Vineland

[jd]

That's definitely an interesting take on it, and I would probably say
that Vineland is certainly more accessible to the public at large.  I
am not a Frenesi fan though, and I get the feeling Pynchon might not
be either - remember how he talks about that BS propaganda about how
police are just doing their jobs, it's not their fault, etc...  maybe
I mis-interpreted the tone but it seems like he was saying people
complicit with it are still at fault regardless of job description. 
And Frenesi never had to do it, really, she pretty much went willingly
to Brock.  I see what you're saying, but wasn't Frenesi an abuser
herself, by supplying the gun that killed Weed?  And then near the
end, there's Flash and Zoyd trying to get Prarie to explain why the
hell they married her.

On 3/1/06, Michael Bailey <michael.lee.bailey at gmail.com> wrote:
> Vineland is a masterful commentary on the American scene, and on life
>
> Everything is in there, all arranged and arrayed to lead a reader into
> greater awareness.  Frenesi's susceptibility to the charm of fascism
> aligns with the human tendency to excuse abusers...
>
> so it isn't hate that I end up feeling for her, but a complex of
> emotions having to do with regret and wonder (like, I wonder how she
> could hook up with Flash, I wonder why she couldn't easily resist
> Brock Vond, I wonder why Zoyd can't surmount the deficiencies of the
> hippie persona to win her back - he obviously has skills)
>
> It's probably the Laura Bush in me ("why should I fill my beautiful
> mind with thoughts of body bags" or whatever) but the absence of
> extended scenes of war and colonialism, and the abatement of (what I
> see as) the relentless harping on non-standard and oftentimes painful
> sex/love relations in GR and V, make Vineland a much more enjoyable
> read.
>
>
> On 3/1/06, jd <wescac at gmail.com> wrote:
> > So I'm finally getting around to reading Vineland, about 40 pages away
> > from the end.
> >
> > What do you all think about this book?  I've heard a lot of people
> > badmouth it...  it's certainly no Gravity's Rainbow but my opinion is
> > that it isn't a bad book.  I hate Frenesi so far.
> >
> > I need to take on M&D soon, it's the only one of his that I won't have
> > read after I finish this book.  However I really, really am having the
> > urge to read GR again even though I've already read it many a time.
> > This can not fly.  I have a lot on my shelf I haven't read yet, but I
> > don't know if I'll be able to hold off.
> >
> >
>
>
> --
> "Acceptance, forgiveness, love - now that's a philosophy of life!"
> -Woody Allen, as Broadway Danny Rose
>