lift girders

[Simon Bryquer-RR]

'Above him lift girders old as an iron queen . . . '

If it wasn't Pynchon the above could have been written as follows:

a) Above him (steel) girders old as an iron queen rise . . .
or 
b)Above him risers girders old as an iron queen . . .
or 
c) Above him girders risers old as an iron queen . . .


But because 'risers' establishes a false rhyme  and is awkward  and a) is too conventional, just as are 'loom' ( too gothic) and other such words, Pynchon decided on the more inventive and poetic and subtle image 'lift girders'.



Don't know if this has been mentioned, but I feel the more important image is 'iron queen'. For iron queen refers to Persephone and Odysseus refers to her in this context as the queen of the underworld.  And here in a most subtle manner Pynchon strikes the first chord of the all encompassing theme of the novel. For Persephone also  represents Descent and Return  as well as Queen of the Dead. The cycle of birth-life-death. One could  go on and on for in many places where the Virgin Mary is claimed to have appeared these places were often also claimed to be the original shrine of the Goddess Persephone. Of course in Roman Myth she  is Proserpina. and etc.




  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: mikebailey at speakeasy.net 
  To: pynchon-l at waste.org 
  Sent: Saturday, November 11, 2006 12:40 AM
  Subject: Re: lift girders


  > -----Original Message-----
  > From: the Robot Vegetable [mailto:veg at dvandva.org]
  > Subject: Re: lift girders
  > 
  > 
  > I don't think it means a "lift girder" - I tink it
  > meands that means they loom overhead, but not as
  > oppressive as "loom". Akin to the relation between
  > intense volition (loom) and velleity (lift).
  > 


  wow!  great explication.  (would you treat the next 750 pages, please?)

  but seriously, that was nicely put


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