In a plot twist that was sudden, but not entirely unexpected, Sam kisses another man (Tracy Bacon). This event employed heavy foreshadowing, as Sam is shown to be unclear about his sexual identity. Sam had often been lonely earlier in the book, and his lack of a companion became even more apparent when his cousin, Joe, got a girlfriend, Rosa Saks. Sam admitted to himself that was Rosa was in fact, very attractive, but he just didn't feel any emotion or desire towards her. He says that he tried to imagine kissing her, but wasn't stimulated in the least. This doesn't necessarily make him gay, but it makes apparent his lack of interest in women. Earlier in the book, Sam was shocked upon discovering two men kissing in the food cabinet at a party. He saw that these men actually had a tender moment, which he had not previously believed possible in a homosexual relationship. He didn't show any signs of disapproval upon stumbling into this scene, and instead took this discovery into account. Much earlier in the book, while Sam is recalling his childhood and his relations with his father, who was a muscleman whose stage name was The Mighty Molecule. He and his father entered a sauna at one point, and Sam saw his dad naked. Instead of being embarrassed, he sort of admired his father's figure, and found himself unintentionally staring at his father's genitalia. This sets up Sam's character leading up to him meeting Tracy Bacon.
Tracy Bacon is an actor that was hired to play the Escapist on a radio program. Sam describes him as being a big, bulky, and admittedly handsome man, that strongly resembled the Escapist both in voice and looks. Bacon later pulls Sam aside to ask him how he could improve his voice for the Escapist, and Sam takes a moment to establish that he had never really been addressed by a man of Bacon's appearance. They later go to a bar and get mildly drunk. While Sam is drunk, he subconsciously invites Bacon to his mother's house for dinner, in Joe's absence. Sam's mother isn't quite sure how to take this, and when Sam says that he think Tracy will do well as the Escapist, his mother replies with, "Will he? (313)" She looks him directly in the eyes upon saying this, and I believe that she is implying to Sam that she has a deeper knowledge of the situation, and that she might even have foreseen the impending relationship between Sam and Tracy.
In the scene where Sam does kiss Tracy, he starts off working a volunteer service for the army, in which he monitors the planes taking off and landing from the top floor of the Empire Building. He thinks about how truly lonely he is up in his solitary post, as a storm approaches. Sam then notices the elevator rising, and out comes Bacon holding some bags that smell of food. At first, Sam tells him to leave, but then changes his mind and insists that Bacon stays. Bacon then proceeds to tell Sam about his fight with his girlfriend while he was eating at her house. She thought he was going to propose to her, but when he didn't, she threw a fit. Bacon then decided to take the food with him as he left, claiming, "Well, it was just sitting there. (351)" Upon further inquiry as to why Bacon came to Sam, he replied , "Well, you were just sitting here. (351)" The food was really nice, and Bacon had also brought wine. As he and Sam eat together at a table, a cliche romantic scene is set up, as the two are alone, in a fascinating location, as the building is now encased in the storm. Suddenly, Bacon kisses Sam while he discusses the lightning rods on the building. Sam initially thinks about everything that is wrong with this action, but then finds himself kissing Bacon back.
This moment was about halfway through the book, and had quite a bit of build up. At the beginning of the book, about 50 pages are spent discussing Joe's childhood, while one page is spent introducing Sam on the second page of the novel. It is very brief, and doesn't reveal much about Sam at all. After Joe is thoroughly developed, the story takes more time to discuss Sam, and his feelings of loneliness and emptiness. It becomes clear that Sam will do what ever is necessary to fill this void in his life, regardless of what the public thinks of it. Sam himself is unsure of his sexual preferences, and seems to be acting more on impulse than rational thought. I had previously stated that Sam seemed to be very uninteresting in the shadow of his cousin Joe, but now that his mind has been explored through the novel, I find that both characters are equally important to the plot.
In the scene where Sam does kiss Tracy, he starts off working a volunteer service for the army, in which he monitors the planes taking off and landing from the top floor of the Empire Building. He thinks about how truly lonely he is up in his solitary post, as a storm approaches. Sam then notices the elevator rising, and out comes Bacon holding some bags that smell of food. At first, Sam tells him to leave, but then changes his mind and insists that Bacon stays. Bacon then proceeds to tell Sam about his fight with his girlfriend while he was eating at her house. She thought he was going to propose to her, but when he didn't, she threw a fit. Bacon then decided to take the food with him as he left, claiming, "Well, it was just sitting there. (351)" Upon further inquiry as to why Bacon came to Sam, he replied , "Well, you were just sitting here. (351)" The food was really nice, and Bacon had also brought wine. As he and Sam eat together at a table, a cliche romantic scene is set up, as the two are alone, in a fascinating location, as the building is now encased in the storm. Suddenly, Bacon kisses Sam while he discusses the lightning rods on the building. Sam initially thinks about everything that is wrong with this action, but then finds himself kissing Bacon back.
This moment was about halfway through the book, and had quite a bit of build up. At the beginning of the book, about 50 pages are spent discussing Joe's childhood, while one page is spent introducing Sam on the second page of the novel. It is very brief, and doesn't reveal much about Sam at all. After Joe is thoroughly developed, the story takes more time to discuss Sam, and his feelings of loneliness and emptiness. It becomes clear that Sam will do what ever is necessary to fill this void in his life, regardless of what the public thinks of it. Sam himself is unsure of his sexual preferences, and seems to be acting more on impulse than rational thought. I had previously stated that Sam seemed to be very uninteresting in the shadow of his cousin Joe, but now that his mind has been explored through the novel, I find that both characters are equally important to the plot.
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