William T. Vollmann on Trying to Excavate American Foreign Policy From the Cold War to the War on Terror
A Table for Fortune is about September 11th. As it grew, tracing the roots of that crime in one direction and its poisoned harvest in another, the book bifurcated. The first part is, or means to be, a novel of
William T. Vollmann's book, A Table for Fortune, explores American foreign policy from 1966 to 2022, covering the period from the aftermath of September 11th to the War on Terror. The work is divided into two parts; the first is a cerebral, novel of ideas, while the second is a narrative of feelings. Vollmann aimed to present an accurate account of decision-making during this time, acknowledging that some judgments may have been overly acidic due to the subjective nature of his research.
He credits Juan Tomas, a poet from Equatorial Guinea, for inspiring him to speak out not because he is a poet, but as an American, and acknowledges the difficulty in separating his personal opinions from his portrayal of American foreign policy. The book touches on various aspects of U.S. policy, including the invasion of Afghanistan, the CIA's role in covert actions, torture, and the War on Terror.
Vollmann grapples with the complexities of these events and the potential consequences of decisions made during this period, ultimately expressing his desire to represent the flow of decision-making as accurately as possible within the confines of a fictional work.
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