MDDM Ch. 70 This Great Invisible Thing

[Doug Millison]

M&D does seem to invite us to compare the Line and the
Lambton Worm, doesn't it. Carrying the parallel a bit
further, I observe that the Native American attempt
use violence to stop the colonial invasion turned out
as tragically as it did in the Lambton Worm story --
nine generations of woe I think was where that one
led, more than that for the Native Americans, we're
still living with the tragic results of the violent
encounter that began 500 years ago. As horrible as it
was for the Europeans to come in an do what they did,
to the land, to the indigenes, with their violence,
the violent response only created -- surprise! -- more
violence and suffering.  It could have gone another
way, of course, back in that subjunctive time before
the flow was fixed in one rather than another
direction, the fork in the road that America didn't
take.

Good notes for this session so far, Dave, thanks.  You
always manage to pick and juxtapose insightful and
thought-provoking passages, a real pleasure to reap
the harvest of your research.


--- Dave Monroe <davidmmonroe at yahoo.com> wrote:
> "'They want to know how to stop this great invisible
> Thing that comes crawling Straight over their Lands,
> devouring all in its Path.'
>    "'Well! of course it's a living creature, 'tis
> all
> of us, temporarily collected into an Entity, whose
> Labors none could do alone.'
>    "'A tree-slaughtering Animal, with no purpose but
> to continue creating forever a perfect Corridor over
> the Land.  Its teeth of Steel,-- its Jaws, Axmen,--
> its Life's Blood, Disbursement.  And what of its
> intentions, beyond killing ev'rything due west of
> it?
> do you know? I don't either.'
>    "'Then,-- [...] you're saying this Line has a
> Will
> to proceed Westward,--'" (M&D, Ch. 70, p. 678)
> 
> Cf. ...
> 
> "'One Sunday, instead of the salmon-trout he
> believes
> his due, he pulls in a small snakelike thing, with a
> double row of horrid little Vents either side of it,
> from its head down the body, gasping open and
> shut,--
> nine pair of them,  At first he takes it for a
> Lamprey,-- but Lampreys have only seven pair.  This
> thing is different.[...]  It seems to him almost
> that
> the craeture is gazing into his eyes, with a look of
> intelligent Evil....'
> 
> [...]
>

=====
<www.pynchonoid.blogspot.com>

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