 047.
The Pale King / int_6b2b3b59	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_6b2b3b59	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_6b2b3b59
The Pale King / int_6b5a92dc	type	Uncanny Valley
The Pale King / int_6b5a92dc	comment	Uncanny Valley: There is something very, very off about Shane Drinion. His odd speech patterns, lack of emotions, facial reactions, or sense of humor make him seem inhuman. There's also the fact that he can levitate if he concentrates hard enough on something, he keeps a perfect record of his conversations, and that he can't leave the room without Keith Sabusawa. None of it is explained.
The Pale King / int_6b5a92dc	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_6b5a92dc	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_6b5a92dc
The Pale King / int_6d332aea	type	Driven to Suicide
The Pale King / int_6d332aea	comment	Driven to Suicide: Thanks to Leonard's unbridled optimism, his homeroom teacher threatens to kill herself with a pair of blunt scissors. Garrity. Training Officer Pam Jensen plans to, according to one of Claude's random insights. Lane Dean begins to consider it as he examines tax returns.
The Pale King / int_6d332aea	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_6d332aea	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_6d332aea
The Pale King / int_79b5677	type	Belief Makes You Stupid
The Pale King / int_79b5677	comment	Belief Makes You Stupid: In college, Chris had nothing but contempt for his religious roommate and his girlfriend.
The Pale King / int_79b5677	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_79b5677	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_79b5677
The Pale King / int_80f4e386	type	Ignorant of Their Own Ignorance
The Pale King / int_80f4e386	comment	Ignorant of Their Own Ignorance: Looking back, Chris realizes just how idiotic and lazy he was during his wasteoid phase.
The Pale King / int_80f4e386	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_80f4e386	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_80f4e386
The Pale King / int_82518cf7	type	Motor Mouth
The Pale King / int_82518cf7	comment	Motor Mouth: Garrity haunts Post 047 by randomly appearing before examiners and talking non-stop. Meredith, once she gets going. Some of her coworkers prefer examining tax returns to listening to her talk.
The Pale King / int_82518cf7	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_82518cf7	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_82518cf7
The Pale King / int_8387bb18	type	Good Girls Avoid Abortion
The Pale King / int_8387bb18	comment	Good Girls Avoid Abortion: As a teenager, Lane Dean secretly hopes that his Christian girlfriend will break up with him, but still keep their unborn child. It's eventually revealed that they're still together and raising the child.
The Pale King / int_8387bb18	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_8387bb18	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_8387bb18
The Pale King / int_874176be	type	Psychic Powers
The Pale King / int_874176be	comment	Psychic Powers: Claude Sylvanshine's Random Fact Intuition. Shane Drinion can levitate if he concentrates on a single thing long enough. He gradually starts floating as he listens to Meredith's story. He also once gets caught floating upside down while examining a tax return.
The Pale King / int_874176be	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_874176be	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_874176be
The Pale King / int_8abe13b6	type	It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time
The Pale King / int_8abe13b6	comment	It Seemed Like a Good Idea at the Time: Any of Chris's antics during his college career.
The Pale King / int_8abe13b6	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_8abe13b6	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_8abe13b6
The Pale King / int_8e20ae0d	type	Child Prodigy
The Pale King / int_8e20ae0d	comment	Child Prodigy: Leonard. At 11 years old, he participates in the Meals on Wheels charity, volunteers as a crosswalk guard and hall monitor, donates his ice cream money to UNICEF, has been to origami camp twice, writes letters to publishers about textbook errors, fields all calls and inquiries with regards to his mother's hospitalization, attempts to reorganize his homeroom's seating structure for maximum efficiency, and writes individualized letters of apologies to his bullies. He also intentionally gets a few Bs on his report card solely to ensure he never gets too prideful of being an overachiever.
The Pale King / int_8e20ae0d	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_8e20ae0d	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_8e20ae0d
The Pale King / int_8ec35181	type	Cranky Neighbor
The Pale King / int_8ec35181	comment	Cranky Neighbor: Toni.
The Pale King / int_8ec35181	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_8ec35181	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_8ec35181
The Pale King / int_916c72b3	type	Rule of Symbolism
The Pale King / int_916c72b3	comment	Rule of Symbolism: The IRS seal depicts the mythical hero Bellerophon slaying the Chimera, which represents those who are stuck doing the difficult and unpopular work.
