104
PHILIP L. GREENE
split disappears. To shift the image, Nietzschean Apollonian-Dio–
nysianism is part of the picture. A modern ethics which addressed
itself to a pure existence philosophy, a naked facing of the what-isness
of the human condition, this would
be
a great thing. I suppose
Buckley didn't have this in mind."
"Well, I don't
think
so." Malcolm's eyes were glazed.
"I've always held for a
modus vivendi
that would satisfy our
need for identity."
"I
think
Buckley had something else in mind."
"What did .he have in mind?"
"I really can't say."
"Is he after me?"
"Not exactly."
"What is he after exactly?"
"More basic considerations." Malcolm patted his forehead with
a handkerchief.
"Like what?"
"Oh, you know, the public image."
"Yes, of course, I can understand that." Rollie had meant
to get rid of his old sharkskin suit, the blue-grey one with the bus
driver's shine in the seat. "How is mine?"
"You talk in the dark."
"You mean in conference?"
"With female students."
"That's a bad image."
"You could put on the light."
"I have to find out what is hurting. It's better in the dark.
Do
they hate me for that?"
"Nobody hates you."
"They don't love me."
"Ah, well."
Malcolm had to dash home to feed Archimedes, his dog. On
the way out he handed Rollie his folder. "I'm violating a confidence,
but
if
you keep it to yourself ... this
is
strictly
f!ntre nous."
After Malcolm had gone Rollie went down the hall to the hot
plate and poured a cup of tea. The day people had gone and the
riight people had not yet arrived. The hallway was quiet except for
the scraping of the porter's trash barrel at the other end. To Rollie
the twilight hour was a time when naked hallway bulbs and im-
