FW: Autobiography & a couple of puzzles

[Wolfe, Skip]

>>Which reminds me:  as the Pynchon Industry (you don't have to hold up your
>>hands; we know who you are) has exfoliated over the past thirty years, 
I've
>>not seen good commentary or annotation to two semiotic events, one from
>>_V._ the other from _GR_.

>>From _V._  the punchline to Fu's joke:  "Was that not a curious minstrel?"
>>(I'm doing this from memory because my copy of the book is elsewhere; hope
>>that's right.)  Anyway, is that a pun?  It *feels* like one.  If not, what
>>is it?  Just a little narrative itch I've never been able to scratch.

>>From _GR_, the Kirghiz Light.  That one feels like it should refer or
>>allude to something outside the book, some event, civilization, city,
>>*something*.  Anyone got an idea or explanation?



And I've always wondered about this one from  _GR_:

"The tramp laughed and pointed, he looked back at Pirate then and said 
something extraordinary: 'Eh?  Girl Guides start pumping water . . . _your 
sound will be the sizzling night_ . . . eh?'"

Is this some arcane reference, or is TRP just having fun with us (alerting 
us that the statement is extraordinary) -- sitting back with a beer watching 
a ball game -- "Lets see what they do with _that_ one!"?

Skip
crw4 at nip1.em.cdc.gov