The Pale King / int_916c72b3	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_916c72b3	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_916c72b3
The Pale King / int_9182ea54	type	Crazy Cat Lady
The Pale King / int_9182ea54	comment	Crazy Cat Lady: Chris Fogle's mother ends up obsessing over birds as a way to cope with the death of her ex-husband.
The Pale King / int_9182ea54	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_9182ea54	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_9182ea54
The Pale King / int_92fa14	type	Our Lawyers Advised This Trope
The Pale King / int_92fa14	comment	Our Lawyers Advised This Trope: The Author's Foreword is rife with this. David Foster Wallace even uses his footnotes to apologize for the abundance of apparently necessary legal writing.
The Pale King / int_92fa14	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_92fa14	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_92fa14
The Pale King / int_932da128	type	Monster Clown
The Pale King / int_932da128	comment	Monster Clown: Mrs. Sloper resembles an embalmed clown, 'the stuff of nightmares'.
The Pale King / int_932da128	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_932da128	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_932da128
The Pale King / int_96fbeaf	type	There Are No Therapists
The Pale King / int_96fbeaf	comment	There Are No Therapists: Averted. David Cusk eventually goes to a psychiatrist. The book also ends with a second-person narrative that describes the start of a therapy session.
The Pale King / int_96fbeaf	featureApplicability	-1.0
The Pale King / int_96fbeaf	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_96fbeaf
The Pale King / int_9843be73	type	As You Know
The Pale King / int_9843be73	comment	As You Know: David Foster Wallace mentions this trope in a footnote, calling it an irksome and graceless dramatic contrivance.
The Pale King / int_9843be73	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_9843be73	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_9843be73
The Pale King / int_986bd638	type	This Is a Work of Fiction
The Pale King / int_986bd638	comment	This Is a Work of Fiction: David Foster Wallace points out the paradox of the book being both a memoir and literary fiction in The Author's Foreword.
The Pale King / int_986bd638	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_986bd638	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_986bd638
The Pale King / int_98a19d7f	type	Money, Dear Boy
The Pale King / int_98a19d7f	comment	Money, Dear Boy: Arguably the entire point of the Spackman Initiative.
The Pale King / int_98a19d7f	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_98a19d7f	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_98a19d7f
The Pale King / int_9bca83eb	type	Death by Irony
The Pale King / int_9bca83eb	comment	Death by Irony: A soybean farmer was decapitated by a Think Farm Safety billboard during a tornado in 1987.
The Pale King / int_9bca83eb	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_9bca83eb	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_9bca83eb
The Pale King / int_a24670a4	type	Benevolent Boss
The Pale King / int_a24670a4	comment	Benevolent Boss: Leonard, the only one willing to listen to David F. Wallace.
The Pale King / int_a24670a4	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_a24670a4	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_a24670a4
The Pale King / int_a2b38d3b	type	Eye Scream
The Pale King / int_a2b38d3b	comment	Eye Scream: Revenue Agent Fechner lost an eye in a war. He has a Glass Eye, but he apparently likes to use his empty eye socket as a bottle opener.
The Pale King / int_a2b38d3b	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_a2b38d3b	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_a2b38d3b
The Pale King / int_aa6043ca	type	Open-Minded Parent
The Pale King / int_aa6043ca	comment	Open-Minded Parent: Chris's mother. She defends her son while dealing with her own issues with regards to feminism and individuality.
The Pale King / int_aa6043ca	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_aa6043ca	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_aa6043ca
The Pale King / int_aaece264	type	Rousing Speech
The Pale King / int_aaece264	comment	Rousing Speech: Given by a substitute teacher on the final review day of the Advanced Tax class. It motivates Chris to clean up his life. Gentlemen, you are called to account.
The Pale King / int_aaece264	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_aaece264	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_aaece264
The Pale King / int_ac92aad1	type	White-Collar Crime
The Pale King / int_ac92aad1	comment	White-Collar Crime: Chapter 21 is a conversation between an IRS auditor and a businessman trying to falsify his tax report. He is given two options: jail, or filing a new report with the correct information and paying the late fees. Claude suspects that the higher-ups at Post 047 are doctoring the records so that the site has a perfectly averaged productivity rate, which would make them appear less suspicious.
