In the Lake of the Woods: Chapter 17 Summary & Analysis

In November 1968, John extends his tour in Vietnam for an extra year. He does this because he feels he has no choice—his experiences at Thuan Yen make him lose touch with himself. He writes to Kathy that he can’t explain his decision other than to say that it’s personal. Kathy responds that she loves him, and hopes his decision isn’t a career move.

After he extends his tour, John tries hard to forget what he’s seen in Vietnam. He is promoted twice, but in December and January sustains injuries in battle: shrapnel and a flesh wound. John feels that he needs the pain because it helps him reclaim virtuousness. At times he can almost forget about Thuan Yen.

In November of 1969, John returns to the United States, having won many medals. He marries Kathy five months later, and Kathy says that she knows they’ll be happy. He goes to law school and goes on to pass the bar in 1973. For the next three years he works as an assistant legislative counsel for the Minnesota Democratic Farmer Labor Party, a dull, low-paying position that nonetheless helps him forget about the war. For their five-year anniversary, John does magic for Katy and makes five roses appear. Kathy observes that he seems more content and peaceful than he had before.

In 1976, John announces that he is running for the Minnesota State Senate. He asks Tony Carbo, an overweight, experienced campaign manager, to help him. John assures Tony that he wants to win, “in his guts.” Tony asks John how he wants to run; John replies that he wants to focus on the issues, but Tony assures him that it’s impossible to win by focusing on the issues. Tony says that he’ll help John, because he’s handsome, a war hero, and has a beautiful wife. Tony asks John to imagine a scenario. In the scenario Tony describes, John meets a beautiful woman at a party. John wines and dines her, and tells her about his life and his beliefs. The beautiful woman starts to sense that she “owes” John her love and attention, even though neither of them has ever discussed the idea of the woman owing John anything. As he explains all this, Tony looks at Kathy, but mutters that it’s only a metaphor.

John is in the state senate for six years. Tony runs his campaigns, which are expensive, slick, and successful. John acquires a reputation for being a good politician and organizer. John has a boyish charm that makes people and the press like him, and he instinctively knows how to cooperate and compromise with others. He sincerely believes that he is doing good. At the same time, he listens to Tony’s advice about keeping up appearances: he wears expensive suits, keeps fit, and makes friends with people who could be helpful to him in the future. Secretly, he still enjoys manipulation and deception, though he projects an image of modesty and sincerity.

Because John is a state senator, his life with Kathy is sometimes difficult. They are happy, but only because they’re thinking of the future—in the present, they don’t go on vacations or have children. John and Kathy learn to be frugal and clever with their spending, since they have to fund their campaigns. They rarely make love, a fact that bothers Kathy and makes her suspicious. She asks John if she’s keeping secrets from him, and John replies that he isn’t. He’s secretly afraid of losing her, and always has been.

Several times, Tony asks John if he’s “clean,” and John responds that he is. Tony also asks about religion; John says that he’s not sure, and Tony recommends that John become a Lutheran and start going to church every week. Shortly thereafter, John wins a big victory and becomes the lieutenant governor of Minnesota. He’s confident that he’s on his way to becoming a senator.

In July 1982, shortly after John becomes lieutanent governor, Kathy tells John that she is pregnant. John and Kathy have many conversations about this, and John stresses that they have plenty of time before they need to have children. John made a phone call, the narrator says, and forms were signed. He stands in a clinic, looking at himself in the mirror and trying to think of a way to explain himself to Kathy—he fails to do so.

A short time later, John casually tells Kathy that they have done the right thing. Kathy insists that all she wanted was a baby. Afterwards, they watch TV, and never talk about the incident again. While John and Kathy know that they shouldn’t be burdened with a child at this point in their lives and that they are not ashamed of their decision, they sense, deep down, that they have sacrificed a huge thing in return for the future.

On January 19, 1986, John announces his candidacy for the U.S. Senate. Polls put him well ahead of his nearest rival, an old-time politician named Ed Durkee. Tony is confident that they’ll win the election easily. In his speeches, John avoids talking about the issues—instead he talks about “fresh air and fresh starts.”

After John announces his candidacy, he, Kathy, and Tony have dinner. Kathy mentions that John’s campaign seems a little “empty.” When she asks Tony what John’s message should be, he replies, “Win.” Kathy suggests that Tony isn’t as cynical as he seems—deep down, he’s a dreamer, just like John. Tony eats food off of Kathy’s plate, and says that it’s mind-boggling that she married John. He says that Kathy is “spectacular,” and Kathy tells him that he doesn’t say so nearly enough. John, who is sitting at the table as Kathy and Tony have this conversation, continues to smile—Kathy’s hand is on his knee.

Tony asks John what issues he’d like to talk about, and John admits that it’s probably better to focus on the election and then turn to the issues. Kathy objects, saying that John will never get to the issues, since there will always be another election for him. Tony, who is drinking bourbon with his meal, notes the paradox of politics: politicians who care about the “issues” are always hated. The most successful politicians are those who can appeal to foolish, uninformed voters. As he explains this, he starts to get angry, and says he doesn’t think John is interested in the issues, anyway. Kathy goes to the bathroom, leaving John and Tony to talk.

While Kathy is in the bathroom, Tony tells John she’s a “yummy specimen,” and points out that Kathy thinks John is “Mr. Clean.” When John objects that he is Mr. Clean, Tony says that John doesn’t fool him: John avoids talking about certain issues. When John asks what issues these might be, Tony refuses to name them, but only says, “bang-bang.” John says that Tony is reaching, and Tony admits that he might be. As Kathy returns from the bathroom, Tony says that he’d gladly lose 50 pounds for “a shot” at her.