SLSL "TSR" Buddhist or Bud Man- the banality of plot

[Paul Mackin]

On Thu, 2002-12-12 at 16:48, Dave Monroe wrote: 
> Still don't see what y'all have against Mr. Pynchon's
> little "Introduction," but ... well, it's all of
> interest 'cos Pynchon wrote it, published it, here,
> even, placed it in that Pynchonian canon, so ...
> 
> --- Mutualcode at aol.com wrote:
> > I don't share your bias. I know that there are
> > people, even on this list (especially on this
> > list?), who would be extolling the excellence of
> > these works, but for the "Introduction," and who 
> > now feel obligated to point out how bad they are....


I guess Mutualcode was suggesting that "Introduction" may have had the
unfortunate effect of prematurely influencing us from seeing the stories
for their true worth. So in a sense he was taking a slap at it, as have
others.

My overall assessment with regard to the dynamics of the situation would
be: The stories, obvious weaknesses and all, influence our judgment upon
"Introduction" more than  does "Introduction" on how we read the
stories.

I commend Dave for referring to it as "Introduction" rather than as "the
introduction to Slow Learner." It's an important distinction.
.

P.