The Pale King / int_ac92aad1	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_ac92aad1	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_ac92aad1
The Pale King / int_acecb17d	type	Chekhov's Skill
The Pale King / int_acecb17d	comment	Chekhov's Skill: Leonard's medical knowledge. Toni Ware's ability to keep her eyes open for minutes at a time.
The Pale King / int_acecb17d	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_acecb17d	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_acecb17d
The Pale King / int_b1346878	type	Fate Worse than Death
The Pale King / int_b1346878	comment	Fate Worse than Death: Leonard Stecyk's homeroom teacher finally snaps from having to deal with the kid's incessant happiness and perfection, brandishes a blunt pair of scissors, and threatens to kill both him and herself. She is promptly put on indefinite medical leave, during which she receives three highly-organized and detailed Get Well cards from the boy per week. This does not improve her condition in the slightest.
The Pale King / int_b1346878	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_b1346878	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_b1346878
The Pale King / int_b2af79fb	type	Leave the Camera Running
The Pale King / int_b2af79fb	comment	Leave the Camera Running: In-universe. Chris Fogle's 99-page monologue is, according to the author two chapters later, "actually heavily edited and excerpted" from his interview for the IRS faux-documentary; the employees serving as the documentary crew allowed Chris to talk as long as he wanted to increase their overtime pay.
The Pale King / int_b2af79fb	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_b2af79fb	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_b2af79fb
The Pale King / int_b5914444	type	Noodle Implements
The Pale King / int_b5914444	comment	Noodle Implements: Toni is last seen hauling around a dozen bricks and ordering several feet of copper tubing. Given how mentally unbalanced she is, the results probably won't involve construction.
The Pale King / int_b5914444	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_b5914444	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_b5914444
The Pale King / int_b5e63cc4	type	Shadow Archetype
The Pale King / int_b5e63cc4	comment	The individualized phantoms for each examiner.
The Pale King / int_b5e63cc4	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_b5e63cc4	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_b5e63cc4
The Pale King / int_bc03c871	type	Child Hater
The Pale King / int_bc03c871	comment	Child Hater: Anyone who went to elementary school with Leonard Stecyk has what is described as a 'complex hatred' for him. People hate themselves for hating such a well-meaning kid, then hate him even more for creating such self-hatred. The principal has nightmares about the boy and occasionally fantasizes about sinking a meat hook into his face and dragging him behind his car through the streets of Grand Rapids, MI. A homeroom teacher even threatens to kill him with a pair of blunt scissors. It eventually culminates with someone blowing up his locker.
The Pale King / int_bc03c871	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_bc03c871	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_bc03c871
The Pale King / int_bc74ef27	type	Berserk Button
The Pale King / int_bc74ef27	comment	Berserk Button: Do not mess with Toni's dogs if you value your life.
The Pale King / int_bc74ef27	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_bc74ef27	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_bc74ef27
The Pale King / int_bd7d0416	type	Beleaguered Bureaucrat
The Pale King / int_bd7d0416	comment	Beleaguered Bureaucrat: The IRS recruiter.
The Pale King / int_bd7d0416	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_bd7d0416	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_bd7d0416
The Pale King / int_c3478f1d	type	Badass Bookworm
The Pale King / int_c3478f1d	comment	Badass Bookworm: The unnamed, impoverished teenaged girl later revealed to be Toni Ware in Chapter 8. She reads anything she can get her hands on, but she knows how to poison people with asbestos, sabotage cars, and likely kill a man who was implied to have sexually assaulted her. Leonard Stecyk.
The Pale King / int_c3478f1d	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_c3478f1d	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_c3478f1d
The Pale King / int_c4c9bb40	type	Inner Monologue
The Pale King / int_c4c9bb40	comment	Inner Monologue: Claude Sylvanshine's chapters are usually written as a blend of random sensory observations and musings over personal issues.
The Pale King / int_c4c9bb40	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_c4c9bb40	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_c4c9bb40
The Pale King / int_c5249b29	type	Nice Guy
The Pale King / int_c5249b29	comment	Nice Guy: Leonard.
The Pale King / int_c5249b29	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_c5249b29	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_c5249b29
The Pale King / int_c6c5ce4	type	Bedlam House
The Pale King / int_c6c5ce4	comment	Bedlam House: Where Meredith spends her 18th birthday after getting caught cutting.
