Queerness in Thomas Pynchon

[Skip Wolfe]

 Paul Mackin writes:

>But seriously, I definitely see Matthew's point about ambiguity with
regard 
>to cowboys/pards as well as Clive and Sir Marcus:
>
> Clive Mossmoon and Sir Marcus, the comparison b/w the "meaningful"
homoeroticism shared by men in the trenches of WWI, which has now been
replaced "by this idle and bitchy faggitry" (616) of the Rocket-State. 

>It's interesting that Pynchon's dismantling of binarie systems of
thought
>seem to always favor one half of the binary (the half favoring a 
>"subjective/probabilistic" side of truth) at the expense of the other.
>(i.e. it's clear that Pynchon definitely supports Mexico at the expense
>of Pointsman; Crutchfield and Westwardman above Clive and Marcus...)

It seems to me more a matter of decadence than of binarism.  The complete
sentence on p. 616 is, "But the life-cry of that love has long since
*hissed away* into no more than this idle and bitchy faggotry." (emphasis
mine)  I think this kind of decadence (the retention of the forms and
habits of a thing without the original essence) is an important theme in
_V_ (science degenerating to mere technology; exploration degenerating to
tourism; artistry degenerating to the Whole Sick Crew); but never thought
much about it as a theme in _GR_.  The homoeroticism of the trenches
decaying into Clive & Marcus seems to fit . . . don't know where
Crutchfield would fit in, though.  

By the way,I find the name of Marcus's estate (The Birches) a
particularly inspired and hilarious bit of Pynchon naming.

	Skip