Pynchon & rap

[Doug Millison]

"jbor"
 Or is it the case that
*both* the history (and historical allegory) and anachronism are at play in
the "finite" number of words and marks on the page?

They are at play to the degree that a reader might want to bring them into
play and then follow Pynchon's text off into a chain of interpretations that
may or may not have anything to do with what Pynchon actually wrote. Nothing
wrong with that, of course, the reader is permitted to respond to the text
any way she wants. A reader can ignore the textual references that Pynchon
has included -- references to rock and roll, to the American National
Anthem,to a South Philly musical experience that clearly recalls the early
60s (a scene that could easily have been known to Pynchon through personal
experience, either a visit of his own or known to friends of his -- Pynchon
was certanly plugged into East Coast music, with his frequentation of the
New York jazz and folk scene, his personal friendship with musicians Farina
and Baez) and instead create a reference to rap music in this M&D text, no
problem.


>" the way that the text is made to "allude" to and "parallel"
>present trends and customs"

The way a particular reader makes the text "allude" to and "parallel"
present trends and customs", isn't it.  Pynchon wrote what he wrote, it's
there on the page; we're now well within the parameters of a particular
reader's response.


>"Pynchon seems to imply" 

i.e., this reader seems to imply

Of course any reader can interpret a text any old way she wants. After this
performance, however, it's a bit difficult to take seriously "jbor's" claims
to some sort of textual interpretative method with standards that others
should follow, as he/she claimed so strenuously during GRGR and the
discussion about Pynchon's references to the Holocaust, or in
"jbor"/"rj"/"rjackson"s assault on Hollander's readings of Pynchon.  At
least Hollander is not manufacturing new signifiers and inserting them into
Pynchon's work as "jbor" has done in creating a reference to contemporary
rap music  -- Hollander begins with Pynchon's text (specific character
names, direct references to historial events, etc.) and follows them where
they might lead, puts together a tentative interpretation about what it
might mean to read this chain of textual references and illusions as a
"second story", a subtext, alongside the text we get on the page. If one
reader can turn an M&D reference to the American National Anthem into a
reference to Eminem, surely it's permissible for another reader to find
other references in Pynchon's texts and interpret them as freely.