Re. Warped and Distilled?

[David Morris]

David M (me) said:

>>Pynchon's "History of the 60's," VL, is his own, warped and
>>distilled, containing alternate-alternate possibilities as
>>commentary on what "actually" happened, and fable-ized
>>to tell "truths" relevant to now.

Terrance F. Flaherty responded:

>This is a rather odd way to describe Mr. Pynchon's fiction.
>At the end of the twentieth century, novelists like Pynchon
>continue to explore and develop new subject matter, new style,
>and new technique. In addition, Pynchon and others are engaged
>in a radical reconsideration of the relationship between reality and
>fiction; a consideration begun at the beginning of this century by
>their Modernist predecessors. Are the historical novels of D.H.
>Lawrence(The Rainbow, Women in Love) "fable-ized" truths?

Me:  I don't know, but what's your point?  It's a big leap from DH Lawrence 
to TR Pynchon.  As you say above, TRP is "engaged in a radical 
reconsideration of the relationship between reality and fiction," and I 
would add fantasy, mythology, symbolism, and a whole long list of other 
"engaging" spices thrown into the brew.  Its a whole 'nother cup of tea.

>The cultural changes he describes in these novels are as real
>in the conventional and historical sense as the Vietnam War
>and student protests of the 1960s. Progressive industrialization
>is a powerful force in these novels, but the history we read in D.H.
>Lawrence's fiction is concerned with human consciousness and
>the unconscious life of characters living and loving in the age of
>accelerating cultural transformation.

Me:  I continue to state that VL is not "about" the 60's, GR is not "about" 
WW2, MD is not "about" the actual people and events.  Though they are chock 
full of amazingly detailed true facts of history these are primarily 
vehicles for his "real" messages.  It's the "real" message that keeps me 
reading (as well as the "warped" way he delivers it).

>Lawrence's fiction is not distilled or warped commentary anymore
>than Woolf's 'To The Lighthouse' is a "fabel-ized representation of
>possible truths."  [snip]

Me: I never said anything of the kind.  Woolf & Lawrence are not TRP.

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