The making of Wallace’s Everything and More: an interview with Erica Neely

Taylor, S. J. (2016) The making of Wallace’s Everything and More: an interview with Erica Neely. Lettera Matematica International, 3(4), pp. 269-273. (doi: 10.1007/s40329-015-0116-y)

Abstract

Of all the works by celebrated author David Foster Wallace, his ‘popular mathematics’ book on Georg Cantor is by far the most neglected. Everything and More: A compact history of Infinity has proven difficult to reconcile with both Wallace’s fiction and non-fiction alike. This interview article aims to shed some light on the nature and construction of Everything and More. First introducing the book in context by reconstructing from Wallace’s personal letters its production, it then benefits from the unique insight of Wallace’s technical adviser on the project, mathematician-turned-philosopher Erica Neely. Over the course of the interview, Wallace’s motivations as well as his research and compositional strategy are exposed as Neely reflects on her time working with the author. This unique exposition and reflection paves the way for future dialogue about Everything and More that we may fully appreciate and understand this complex ‘oddity’ at the centre Wallace’s oeuvre.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Taylor, Mr Stuart
• Authors: Taylor, S. J.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Critical Studies > English Literature
• Journal Name: Lettera Matematica International
• Publisher: Springer
• ISSN: 2281-6917
• ISSN (Online): 2281-5937
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2016 The Author
• First Published: First published in Lettera Matematica International 3(4):269-273
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License