Franny and Zooey

Franny hastily puts the book back into her handbag and tells Lane it is just something she read on the train. Franny does not want to talk about the book, but Lane pesters her about it because he thinks that she is hiding something from him. Franny tells him that the book is called The Way of a Pilgrim and that it is a religious book that she got out of the library. She explains that the professor teaching her Religious Survey course mentioned it and that she thought it sounded interesting. Lane asks her what the book is about, and Franny explains that it was written by a Russian peasant in the 1800s who wanted to learn what it means to pray without ceasing, as described in the Bible. He wanders around Russia trying to find someone to explain it to him. He meets a starets, a religious teacher, who tells him about the book Philokalia, which he tells him will explain from the perspective of monks how to pray incessantly. After the man reads the Philokalia, the man wanders around Russia, explaining to people how to pray without ceasing. Franny’s favorite part of the book is when the peasant stays with a married couple. The couple’s children bring the peasant into their home to meet their parents. The mother takes care of the peasant and helps him get clean, cooking food for him. When the father comes home, they all sit down to eat dinner together. While they eat, the peasant notices several women sitting around the table with them. The father explains to the peasant that the women are servants, but that he always has them eat with the family because they are all brothers and sisters in Christ. Afterwards, the peasant stays up with the father all night, telling him about the Jesus Prayer. Franny says that she loves that part of the book because of the way that the peasant notices the servants, and because the family treats them as equals. Franny tells Lane that she finds the book fascinating. Lane nods at Franny’s explanation and continues talking about publishing his paper. Now he is the one trying to change the subject, while Franny persists in telling him that she thinks he would like the book. She offers to lend him the book even though it is overdue at the library. Even though Lane does not want to talk about it anymore, Franny explains the pilgrim’s description of how to pray without ceasing. She says that the starets tells the pilgrim that the prayer “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me” is the best prayer because it uses the word “mercy” (31). Since “mercy” has such a wide meaning, it encompasses everything a person needs to say to God. Once a person says the same phrase repeatedly, over time the words synchronize with the person’s heartbeat. This ritual has a real effect on people physically and spiritually. The starets explains that people do not need faith at first, but the repetition of the words causes faith to come later because the words are so powerful on their own. Franny tells Lane that she loves this because it also connects to the Buddhist tradition of meditation, and she loves the connection between all the religions. Lane asks her if she believes what she is saying, but she says she just thinks that it is fascinating that something beyond reason happens to everyone around the world when they pray repeatedly. Lane asks what the point of the repetition is, and Franny explains that eventually people see God. Franny tells Lane that she does not really know who or what God is, but that she does know that some kind of supernatural phenomenon occurs for the people who say the prayer. Lane tells her that he agrees that it is interesting, but none of what she is describing has any factual or logical basis: Psychology and science explain it all away. Satisfied with this authoritative dismissal, Lane changes the subject. He says that he forgot to tell her that he loves her. He waits for a response, but Franny excuses herself to the bathroom again. Before she can get there, she faints.

Franny wakes up in the restaurant manager’s office. Lane sits beside her on the couch and asks how she feels and whether anything is wrong with her medically. He admits to feeling scared for her. Franny says she feels better and asks if they still have time to make it to the game. Lane declares that she is going to rest for the remainder of the day. If she rests and starts to feel better, he says, then he can figure out a way to sneak into her room without anyone noticing. Franny does not respond, but Lane tells her that it has been a while since they have had sex. Franny asks for some water, and Lane goes to get it for her. After Lane leaves, Franny stares at the ceiling and starts to recite her prayer.