anarchy, spoilers, bluejays, berube at the mla

[mikebailey at speakeasy.net]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: David Morris [mailto:fqmorris at gmail.com]
> Subject: Re: Against The Day Review By Publishers Weekly
> 
> <robinlandseadel at comcast.net> wrote:
> >
> > I'll bet anarchy will be a big, big theme in "Against The Day". Anarchism is the central mcguffin of all of Pynchon's books. The great primordial scene of pure anarchy in literature has got to be "Suck Hour" from V. "The Zone" is the stateless state. "Mason & Dixon" tells a tale of our land's last moments of statelessness. "The Crying of Lot 49"—modes of getting messages through without the slightest chance the government will ever get their paws on your mail. And Vineland obviously is just a bunch of freaks kicking the gong around (and probably closest to Pynchon's true, everyday voice, riffing on passing social detritus and squeezing in a couple of appearances on the Simpsons in the bargain). If Against the Day is headed where I think it's headed, anarchy/statelessness will be a central and explicit theme.
> 
> Pynchon toys with anarchy, but usually in a self-knowing romantic way,
> an unachievable ideal dreamed about by romantics, but unsustainable
> except in short bursts.
> 

like that "anarchist miracle" in CoL49? 
Yet maybe worth pursuing in general (like other worthwhile brief experiences with a long effortful lead-up, like paydays or sledding down a big hill), and certainly as a theme in Pynchon's writing. 
One idea I've had is that perhaps he is refining in fiction the notion of anarchy - noting its pitfalls etc. The gaucho anarchists in GR don't (to me) seem that admirable or worthy imitation; and although one's heart goes out to 24fps in Vineland, we certainly don't see it succeed, quite the opposite in fact as every possible codicil of Murphy's Law and human nature conspires against it. 
I've decided not to read the spoilers yet...after all, I can always change my mind about that. I figure on reading it all over the Thanksgiving weekend in a mad rush. and then I will have to avoid giving spoilers, but can go back and read all the previous ones. 
also, I was wondering if the bluejays in the opening scene of Vineland could be a baseball reference?
michael berube (heard about him in this group 1st and got hooked on his blog, however now he is famous having made it to Colbert's board) is speaking at the midwest mla - it looks like he is either right after the keynote address or perhaps "IS" the keynote address - in a couple weeks in Chicago at the Hilton Palmer House (is that the hotel formerly known as the Palmer House?), I read a mystery called Murder at the MLA one time (at band camp...) and the convention scene described therein sounded like it might actually be kind of fun (if one was not being murdered), also they are putting on some cool plays
192. Stagings of Harold Pinter's Landscape and Tristan Tzara's The Gas Heart, two one-act plays
i wonder how hard it would be to sneak into that...gosh the list of papers looks fascinating too: http://www.uiowa.edu/~mmla/2006program.html guess i need to think hard about going back to school sometime

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