Show Don't Tell: Who is Brock Vond?

[Paul Mackin]

On Sun, 2004-03-07 at 03:38, Joseph Tracy wrote:
>  This is a response to an earlier post about Pynchon's failure to show 
> rather than tell Brock Vond's charisma.I think the criticism here is 
> stongly argued , and a real weakness in the novel. Vond's attractiveness 
> to Frenesi is unconvincing except as  an archetype of the magnetism of 
> the charming fascist. But, while it may not be convincingly shown in 
> PYnchon's story this charm is both historically and personally 
> persuasive. Adolph Hitler drove German women into  sexual frenzy  akin 
> to the Beatles. George Will is charming when He talks about baseball. 
> Ronald Reagan,  Henry Kissinger, Dubya, Newt Gingrich ... the list  of 
> murderous charmers is long and not restricted to american republicans. 
> The charmer is unflappably  assuring and self assured, good humored, 
> authoritative.  A closer look reveals fear of what can't be controlled: 
> love, sex,  democ racy, laughter, thirst for justice.
> 
> I am not so willing as others to dismiss the realism of FRenesi or 
> Vond.If Frenesi is unbelievable as a real character what about the life 
> of Marylyn Monroe?  If Vond, What about Henry Kissinger as the winner of 
> a Nobel peace prize? But perhaps it is more fruitful and interesting  to 
> think about the Frenesi- Vond relationship  as the disfunctional 
> relationship at the troubled heart of the American enterprise.Why are 
> americans so easily seduced by opportunists with a pack of lies.
> 
> While Brock dreams himself the architect of the perfect Prison where all 
> rebels will be smoothly redirected to the service of the state, Frenesi 
> sees Vond as freedom from the withering constraints of time and mundane 
> responsibility.  Even though all the evidence says he is  a 
> cruel,ruthless  self serving user of others, she imagines in him  an 
> innocent inner life and herself the savior who will restore that life. I 
> suspect Pynchon is delineating the codependent relationship of the 
> salvation paradigm. The saviorand the authortarian rep of the savior 
> offer eternal verities, transcendence of the mundane, personal 
> satisfaction, forgiveness of sins, and membership  in a happily 
> flag/bible/... waving  community. The saved offers obedience along with  
> uncritical worship and fear,  the ultimate validation. The salvation 
> paradigm is still deep in the western psyche though it has edured some 
> serious challenges as in the 60s.
> 
> I see a parallel between the characters of Brock Vond and DL's father 
> Moody( DL moody was a famous preacher and founder of modern conservative 
> american evangelicalism.) Moody  and Vond aspire to security and power 
> within the  law enforcement aspect of the state. Their frustrations in 
> this pursuit lead to violent cruelty to "troublemakers" and women.
>  
> The image of Brock as sick savior/ judge (the Brock of my salvation) 
> appears in a particularly strong way when he drops from the sky to hover 
> over Prairie glowing white. She even talks to him as though he will hear 
> in the heavens and invites him back  for a moment before coming to her 
> senses. I think Pynchon is slyly noticing the tendency of Fascists and 
> other manipulators to wrap themselves in  the mantle of divinity.
> 
> 
> Well, I  just wanted to ramble and throw out some ideas here.
> 

That's what we're all here for.

There's one thing I might add. One reason women love bastards is
instinctual. They know that, if need be, he can and will kill for them.