Pynchon vs French Intellectuals

[Murthy Yenamandra]

Paul Mackin writes, among other things:
> Did Pynchon _need_ 1968 to contruct (in part 4 of GR) his "examination
> of the impossibility of creating an entirely alternative structure of 
> power/language" (Matthew Percy's words)?
> 
> Any evidence in the earlier books that P, unlike that "certain school
> of French philosopy" KNEW IT ALL THE TIME?

This brings Murthy to his theory of why P. holds COL49 in such low
esteem - partly for its failure in continuing this examination to its
deeper significance and for its satisfaction in just skimming the
surface of an alternative structure and romanticizing it? He bets P. was
thinking, "Man, if only I had done a better job with that 49 thing, I
might not have had to write this 84 thing now."

PS: Murthy, under deep cover in the Belly of the Beast, is also worried
about letting his personal ones and zeroes go public, 'cause once out
of his personal file who knows what they'll cook up.

-- 
Murthy Yenamandra, Dept of CompSci, U of Minnesota. Email: yenamand at cs.umn.edu
   "I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the
    swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the
    wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favour  
    to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all ..."