It takes a lot of courage to say you love someone, especially if you're the first one. Jacob emphasizes that Marlena has only told him that she "need[s]" him and so he takes a leap of faith to figure out exactly where they stand in their relationship. It's a very modern action for a 1930s guy.

Here Jacob describes the paradox of sex: it both completes him and leaves him wanting more. As he says, "[t]hese encounters leave me both exhausted and recharged, desperate and fulfilled." The more he has, the more he wants. And yet getting to be with Marlena also wears him out and worries him. He's so consumed by her that he can't bear being without her, but sometimes being with her is almost too much to take.

Admiration has its negative side, too. In this case, it's the fact that two desired objects are missing from the circus performance. The audience wants to admire Rosie and "the Lovely Lucinda," and they feel cheated when they are denied the chance. The circus has claimed that the audience will get the chance to admire them, promising more than it can deliver.

Jacob gets through this situation on chutzpah alone, pretending everything's fine and that he's not secretly in love with Marlena. He thinks if he pretends hard enough, he'll seem "invincible" and fool everyone, even Uncle Al. Jacob buys in to the circus concept of illusion wholeheartedly here, and it seems to work on Al for a time. But Jacob can only pretend to be "invincible" and unattached to Marlena for so long – rumors are spreading through the circus like wildfire.

Does this "blackness" sound familiar? Earlier in the book, when the older Jacob is given drugs in the nursing home, he describes the sensation of unconsciousness in a strikingly similar way: "the blackness of sleep is circling my head. It's been there awhile, biding its time and growing closer with each revolution" (1.90). That "blackness" comes back for him here and, just like the first time, Jacob finds that he is "powerless" to protect himself.

Pain is caused by both good and bad feelings, which makes more sense the more you think about it. Jacob longs for Marlena "so badly [he] aches." His desire for her actually pains him, rather than bringing him joy or relief.

Walter calls Jacob a "tomcat" because, presumably, he's been out on the prowl with another man's wife. While this is not quite true, what really happened between Jacob and Marlena is secondary to the <em>appearance</em> of what happened.

Jacob plays on gender stereotypes to protect Marlena, telling Al that August "should keep his distance" so that Marlena, like a typical woman, will want him back. Really, though, this is an attempt to keep Marlena and August as far apart as possible.

Jacob worries that Camel will be "helpless in [his family's] hands," that they won't want to have to deal with him. But right before the reunion is supposed to take place, Camel dies. Much later, older Jacob goes through a version of this same worry himself. He's not as "damaged" as Camel was, but he is somewhat helpless in <em>his </em>family's hands. The difference is, at the very end, Jacob is able to walk away.