Dalgetty had had to ask for a rec girl to get the booth beside Bancroft's to himself. See the previous post. She is from New Jersey although I do not know whether this means that she commutes to Pacific Colony. Dalgetty has to force down the volume of his hearing, then control the shock caused by her arrival. He buys drinks for them both from the dispenser. They can get even greater privacy by drawing a heavy curtain.
Incredibly, Dalgetty is said to fear this girl, Glenna, because she is of a different class. Have the educational differences outlined in "Un-Man" opened such vast social chasms? The UN aims to end division and conflict. As a "sensitive man," Dalgetty is able to:
bring his subconscious fear reaction to the surface;
recognize it for what it is;
suppress it;
help this harnessing of emotion by moving his hands in a symbolic pattern under the table.
Explaining that he is conducting psychological research by learning how to concentrate in different conditions, he pays her to sit quietly for no more than an hour while he leans back again against the coral. She watches him and the pov shifts to hers. Dalgetty worries momentarily and the pov returns to his. Then the eavesdropping resumes. Weird? Far out!
1 comment:
Kaor, Paul!
These arrangements by Dalgetty seems rather STRAINED, to me. I would have thought it easier of Dalgetty to simply pay extra to have the grotto for himself alone.
Ad astra! Sean
Post a Comment