BTW, should remember that the Rev. Bacon character in “Bonfire of the Vanities” was not “inspired” by Al Sharpton, because the Tawana Brawley hoax took place after the book was published. Rev. Bacon is actually a testimony to how deeply Tom Wolfe understands our culture — he foresaw a Sharpton.
Pat J.’s research is based on the idea that if people have an association in the back of their minds, it reveals their real nature and will determine their actions. This is one of those schematic Freudian ideas that are still floating around despite the discrediting of Freud and his “talking cure.”
It’s like saying that if you lie down and woolgather, this is your default position and you’ll never get up if you have a practical task to accomplish. Some people do never get out of bed, but the overwhelming majority do, and the random associations in their minds fade away in the business of activity.
