TRP & RAW

[Timothy C. May]

P. L. Arango wrote:
> 
> I know this has been discussed before(and was on the TRP WWW page briefly),
> but, as I recently reread Illuminatus for the first time since I read
> Pynchon, I was wondering connections have been drawn between the two
> authors.  Yes, there are three direct mentions of Pynchon in Illuminatus(in
> Malik's airplane notes, when Simon(?) says all the groups use WASTE, and
> FDR monitoring alligators so life doesn't get too exciting...same reason
> they removed the trolleys)

Wilson thinks highly of Pynchon, natch.

> Besdies this, however, I see little the authors have in common.  Their
> worlds are both paranoid, but I do not get a sense of Wilson's questioning
> the nature of the paranoia, as Slothrop does.  I would be interested in
> hearing what others feel on this topic.

Unlike Pynchon, though, Wilson is a prolific writer of essays, many of
which have explored the nature of belief, conspiracy, and doubt. These
essays are collected into books like "Prometheus Rising."

> (As I said, I apologize if this has been discussed to death before.  If so,
> tell me to shut up and I'll go wade through the archives to try to find it)

No, this a welcome topic!

I've recently gotten to know Wilson and his wife (Arlen) pretty well,
as they live near me in Santa Cruz. We've talked about Pynchon, though
Bob's main literary interest is of course Joyce.

Interestingly, I also met Tim Leary at a Cypherpunks party and--guess
what?-- we talked about how a guard at his jail, circa 1974 or so,
through some light reading material into his cell....a dog-eared copy
of GR.

(I feel blessed to live in the Bay Area, filled with so many
interesting people.)

--Tim May



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