GRGR(12) The Pornography and War

[Terrance F. Flaherty]

GR.257
"A week later he is in Zurich
 never a clear sense of
nationality anywhere, nor even of belligerent sides, only
the War, a single damaged landscape
"

"The War has been reconfiguring time and space into its own
image."

The "meshes of this war" combine carnival and commerce in a
rude celebration of the destruction of lives, of individual
souls, of nature. The war takes its power from a number of
sources and "reconfigures" time and space in its own image.
One way I think Pynchon makes use of film, is to associate
pornographic film with war.  Pornography, like War is "so
absentee." Has such a "cruel, accidental resemblance to
life." War, in GR becomes a  "conscious entity," mimicking
nature, imitating life, a pornography. Pumping its trains,
its weapons, its images of death, striving towards a climax
in the future "where everyone is known and there is no place
to hide," a mockery of peace, another War, another
pornography. The War in GR distorts nature and Man's place
in it, Man's place in the lives of men, it alters patterns
of causality and intent in the interest of  "the true war"
which is a celebration of markets. Why does Pynchon turn to
the tube in VL? Lots of reasons I suppose, but perhaps it
has something to do with what is ON THE TUBE?  On the tube
are images of a napalm scorched earth, surgical strikes,
evil empire diplomacy, political talk show prognostication,
selling of policy, "oh C-span viewers, you smart independent
thinkers, if you could know, of course I can't tell you, a
matter of grave secrecy you understand...." Although Chomsky
made an interesting guest, suggesting that it's on the wire,
folks can read it in America.  In VL, even the children have
their eyes fixed on the "real business of the war" buying
and selling. Kids turn to the tube for all their needs. Too
much? Does Pynchon take it too far? Hector? Are his
characters too funny, to unreal? Why should I care about
Hector? I don't think we should. Did Pynchon convince anyone
here to disconnect, to unplug from the tube? From this
machine? The big, fat, computer just had you for lunch? Yes
I imagine he has.  In  GR, Pynchon presents cartels, where
the scientist is too arrogant or stupid to admit he is at
the mercy of Nature, that Nature with her disasters, Pynchon
lists a month worth in V., will do the business of the war.
The war hands over the acts of nature to
"non-professionals." "The murdering can be trusted to
non-professionals" Is Pynchon too paranoid about the cold
war? The  War--the Cold one some credit our booming economy
to. How about the hot ones? Now but a few last beautiful
images spliced in between canned laughter and the flashing
lights, whirling sirens of the ambulance in some other town
on the screen far away. "A spectacle, as diversion from the
real movements of the War." More powerful than guns, the
camera goes to war in VL. In GR Pynchon describes what War
films are used for: "It provides raw material, to be
recorded in history, so that children may be taught history
as a sequence of violence, battle after battle, and be more
prepared for the adult world." A pornography, a diversion, a
war on drugs, and a new cold war with China, it is all over
the tube, on the covers of Newsweek and Time. War drives the
economy, the consumption of fear, the consumption of goods,
buying and selling. Frightens the little person, all this
death, and the rockets that might land on your head at any
moment without a sign. "Best of all, mass death's a stimulus
to just ordinary folks, little fellows, to try'n grab a
piece of the Pie while they're still here to gobble it up.
The true war is a celebration of markets. Organic markets,
carefully styled 'black' by the professionals, spring up
everywhere." Everywhere, no perhaps a new cold war doesn't
chill, but there are wars, American wars,  where the little
guy is getting a Slothropian chill as I type and R&J sneak
of to have a cute meet, and won't stop to pull more children
out of the rubble. And perhaps there are even Slothrops,
they used to care, they used to pray, in a conventional way
to the god of their fathers, but now they are moving from
paranoia to anti paranoia, growing numb, and soon to be
scattered all over the zone where perhaps only one dude will
be able to hear their voice. 

>From David Morris:
The important question is:  Did they intend for Slothrop to
discover this 
paper, and thus prompt him to flee into the Zone?  Since we
don't know 
Pointy's plan, the answer is unknown.  He IS followed but
not apprehended, 
which implies they have ALLOWED him to flee, doesn't it?

David Morris


What is Slothrop in the market for? Why doesn't he know?

Remember Katje's attempt to warn him. What does she know?
Well for one, as a pornographic personality of pretense,
Katje is quite accustomed to regarding information as a
medium for exchange because there is a "real conversion
factor" between information and human lives.