Quitters Inc.

Initially, the business card from the inciting incident in “Quitters, Inc.” carries little symbolic meaning. It is more of a handy totem that moves the plot forward. The card itself is unremarkable, a plain white card with black lettering, and the pun it uses—“Stop going up in smoke!” (327)—and its midtown Manhattan address convey nothing about Quitters, Inc.’s sinister methods.

However, in the story’s concluding paragraphs, the business card takes on new weight, demonstrating Morrison’s learned helplessness and symbolizing his new positive relationship with Quitters, Inc. In a scene that mirrors the story’s opening, Morrison finds himself in a chance meeting with an old work acquaintance who bemoans his cigarette habit. As McCann did previously, Morrison offers his acquaintance the card, underlining that he has moved from a reluctant participant to a true believer in Quitters, Inc.’s work.

Smiles are a recurrent motif associated with Quitters, Inc. that is used to create a sense of unreality and unease. Their constant and unrelenting presence in the organization is juxtaposed with the violence being done behind closed doors; like the unassuming white business card, the smiles create a façade of professionalism. Donatti is almost always described as smiling. Sometimes, the look is “disarming” (333); at other times, it is “predatory” (334). Several times, it is used sadistically as a sort of weapon, with Donatti “smiling into [Morrison’s] eyes” as he leverages a threat or demonstrates his power (335). For example, Donatti’s smile does not fade when he pounds Morrison’s pack of cigarettes into pieces on his desk.

The receptionist is always described as smiling, whether she is welcoming Morrison to his first appointment or to witness his wife’s electric shock. Junk wears a T-shirt that simply says “SMILE” like a barked command (349), a jarring detail when contrasted with his violent actions. The constant smiles act as a sort of corporate sanitation of the program’s violence, like wallpapering over black mold. This motif further underlines the darkly satirical tone that haunts the story’s later passages.