_V._: Inconclusive Unscientific Postscript

[Alan Westrope]

On Sun, Jul 29, 2001 at 01:51:59PM +1000, jbor wrote:

> The reference to "carpenter gothic outhouses" early in _Vineland_ seals the
> latter, less interesting, question for mine. 

Agreed -- I think Pynchon had read _The Recognitions_ by the time he
wrote _Gravity's Rainbow_, and also agree with Otto that the latter
novel may reflect Gaddis's influence more than _V._ (which, of course,
may not reflect it at all...).

> As to the former, it is
> certainly a possibility. While Pynchon, and perhaps more obliquely, Gaddis,
> have both been quite forthcoming about some of the work they did read,
> neither author ever denied reading the other's novels. 

Well, Gaddis was pretty adamant, both in the Moore PN article and the
Paris Review interview, about having read *very* little, if any, of
Pynchon, and about not having been influenced by him.  I don't have
the quotes at hand, but I know they're at

http://www.komarios.net/gaddis/quotes.htm

Pynchon, as usual, doesn't seem to have much to say...:-)

> While not meaning to discount the pertinence of Alan's comparison, I'd also
> add that that recourse to an almanac of events is not as uncommon as might
> be thought. Ayn Rand uses the same and similar tactics on a couple of
> occasions too, and there are other precedents I'm sure.

Yes, it's probably mere coincidence, but I thought I'd toss it into the
maw of the list on the slight possibility that it's an oblique reference
to Gaddis. 

-- 
Alan Westrope <awestrop at dimensional.com> <awestrop at nyx.net>

Whish!  A gull.  Gulls.  Far calls.  Coming, far!  End here.