The Pale King / int_c6c5ce4	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_c6c5ce4	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_c6c5ce4
The Pale King / int_c868a42a	type	Freudian Excuse
The Pale King / int_c868a42a	comment	Freudian Excuse: The unnamed narrator of Chapter 23 has issues with regards to his self-worth. He remembers a presentation he did on The Iliad in the eleventh grade, and he freely associates it with his family. He likens his family to Achilles, in that his seemingly perfect brother is Achilles's shield, while he is the heel. He even develops a fixation on people's feet.
The Pale King / int_c868a42a	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_c868a42a	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_c868a42a
The Pale King / int_cf6541ad	type	Social Services Does Not Exist
The Pale King / int_cf6541ad	comment	Social Services Does Not Exist: Averted. Toni and her mother simply avoid them by drifting around the country. This lasts until the mother is killed by her boyfriend.
The Pale King / int_cf6541ad	featureApplicability	-1.0
The Pale King / int_cf6541ad	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_cf6541ad
The Pale King / int_d05cf3f	type	Footnote Fever
The Pale King / int_d05cf3f	comment	Footnote Fever: Any time David Foster Wallace provides a direct narration.
The Pale King / int_d05cf3f	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_d05cf3f	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_d05cf3f
The Pale King / int_d06df72c	type	Novella
The Pale King / int_d06df72c	comment	Novella: Chapter 22 is just under 100 pages.
The Pale King / int_d06df72c	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_d06df72c	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_d06df72c
The Pale King / int_d2cf1dce	type	Hyper-Awareness
The Pale King / int_d2cf1dce	comment	Hyper-Awareness: Chris Fogle. It starts off with existential ponderings during his drug-induced highs, but he eventually gets a sober epiphany during a random viewing of As the World Turns. His exceptional memory allows him to explain things with several minute details. David Foster Wallace later lampshades this: Rest assured that I am not Chris Fogle, and that I have no intention of inflicting on you a regurgitation of every last sensation and passing thought I happen to recall. David Cusk also qualifies, but his senses get thrown off whenever he gets a panic attack. Toni Ware is incredibly good at reading people.
The Pale King / int_d2cf1dce	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_d2cf1dce	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_d2cf1dce
The Pale King / int_d53ad027	type	Cheerful Child
The Pale King / int_d53ad027	comment	Cheerful Child: Leonard Stecyk is so ridiculously wholesome, honest, and hard-working that some of the school faculty want to kill him. His schoolmates hide when they see him coming.
The Pale King / int_d53ad027	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_d53ad027	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_d53ad027
The Pale King / int_d7fc9fd0	type	Vitriolic Best Buds
The Pale King / int_d7fc9fd0	comment	Vitriolic Best Buds: Claude and Reynolds.
The Pale King / int_d7fc9fd0	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_d7fc9fd0	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_d7fc9fd0
The Pale King / int_daba1b82	type	Finishing Each Other's Sentences
The Pale King / int_daba1b82	comment	Finishing Each Other's Sentences: Reynolds and Claude's promotion interview in the penultimate chapter. Chris incredulously wonders how long they had to practice it.
The Pale King / int_daba1b82	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_daba1b82	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_daba1b82
The Pale King / int_dc9b1fe9	type	Cue the Sun
The Pale King / int_dc9b1fe9	comment	Cue the Sun: David Foster Wallace says that a rural Midwest sunrise is as soft and romantic as someone’s abruptly hitting the lights in a darkened room.
The Pale King / int_dc9b1fe9	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_dc9b1fe9	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_dc9b1fe9
The Pale King / int_dca70c44	type	Reasonable Authority Figure
The Pale King / int_dca70c44	comment	Reasonable Authority Figure: Leonard. Dr. Lehrl, on the other hand...
The Pale King / int_dca70c44	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_dca70c44	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_dca70c44
The Pale King / int_dcbe8a6e	type	Chekhov's Gunman
The Pale King / int_dcbe8a6e	comment	Chekhov's Gunman: A couple of the main characters remain anonymous and seemingly unimportant in their introductory chapters. Toni is mentioned by name only twice in single sentences hundreds of pages apart before finally taking center stage.
The Pale King / int_dcbe8a6e	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_dcbe8a6e	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_dcbe8a6e
The Pale King / int_dd234c2f	type	Hallucinations
The Pale King / int_dd234c2f	comment	Hallucinations: Some IRS examiners who strain themselves to remain focused and alert in the face of extreme boredom are visited by phantoms that embody extreme stereotypes of the repressed aspects of their personalities. Macho guys see drag queens, neat freaks see filthy people, etc.
