When I first started reading Libra, I was definitely getting a Ragtime vibe. The erratic level of detail with seemingly random comments placed here or there that give depth to characters and settings we only see or read once was very characteristic of Doctorow. (At least, it was to me. Perhaps I'm just crazy.).
I also drew a parallel between Lee and Younger Brother through the whole riding the subways thing. Both characters seem rather aimless and just sort of wander around. The similarity doesn't get much further than that though, as we start to learn more about Lee. A peculiar kid, to be sure, reading things that are much above his level, chilling at the zoo because school doesn't teach what he wants to learn, and separated from others, yet unafraid to stand up for himself if need be. To be honest, I don't have an exact opinion formed of him yet.
Speaking of Lee's odd behavior, I was actually reading the exact portion Mr. Mitchell pointed out in class (I can't find the page number, but it was the one involving him reading Marxist theory while following the text with his index finger) and thought to myself, "Hey, I used to do that while thinking.... oh no wait. I used to do that while pretending to look like I knew what I was reading when I was trying to help tutor a friend..." I suppose I thought that physical action somehow intensifies any activity. Whatever happens, Lee's level of intelligence levels ought to be an interesting point to follow later on in the book.
At this point, I'm trying hard to wipe out what preconceptions I have about Lee Harvey Oswald and his assassination of Kennedy, but to be honest, that's pretty hard. My mind continually wanders back to "What will go wrong, what will snap, to cause him to commit the atrocious act of taking another human's life?" The author seems to intentionally create a very enigmatic character--I am unable to sympathize with him for being an outcast because DeLillo doesn't play the pity card, but neither am I able to cheer him on because (so far) he isn't a terribly attractive or charismatic character. He does, apparently, have that indecipherable smile though--something I've always wanted to have. Sadly, I do not have a indecipherable smile--in fact, they are quite transparent.
The comparison to Younger Brother is perceptive--and keep this in mind. In both you have people (ultimately) willing to engage in violence for "justified" reasons, and both are instinctively drawn to leftist political radicalism as a kind of relief from the tedium of their daily lives. As Doctorow writes of Younger Brother near the start, Lee at this point indeed might be said to be "trying to find himself."
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