Entropy: The Intersection of Fahrenheit & Celsius

[Mutualcode at aol.com]

 The two temperature scales are completely congruent. They
map perfectly in a completely linear relationship for their entire
lengths. They represent two equally valid perspectives of the 
same reality.

 In the introduction to Slow Learner, Pynchon alludes to what 
could have been a mistake he made as a youth when he
composed the story, by confusing normal human body
temperature in Celsius degrees for Fahrenheit degrees.

 This represents the most damning evidence, thus far, regarding
The Introduction as anything but an attempt to fool the naive into
believing that the author was unconscious of the significance of
this conflation. In fact, the author's choice of 37 degrees as a point 
of intersection for the two temperature scales is the most beautiful 
and artistic trope of the collection so far. It is pure Pynchon, and 
another example of why he is such a wonderful artist.

 With a single stroke, Pynchon illustrates the subjective nature of
the concept of  Entropy, even while acknowledging the purely
objective reality of the material world. The trope is self-referential
without producing any waste. It represents nothing less than the
intersection of the subjective and the objective. In effect, all the 
other dichotomies around which Pynchon structures his art:
animate/inanimate, sacred/profane, inside/outside, meaningful/
meaningless, all the distinctions necessary for agency to find
purchase- to signify intention- are likewise represented. The best
you can do is break even.

 For those who know, 37 degrees Fahrenheit is the temperature
at which an otherwise insignificant process occurs, which
coincindentally, is the source of all subjectivity on earth, a
bridge across the frozen lake of inanimacy, an effortless
connection of the dots.

respectfully

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