"Clancy in the Tower of Babel" (The Stories of John Cheever)

Shut up Clancy

Where do you get your ideas? Everywhere. But in the case of “Clancy in the Tower of Babel” there are two very compelling possibilities.

John Cheever comes home from day drinking. He's had a bad week. Maybe his brother called him. The New Yorker suggested edits. He comes home, gets into the elevator and hears “Good afternoon, Mr. Cheever.” To make matters worse, the elevator operator follows it up with “How are you doing?” Cheever gets off, walks to his apartment, thinking “I'll show the bastard.”

Second Scenario. John Cheever is at a party and everyone is praising Richard Wright's latest book or I.B. Singer's short stories. The conversation turns to Cheever and a sympathetic guest says “John, you truly capture the frustration of the wealthy white man.” The backhanded compliment stings. Cheever turns into Barton Fink, eager to write stories about the COMMON MAN. He's going to venture from his comfort zone; like the girl from Greece who had a thirst for knowledge and studied sculpture at St. Martin's College, he's going to celebrate common people.

Then he's at his typewriter and thinking “Do I know any poor people?” He's about to go upstairs to interview his housekeeper, but he sees the elevator and decides to write about the elevator guy.

Clancy isn't a believable character. Clancy is what a wealthy man imagines life trapped in such an awful job. Clancy gives him a series of interesting tics like an Irish identity, a mostly silent wife and a supposedly brilliant son. Clancy lives in a “slum tenement” and makes Biblical references because he's Catholic. That doesn't add up to an actual character.

Clancy doesn't exist as a person, so much as a petty revenge against someone Cheever hates.

Either way, Clancy is an asshole. Instead of pushing buttons and politely chatting with riders, Clancy inserts himself into everyone's life. Do luxury apartment elevator operators harass the tenants? Are they even allowed to interact with the tenants? On Mad Men, Pete is always interrogating the elevator staff. The elevator guy in Don Draper's apartment has a heart attack, so Don meets the heart surgeon and then spends season six sleeping with the surgeon's wife. The elevator operator having served his purpose, fucks off.

Clancy refuses to fuck off. He talks to everyone as if they actually like him. He orders a crying woman to look at him instead of the wall. He wears their dry cleaning when they aren't looking. Clancy is the kind of entitled asshole who imposes himself on everyone. If anyone refuses his banter, he'd act like the wounded party. He was just being friendly, after all.

Enter Mr. Rowantree. Clancy won't leave Mr. Rowantree alone. Chever never says why. Maybe Rowantree reminds him of his son. Maybe Rowantree is friendly where other riders give the “please don't talk to me” grunt. Without warning, Clancy is worrying about Mr. Rowantree's marriage prospects. When he visits Mr. Rowantree's antique store, he's disappointed in the wares, but hopeful at the prospect of a female worker.

Then Rowantree brings home Bobby. Bobby is Clancy's age. Bobby is also a man, so Mr. Rowantree is gay.

The story goes from cloying to idiotic.

Clancy refuses to let Bobby and Rowantree into his “car.” He's not driving a cab. He's running an elevator. Clancy doesn't get fired because, supposedly, he's a good worker. Nothing in the story supports this statement. Clancy should have been fired already, but the management gives him another chance.

He needs to be around to save Rowantree's life.

John Cheever's bisexuality didn't stop him from depicting Rowantree as a tragic homosexual. At the first fight with Bobby, Rowantree is shoving his head in the oven and turning on the gas. Clancy comes in and saves his life, bullies him and turns off the gas so Rowantree can't do it again.

Rowantree again wants him fired and again, he's let off with a warning. What's with this management company?

Having exhausted the residents' and readers' patience, Clancy comes to the denouement where he gets sick. Rowantree takes up a collection and gives him $200. Then Clancy recovers and goes back to work, dreaming of all the nasty things he will say to Rowantree. Only, Clancy realizes that strangers might not like his son so he doesn't have to like everyone.

He decides not to talk to Mr. Rowantree.

Yay! The annoying elevator guy finally shuts up.

I love a happy ending.

Next Week: Another Awful Elevator Operator

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Here’s an article on John Cheever and God