The Pale King / int_dd234c2f	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_dd234c2f	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_dd234c2f
The Pale King / int_dd3272bb	type	What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?
The Pale King / int_dd3272bb	comment	What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway?: Claude Sylvanshine has Random Fact Intuition, which is basically ESP with nothing but useless facts.
The Pale King / int_dd3272bb	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_dd3272bb	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_dd3272bb
The Pale King / int_de7b7cbf	type	Drugs Are Bad
The Pale King / int_de7b7cbf	comment	Drugs Are Bad: Chris Fogle spends a few pages discussing his drug habits, and he's clearly embarrassed in retrospect.
The Pale King / int_de7b7cbf	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_de7b7cbf	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_de7b7cbf
The Pale King / int_df4b69d6	type	Uncomfortable Elevator Moment
The Pale King / int_df4b69d6	comment	Uncomfortable Elevator Moment: There's a whole chapter devoted to three IRS employees that are stuck in an elevator. Their resulting debates include the future of American society, presidential politics, democracy, tax law, psychology, film, and existential dread.
The Pale King / int_df4b69d6	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_df4b69d6	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_df4b69d6
The Pale King / int_e3f88af2	type	The Real Heroes
The Pale King / int_e3f88af2	comment	The Real Heroes: The IRS employees are likened to policeman, firefighters, and other emergency service members in a few places. Chapter 17 is a single paragraph that explains the idea. The IRS seal depicts the mythical hero Bellerophon slaying the Chimera.
The Pale King / int_e3f88af2	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_e3f88af2	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_e3f88af2
The Pale King / int_e851b5	type	The Plan
The Pale King / int_e851b5	comment	A intriguing plan courtesy of Dr. Lehrl.
The Pale King / int_e851b5	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_e851b5	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_e851b5
The Pale King / int_e90a93b2	type	Creepy Monotone
The Pale King / int_e90a93b2	comment	Creepy Monotone: On behalf of her superiors, Ms. Neti-Neti is 'extremely pleased' to invite Wallace to the Peoria REC… except that she shows no enthusiasm or interest whatsoever. Shane Drinion.
The Pale King / int_e90a93b2	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_e90a93b2	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_e90a93b2
The Pale King / int_ea6f361f	type	You Are Number 6
The Pale King / int_ea6f361f	comment	You Are Number 6: Anyone who has worked for the Service is given a new Social Security number that exclusively begins with a 9.
The Pale King / int_ea6f361f	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_ea6f361f	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_ea6f361f
The Pale King / int_eb002293	type	Shrinking Violet
The Pale King / int_eb002293	comment	Shrinking Violet: As a teenager, David Cusk is so morbidly afraid of someone seeing his excessive sweating that he tries to keep as low a profile as possible. He gets better - but not complete - control over it when he grows up.
The Pale King / int_eb002293	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_eb002293	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_eb002293
The Pale King / int_ed54283	type	Single Mom Stripper
The Pale King / int_ed54283	comment	Single Mom Stripper: Implied by the list of previous jobs held by Toni's mother in Chapter 8.
The Pale King / int_ed54283	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_ed54283	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_ed54283
The Pale King / int_f0089082	type	Early-Bird Cameo
The Pale King / int_f0089082	comment	Early-Bird Cameo: A handful of chapters appeared as standalone short stories in literary magazines during the many years that Wallace was working on the book.
The Pale King / int_f0089082	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_f0089082	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_f0089082
The Pale King / int_f10d3363	type	Distracted by the Sexy
The Pale King / int_f10d3363	comment	Distracted by the Sexy: Every male in the vicinity of Meredith Rand, with the sole exception of Shane Drinion.
The Pale King / int_f10d3363	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_f10d3363	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_f10d3363
The Pale King / int_f26d5e66	type	Brainless Beauty
The Pale King / int_f26d5e66	comment	Brainless Beauty: Subverted by Meredith Rand, who is well aware of this trope and annoyed by anyone who assumes she is one.
The Pale King / int_f26d5e66	featureApplicability	-0.3
The Pale King / int_f26d5e66	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_f26d5e66
The Pale King / int_f3d5d15f	type	Creepy Child
The Pale King / int_f3d5d15f	comment	Creepy Child: Mr. Manshardt's infant has a terrifying expression on its face and body language of an adult. It can also talk, though the person who heard it may be insane.
