Esquire Awards

[Lycidas at worldnet.att.net]

JBFRAME at aol.com wrote:
> 
> In a message dated 02/24/2000 9:27:21 AM Pacific Standard Time,
> Lycidas at worldnet.att.net writes:
> 
> << do you think Pynchon is particularly
>  rough on German philosophers?  >>
> No tougher than Gunther Grass is on Heidegger in _Dog Years_.
> 
> jbf


I think there is a big difference here. Pynchon goes after
philosophers across the board, East and West, ancient to
modern, as he will with scientists, and so on. This is an
element of his fiction, of his satire. He will use their
ideas as metaphors and direct his attack on them by directly
linking them to his themes.  However, I think Pynchon
attacks the german philosophers is particularly sharp.
Partly because his attack on germany is an indirect attack
(admonishment) on America.