GOD MODE--potential spoilers--Greg Egan--Walter Kirn

[jporter]

Keith, still somewhat melancholic, responds:


>At 11:04 AM 5/20/97 -0400, jporter wrote:
>>
>I hope you have a sense of humor,
>>
>Well, I have a sense of humor, Jody, damaged as it may be, and while I'm
>thrilled to acknowledge that TRP does too, I still can't agree with you
>that the so-called humorous parts of M&D are vehicles for some of his most
>solemn and serious ideas. I would be very interested in your revelation of
>the solemn and serious ideas behind the Octuple Gloucester. And, while
>you're at it, how about those giant vegetables? Woody Allen did that bit
>better in SLEEPER....

This all in response to my earlier response to:

> The George Washington and Gershom (Scholem) scene comes
>to mind. And that runaway four ton cheese is probably absolutely fucking
>hilarious...if you're stoned or have bilateral defects in Brodmann areas 9
>and 12 of your prefrontal cortex causing distortion of your sense of humor

Well first of all, dude, I think what you are trying to refer to is some
sort of aphasia of the Wernicke's type: i.e,, a fluent aphasia (as opposed
to a "motor" or Broca's aphasia involving the speech centers you mentioned)
related to the parietooccipital lobe- words seen, versus temporal lobe
Wernicke's- words heard. I assume this because your productive langauge
seems very fluent, but you are complaining of a perceptual language
problem...if I'm reading you right. But this gets a little technical, so if
you'd like to discuss it off list, feel free.

Secondly, Gershom is a very important pivotal character. Cameo, Stand-up
comic and all- but I'm sure this will come out thoroughly in the group
read, please stay involved.

Thirdly, the 4 ton Octuple, harks back to an interesting theme of Pynchon's
which I first noticed in GR, relating to Buddhism: see my post, *Tantivy 8
to 4* in the archives: 10/23/96. I want you to consider, also, the
relationship between Slothrop and Tantivy. As rudimentary as that was, it
forms at least part of the basis for what he more fully explores in M&D.
All this will be developed in the Group  Read, again, hang in there.

Suffice it to say that humor in Pynchon can be white as well as black, but
in both cases it points toward something beyond color, more towards the
cosmic (that's comic with an s). As cryptic as this sounds, this too shall
also be more fully explored in the group read (and when I have more than a
few moments to Brocalize...). Just now I have to go pump some Iron (yet
another important elemental connection between GR and M&D) but don't get me
started!


>  Incidentally, it seems you're doing some serious muscle flexing yourself
>here. The allusions fairly snap, crackle, and pop off the screen and, while
>I'm not saying your post is quite the same thing as listening to a bowl of
>cereal, nevertheless it takes considerably more work to digest. You reach
>some kind of high point of Amok-style poetry, for lack of a better word, in
>the part about transubstantiation, sow's ears, and the cloven hands of
>priests, but I'll have to think some more about what it actually means
>after I figure out just what the hell Drasp and Lepton worked out.
>>
>Still Fetal After Your Stinging Criticisms (Witticisms?),
>Keith>
>>
>>
 I seldom run Amok, but let's just say you inspired me. I wish I had more
time this AM to explain the references of my previous post, since you seem
interested, and I had alot of fun writing it.

later,

jody