Has anyone seen a Pynchon book lately?

[Paul Mackin]

On Fri, 2003-02-07 at 11:21, Richard Romeo wrote:
> This is off the top of my head but I would argue that
> Pynchon's reticence to make his personall views public
> somehow relates to his systems approach to novel
> writing. What I mean is a consistent awareness of the
> larger forces that swirl around us and the effects
> those forces have on other lesser systems,
> individuals, and the like.
> He's probably figuring that once these economic,
> political, military systems interact in such a way
> that it's almost impossible to change once they are
> put into motion, under varying configurations.
> I don't think of Pynchon is a writer to spur protest
> as such in his readers, but more like a lone
> melancholic skeptic, equally annoyed, angry, etc with
> those arrogantly supportive of such systems and those
> who arrogantly detach themselves from such systems,
> thinking in some self-righteous way that their gospel
> of defiance is any way or shape not comprised by its
> participation in the first place (I think Pynchon
> alludes to this fact in the intro to SL). Of course,
> one can argue such sentiment could lead to apathy,
> sloth, or indifference, but I fear that's the skills
> I've been blessed with. IN any case, that's how I read
> Pynchon through the reading of his novels.


Writing fiction requires being able to bring together a number of
diverse characters and points of view. It is the interactions between
these diverse entities that give the fiction it's interest. Allowing a
single point of view or political agenda to be overly dominant is fatal.

P..