the title "gravity's rainbow"

[lorentzen-nicklaus]

 + we shouldn't forget about the root of the rainbow leitmotiv in occidental 
 culture: 

              "and god said, this is the token of the convenant which i 
               make between me and you and every living creature that is 
               with you, for perpetual generations:

               i do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token 
               of a convenant between me and the earth.

               and it shall come to pass, when i bring a cloud over the 
               earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud:

               and i will remember my convenant, which is between me and
               you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters 
               shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.

               and the bow shall be in the cloud; and i will look upon 
               it, that i may remember the everlasting convenant between
               god and every living creature of all flesh that is upon 
               the earth."

                       ~~~ genesis 9: 12-16, king james version ~~~      


  in pynchon's works there's a struggle between the elements of air and earth 
  which is corresponding with the modern development of the 'real' (= social) 
  world. air has been colonized by science, technology and war: balloons,   
  airplanes, rockets, space shuttles, satelites, bombs.... and the earth got   
  raped and exploited. yet gravity is still attracting, and sloth & his sow feel 
  "just natural".... perhaps this works only on the micro-level, perhaps. but 
  take note of the fact that in the end of vineland (that interacts with gr in 
  manifold ways) the creature of earth, finally, wins over the creature of air:
  "it was desmond, none other, the spit and image of his grandmother chloe, 
  roughened by the miles, face full of blue-jay feathers, smiling out of his 
  eyes, wagging his tail, thinking he must be home." 

                                                         KFL *