Infinite Jest: Chapter 39 Summary & Analysis

14 November Year of the Depend Adult Undergarment. Poor Tony has a seizure on the T after a week drinking codeine cough syrup. After the horrible events of the previous winter he has been avoiding all his old haunts in Boston, which means he cannot buy drugs and has gone into heroin withdrawal. He becomes incredibly sick, to the point that “his symptoms themselves developed symptoms.” He loses the ability to control his urination, and in desperation starts ingesting cough syrup while confined to a toilet. His experience of time changes drastically and horribly.

Two days after he runs out of syrup, Tony begins to withdraw from the syrup’s alcohol, codeine, and morphine. Catching the Gray Line from Watertown Center, Tony realizes that he’s become the kind of person people move away from on public transport. He cries in shame, shits his pants, and then has the seizure. This is a painful experience and involves multiple terrifying visions. He swallows his tongue and feels someone’s hands reach into his mouth and pull it back out. His final thought is fear that people can see up his dress.