The Pale King / int_f3d5d15f	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_f3d5d15f	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_f3d5d15f
The Pale King / int_f765e2d3	type	Dying Alone
The Pale King / int_f765e2d3	comment	Dying Alone: Frederick Blumquist dies of a heart attack at his desk at an IRS office. He passes away on Tuesday, but no one noticed until Saturday evening when a janitor finds him sitting in the dark. It took over four days for any of 25 other employees in the room to realize that they were working with a corpse. Since he was a quiet person and died in his typical sitting position, everyone just assumed he was really absorbed in his work. His personality doesn't change when he comes back as a ghost.
The Pale King / int_f765e2d3	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_f765e2d3	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_f765e2d3
The Pale King / int_f8f71b5f	type	Buried Alive
The Pale King / int_f8f71b5f	comment	Buried Alive: Averted. Chris frantically starts digging through a huge mound of snow because he thinks someone might be trapped underneath. It turns out that someone just lost their umbrella.
The Pale King / int_f8f71b5f	featureApplicability	-1.0
The Pale King / int_f8f71b5f	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_f8f71b5f
The Pale King / int_fd7267dd	type	Master of Disguise
The Pale King / int_fd7267dd	comment	Master of Disguise: Toni has at least twenty distinct voices and differently-colored contact lenses.
The Pale King / int_fd7267dd	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_fd7267dd	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_fd7267dd
The Pale King / int_fd76df83	type	Artistic License â€“ Economics
The Pale King / int_fd76df83	comment	Artistic License – Economics: Invoked during Chris's description of the new tax laws in Chicago in 1978. Since the amount of taxes that needed to be paid were determined by the amount you spend per transaction, people did their shopping by buying one item at a time. The resulting lines and traffic are horrendous, and the governor loses his job over it.
The Pale King / int_fd76df83	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_fd76df83	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_fd76df83
The Pale King / int_fed93e1b	type	Dark and Troubled Past
The Pale King / int_fed93e1b	comment	Dark and Troubled Past: None of the characters have happy backgrounds, but Toni Ware has the worst by far.
The Pale King / int_fed93e1b	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_fed93e1b	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_fed93e1b
The Pale King / int_name	type	ItemName
The Pale King / int_name	comment
The Pale King / int_name	featureApplicability	1.0
The Pale King / int_name	featureConfidence	1.0
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Pale King / int_name
The Pale King / int_name	itemName	The Pale King

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

The Pale King	hasFeature	American Literature (N to S) / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Artistic License â€“ Economics / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Bedlam House / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Beleaguered Bureaucrat / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Beneath the Mask / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Brainless Beauty / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Captain Oblivious / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Cheerful Child / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Child Hater / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Child Prodigy / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Coitus Ensues / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Conspiracy Theorist / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Crazy Cat Lady / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Cue the Sun / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Cute and Psycho / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Doorstopper / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Drugs Are Bad / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Dying Alone / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Embarrassing Nickname / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Everybody Must Get Stoned / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Finishing Each Other's Sentences / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Footnote Fever / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Greasy Spoon / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Growing Up Sucks / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Hallucinations / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Hyper-Awareness / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Hysterical Woman / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Ignorant of Their Own Ignorance / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Local Hangout / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Master of Disguise / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Mistaken for Special Guest / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Money, Dear Boy / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Motor Mouth / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	No Fourth Wall / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Novella / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Obsessively Organized / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Obstructive Bureaucrat / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	One-Paragraph Chapter / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Open-Minded Parent / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Our Ghosts Are Different / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Our Lawyers Advised This Trope / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Rousing Speech / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Rule of Symbolism / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Socially Awkward Hero / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Someday This Will Come in Handy / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Spock Speak / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Dandy / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Quiet One / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	The Real Heroes / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	This Is a Work of Fiction / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Uncomfortable Elevator Moment / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Viewers Are Geniuses / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Vocal Dissonance / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	Wacky Fratboy Hijinx / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	What Kind of Lame Power Is Heart, Anyway? / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	What Would X Do? / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	White-Collar Crime / int_ca1f6145
The Pale King	hasFeature	I See Dead People / int_ca1f6145

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