Gentlemen, start your flamethrowers

[John Carvill]

Wow! Pynchon content. On the p-list? Unheard of!

Well I happen to be re-reading GR at the moment as well, though I'm not as far through it as you.  I do agree with you on the emotional front, I felt a lot more emotionally involved back when I was reading about Roger Mexico, Jessica Swanlake, etc. Those darts that're like live birds in Jessica's hands! And the Incoming Mail/Banana Breakfast opening is very very strong. 

If you're from the UK, like me, then maybe you find Part One more atmospheric and evocative becasue it's set (mostly) in London, which is for most of us a recognisable place. 'In The Zone' goes scattering off across Europe and if you, like me, have never been to Berlin, then there's not so much to cling onto in terms of familiarity. Also, as Slothrop's 'temporal bandwidth' starts to dwindle, maybe the narrative is supposed to reflect this? I admit that is some ways it seems a shame to set up the Blitz era London so beautifully then abandon it.   

You often hear of critics opining that GR could have done with a lot of editing, and who knows if it would've got through today's corportae publishing world as unscathed as it did in 1973? I for one welcome every word of it, even if the narrative drive does occassionally lose momentum.

And, as I recall (maybe inaccurately), the pace picks up again in the Counterforce section, as we head towards that Richard Nixon and his movie theatre.......

Finally, I have to say that one of my favourite sections of the book is the one dealing with Tchitcherine in his 'Bear's Corner'.

Hey! Maybe all this talk of GR will get us thinking of maybe doing a Group Read of GR. Think it's nearly 10 years since the last one (or the start of it anyway). Who's up for it? You never know, Terrance might come back and blow our minds.......

Cheers

JC



________________________________________
From: owner-pynchon-l at waste.org [mailto:owner-pynchon-l at waste.org] On Behalf Of Ivan Ackerman
Sent: 20 October 2005 23:59
To: pynchon-l at waste.org
Subject: Gentlemen, start your flamethrowers

Hi folks
 
Now I know I'm potentially letting myself in for a real flame-fest here, but what the hell.
 
I've been running through Gravity's Rainbow again, nearly finished Part III (In The Zone). And my question is this: Am I the only one who finds GR significantly decreases, in terms of being an enjoyable read, as it goes on?
 
I'm not claiming the quality of the writing declines, or that there aren't any stunning scenes, ideas, phrases etc. in later episodes. Rather, I find Part I (Beyond The Zero) by far the most enjoyable, atmospheric, evocative, and emotionally involving section. Although there are some truly memorable phrases in later parts, I find all my favourite scenes, phrases, and passages are bunched together in Part I. I find the Casino Herman Goering section less enjoyable, though still great, and to be honest I feel the narrative starts to get bogged down, with the number of phrases or sentences that stop you in your tracks, markedly less frequent. By the time we get into The Zone, the book becomes for me just a (very superior) picaresque adventure.
 
Now I don't mind being flamed for this, but that's not my intention. I'd welcome any other views on the relative merits of GR's four sections. And I haven't commented on Part IV  (The Counterforce) because I haven't got that far in this reading.
 
Thanks all
 
Ivan
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
________________________________________
To help you stay safe and secure online, we've developed the all new Yahoo! Security Centre. 
_______________________________________________________________________
This email has been scanned for all viruses by the MessageLabs SkyScan
service. For more information on a proactive anti-virus service working
around the clock, around the globe, visit http://www.messagelabs.com
________________________________________________________________________

Please note: This e-mail and its attachments contain only the opinions of the sender and do not necessarily reflect the policy(s) of Armstrong Laing Plc in general.

Confidentiality: This e-mail and its attachments are intended for the above named only and may be confidential.  If they have come to you in error you must take no action based on them, nor must you copy or show them to anyone; please reply to this e-mail highlighting the error and then delete it.

Security Warning: Please note that this e-mail has been created in the
knowledge that Internet e-mail is not a 100% secure communications medium. We advise that you understand and observe this lack of security when e-mailing us.

Viruses: This e-mail and its attachments have been scanned for viruses but we cannot guarantee that they are virus free.  We advise that in keeping with good computing practice the recipient should ensure that they are actually virus free.
_______________________________________________________________________
This email has been scanned for all viruses by the MessageLabs SkyScan
service. For more information on a proactive anti-virus service working
around the clock, around the globe, visit http://www.messagelabs.com
________________________________________________________________________