High School Pynchon vs. Angst

[argus.]

Bret Loque:
> Is there space in the young one's minds for Mr. Pynchon.  If only more
> people read CoL49 instead of Rand or Pirsig.  Both of whom I
> think have only detrimental effects.  

I have to step in here & defend Ayn Rand for Formative Years.  I
know I couldn't have gotten out of Protestant Guilt and on to 
proper thinking without her, as silly as it all seems now.  And 
golly, but aint they good stories?   And as for Pirsig, I'm sure
he's responsible for more people on motorcycles caring how they
work, which can't be a bad thing.  :>

> Certainly it would be
> alot to ask 15-17 year olds to read GR, but perhaps V. would become
> popular among the youngsters.  

I know that my little sister ate up both CL49 and Vineland her senior
year of HS with little problem.  I think its much harder to understand
Pynchon if you've been reading Bronte, Austen and Dickens all your
life & try to drop in, than as a postmodern highschooler ready for crazed
fun.  She's on to GR but I can't verify with what ease, as she's gotten 
distracted by cyberpunk stuff of recent.

> And I don't agree with a previous e-pinion.  I think V. is more accessible
> because it's easier to enjoy. The story (the adventure) is easier to
> grasp.  Certainly in terms of structure and message it is complex, but it
> reads like a thriller (at least I know I couldn't put it down).  

im completely biased in all ways around V. (adore it) so no comment here.

take care all

susan

ps. sorry i never got a post worked up, but paranoia as recently
described sounded a lot like "myth-making" according to Levi-Strauss:
an unusually quick jumping to connections, a facile and perhaps
unscientific, but certainly not "wrong" correlation process.  any
comments?