The Pale King

Examining David Foster Wallace’s The Pale King: An Unfinished Novel (compiled after Wallace’s death by his longtime editor, Michael Pietsch) as a work of scholarly editing.

The Pale King includes an introduction detailing the age and breadth of the materials, their source, and the methods applied to compiling it. The novel also includes a section of endnotes, and these present Wallace’s notes chapter by chapter, followed by Wallace’s notes regarding overall structure. While historical notes are eschewed, this is likely because the copy-texts were compiled between 1997 and 2008, and the copy itself was taken directly from the author’s office (The Pale King was published in 2011). Alterations to the text are mentioned in the introduction (via an explanation of methodology) but not detailed throughout, as the novel is ostensibly presented for the casual reader. Within two minutes, however, I was able to locate a link to facsimile copies of Wallace’s drafts, along with further discussion from his editor (http://hrc.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/p15878coll20#nav_top). Another minute, and I was able to locate an interview with Pietsch regarding his editorial methods (http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2011/04/the-pale-king-david-foster-wallaces-editor-on-the-books-path-to-print/236925/).

Given that the MLA guidelines ask us to consider the format of the “scholarly edition” in question, I might argue that the Internet serves as a constant format/background against which print editions may be set.  I might also argue that Pietsch’s approach to editing The Pale King is no more or less accurate than scholarly approaches to editing Dickinson or Shakespeare as outlined in De Grazia/Stallybrass and Tanselle (respectively). Authorship, dates, and sources are clear and reliable, and Pietsch is working without the problematic interventions of time. He is also working directly from the author’s manuscripts, without the possibility of errors introduced by the release of multiple editions. Pietcsch considers authorial intention, draws on his direct work with Wallace over the previous decade, and creates the likeliest version possible. Ultimately, while questions of proofreading and schematics cannot be directly assessed by the copy in hand, I believe The Pale King does adhere to MLA Scholarly Guidelines, even if it does so more in spirit than in practice, and with an eye toward a general/commercial audience.