VLVL2 (3) A Finesi Romance #1

[Otto]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Terrance" <lycidas2 at earthlink.net>
Cc: <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Sent: Tuesday, August 12, 2003 12:50 PM
Subject: Re: VLVL2 (3) A Finesi Romance #1


> There is no reason what so ever to connect this five-spot to a fatal
> glass of beer in a WC Field's movie. Moreover, Fatal doesn't mean first.
> We are told that it wasn't the Last, but we are not told that it was the
> first. What is fatal about it?
>

That it's the first one, binding Van Meter (and through him Zoyd) to Hector.
When Van Meter realizes that he'd given the name of his dealer to a narc
("Aaaaaa ...,") he is frightened but he is calmed down by Hector. From now
on he is Hector's "man":

"No, no my man but that is precisely the sort of corroborating detail that
we value so highly (...)." (24)

What can Hector do with this information, this corroborating detail? -- He
can turn the already busted Leon into a snitch too because now he can say to
him: "We have a witness who says you're in the drug business, you're his
dealer. You will be rotting in prison for ten years at least." Therefor he
can assure Van Meter that Leon will be back soon, instead of going to St.
Quentin or Alcatraz.

That's the way it goes in the snitch business. Pynchon is very precise in
describing what he knows from personal experience.

Otto

>
> "That fatal five-spot was not the Last-Purchase-Of-Information
> disbursement in the neighborhood. In those years there were so many
> federal narcs in the area that if you were busted in the South Bay you
> actually stood less chance of its being the local Man than some fed."
>