The Increasing Irrelevance of the Original Conspirators

 The plot of Don DeLillo’s Libra is centered around the synthetization and subsequent execution of the JFK assassination conspiracy. Early on in the novel, readers are introduced to the figures of Win Everrett, Larry Parmenter, and TJ Mackey, the original conspirators responsible for setting the plot into motion. It would logically follow that these three masterminds become integral pieces in the execution of the plot, however it quickly becomes apparent that the opposite is true. As the plot advances, only Mackey is able to maintain influence over the proceedings of the conspiracy, while Everett and Parmenter become increasingly irrelevant. By the end of the novel, Everett has no control over his own brainchild, which has branched out and evolved in countless unintended ways.

As the initiators of the assassination conspiracy, Parmenter and Everett are undeniably vital figures in the plot, but their relevance primarily lies at the beginning of the novel while their influence is still absolute. The significance of the two original conspirators is rooted in their development of the assassination plot framework rather than their involvement in the actual execution of the plot. TJ Mackey, one of the two men privy to the original conspiracy, credits Everett with the construction of the plot saying “It was Everett who’d made the leap. Everett took the once bold idea of assassinating Castro and turned it over in his mind finding it unworkable and crude. He struck a countermeasure that made better sense on every level. It was original, spare and clean. The man we really want is JFK” (DeLillo 219). Everett provided the basis for the conspiracy, and Parmenter proved its feasibility through correspondence with George de Mohrenschildt and subsequent investigations of Lee Harvey Oswald. However, in the latter stages of the plot, Everett and Parmenter find themselves shut out of operation and stripped of all control. As the plot devolves into a web of convoluted connections, both men become “remote from the cutting edge of the operation” (DeLillo 221). Their high-minded, idealistic conniving is no longer necessary for the execution of the plot. The ends and means of the operation have evolved beyond their sphere of influence.


Conversely, Mackey’s influence on the execution of the plot increases as the conspiracy evolves. While Parmenter and Everett are scheming and observing from the safety of their homes, Mackey is on the ground, forging connections, distributing information, training operatives, and manipulating contacts. Involving himself with the operation on a personal level allows Mackey to mold the plot to his own designs. Because he is the primary point of correspondence for lower-level members of the conspiracy, he is able to dictate the manner of their operations. In this way, Mackey is able to commandeer the conspiracy and “take it one more step”, opening up the possibility of a bona fide assassination (DeLillo 219).

Comments

  1. MitchellDecember 19, 2023 at 1:03 PM

    I've mentioned it a few times in class, but I really like and appreciate the way DeLillo is able to present a convincing picture of how a vast conspiracy might work, while avoiding the cliche of the puppeteers in a smoke-filled room plotting and controlling every contingency. Your comments about Everett raise some interesting questions (as, toward the end of the novel, he starts thinking about winning "forgiveness" from the Agency, telling all in a polygraph interrogation)--if everything in this novel were true, how *responsible* would Everett be (morally, legally) for the killing of JFK? Would his original "near miss" plan gain him any leeway? How would a court assess his degree of responsibility? Obviously Mackey has a direct line between his desire for Kennedy to be killed and the firing of the guns--but I can't help but wonder what a good defense attorney would do with Everett's case. It is, of course, illegal to plot an assassination whether or not you go through with it--but would it gain him any sympathy to acknowledge his second thoughts?

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  2. KralDecember 20, 2023 at 8:40 AM

    I think Mackey being able take control of the operation by going out "on the ground" is another way DeLillo is communicating that change in the stream of history can only be made by leaving the confines of small rooms.

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  3. Jonathan OuyangDecember 20, 2023 at 5:30 PM

    Watching the conspiracy evolve throughout Libra is very interesting - the nature of a realistic conspiracy seems to expedite the inevitable spiral out of control that ends in the actual assassination.

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  4. Ansh SinghDecember 21, 2023 at 9:03 PM

    I completely agree with your analysis of the changing roles among the conspirators in Libra. Everett and Parmenter play major roles in planning the assassination, but then they sort of do fade away as the story continues on. I kind of like how Mackey takes over the operation and starts doing all of the action. In my opinion, the book is more interesting that way.

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  5. LeorDecember 24, 2023 at 10:43 AM

    Wow Luke, amazing blog post. I completely agree with you and think that the book is more engaging by having multiple layers to the kennedy assassination it always has the reader on their toes and guessing how this is all going to accumulate to the eventual day of november 22nd. Keep up the amazing work Luke!

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