Joseph McCarthy

Joseph McCarthy is presented in the book’s documentary aftermatter rather than through a developed scene in the novel’s main narrative. The references place him in Washington, D.C., during the 1950s and connect him to Westbrook Pegler, a right-wing journalist whose political activity extended into McCarthy’s investigating committee.

Identity and Documentary Context

The book’s postscript explains that it distinguishes historical fact from historical imagining. Within that reference framework, McCarthy is identified as a senator and as a figure with whom Westbrook Pegler allied himself ideologically and politically in the 1950s. The entry gives no fuller account of McCarthy’s life or actions.

Political Associations

McCarthy’s connection to Pegler is described in both directions: Pegler was a close supporter and friend of McCarthy, and he served as an adviser to McCarthy’s investigating committee. These details situate McCarthy within the right-wing political network sketched by the documentary notes, without depicting a direct encounter between the two men.

Place in the Book

McCarthy’s brief appearance belongs to the book’s reference apparatus, which supplies historical context beyond the fictional narrative. The notes establish an association and a period, but do not develop McCarthy as a participant in the novel’s events or specify further details about his political relationship with its fictional characters.