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E.T.A.
Organization of North American Nations, a “supernation” comprised of the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. Founded by President Johnny Gentle, O.N.A.N. was masterminded by Rodney Tine, chief of the O.U.S, who saw it as an opportunity for the U.S. to give the highly toxic Great Concavity to Canada as a “gift.” For this reason, O.N.A.N. is resented by Canadians and especially Quebecois secessionists like the A.F.R. “Onanism” is also a euphemistic Biblical term for masturbation, in a humorous nod to the pleasure- and entertainment-obsessed culture of Wallace’s near-future North America.
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O.N.A.N. Term Timeline in Infinite Jest
The timeline below shows where the term O.N.A.N. appears in Infinite Jest. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 10
...it inside DuPlessis’ mouth. DuPlessis is in fact “the right-hand man to the most infamous anti-O.N.A.N. organizer north of the Great Concavity.” He has moved to Boston to act as a...
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Chapter 16
...Assassins des Fauteils Rollents (Wheelchair Assassins), which is “pretty much Québec’s most dreaded and rapacious anti-O.N.A.N. terrorist cell.”)
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Chapter 26
Alphabetic Tally of Séparatisteur / Anti-O.N.A.N. Groups whose Opposition to Interdependence / Reconfiguration is Designated by R.C.M.P. and U.S.O.U.S. as Terrorist...
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Chapter 40
...is puzzled by Quebecois Separatism, which has grown in intensity ever since the establishment of O.N.A.N.
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...example in the U.S. would be Canadian separatist materials, although these aren’t officially banned by O.N.A.N.)
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...Hal says he thinks that Quebecois separatists hate Anglophone Canada far more than they hate O.N.A.N. Hal asks for more information about Helen, and when Orin gets cagey, Hal brings up...
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...that all Canadians resent the Great Concavity, Quebecois separatists don’t use this to support their anti-O.N.A.N. mission. Pemulis is getting more and more impatient and begins to gesture to someone outside...
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...insists that what the separatists really want is for Québec to secede, and that their anti-O.N.A.N. position is “not what it appears.” He is searching under his desk for his shoe....
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Chapter 45
...became President of the U.S., and it mixes historical facts with Mario’s own inventions. The O.N.A.N. era is introduced with President Gentle telling the Mexican President and Canadian Prime Minister: “We...
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...side with no indication of which ones are real. They announce the emergence of the O.N.A.N. pact, the enormous waste problem the U.S. was facing at the time, and the decision...
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Chapter 46
...official rank as none of his victories were deemed legitimate. However, after the founding of O.N.A.N. and the establishment of an O.N.A.N. ranking system, a systems analyst who was converting the...
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Chapter 55
...as “the samizdat.” Technically, the threat it poses falls under the jurisdiction of the O.U.S.’s Anti-Anti-O.N.A.N. Activities’ Agency (which an endnote explains is O.U.S.’s “most elite and least specific division”).
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Chapter 65
...as decoys when the separatist threw acid in the face of the Canadian Minister of Inter-O.N.A.N. Trade. Now, Poor Tony considers stealing the purses of two women walking ahead of him....
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