FR online review

[Charles Albert]

This said, I found the comparison between Pynchon's and Kleist's use of
commas interesting.


The labyrinthine use of nested clauses is a Pynchon standard. It is a
technique borrowed from the likes of Bierce and O'Henry. It "obliges" an
internal meter, which is why P. prose can sound so much like poetry. This is
not a recent development for P., many passages in GR manifest the same
quality.

It also plays with the reader's sense of anticipation. As he/she works to
get the syntax right, Pynchon levels these distracting shots of paralyzing
humor. Effort/pay off, not necessarily in the manner anticipated. Check the
opening sentence of Beirce's My Favorite Murder.....


I'm also amused by the constant carping about Pynchon "undercutting the
serious" by issuing profound observations from the mouths of characters with
ridiculous names.....It is as if these critics just didn't "get" the dog
days sequence in V. Drama and tragedy, are for the most part, indulgences -
the world, history, are entirely without sympathy....It's damned near as
idiotic as the demand that Pynchon observe the "classical" rules of
narrative. Stories are merely components of a tableau, like the smiling fish
seen in those huge 18th cent. italian canvasses of Venice.....you want
beginning, middle and "resolution" - get thee some Grisham, or Clancy.....


Most of the critics seem determined to "make their bones" by slagging AtD.
I'm quite certain that had it preceded GR we would hear a totally different
tune...

Though I may be the least discriminating participant on this list, and only
400 pages in - I'm delighted with the book. As Rich suggested some time ago,
it reflects a more "mature" author, whose tricks are marshaled in an
increasingly efficient as well as effective manner. As a father of a
daughter, I can empathize with Merle's desires as he sees Dally off on the
train, "just one more day", and I find the interpersonal tarantellas
convincing and poignant...


love,
cfa




On 1/19/07, Thomas Eckhardt <thomas.eckhardt at uni-bonn.de> wrote:
>
> Mario first brought that review to our attention, albeit in a way that
> drew Doug's ire.
>
> Müller-Sievers makes some interesting points, some of which I find
> highly debatable. He argues, for example, that long-time Pynchon readers
> are being turned away by an increasing "poeticization" of Pynchon's
> prose style. Formerly, Müller-Sievers states, readers were able to
> separate the arcane and politically risky information from the literary
> form. From "M&D" onwards, he argues, form and content become more and
> more inextricably entwined. He indeed hints at an interesting
> development in Pynchon's writing there, I believe. But to suggest, in
> effect, that the fascination e.g. "GR" still exerts lies exclusively in
> the book's verifiable historical subjects and not in its prose style is
> ridiculous. Pynchon could have written about Deutsch-Südwest and the V2
> all he wanted, if "GR" wasn't the prose masterpiece it is, it would
> still not be more than an interesting read.
>
> This said, I found the comparison between Pynchon's and Kleist's use of
> commas interesting. I also wholeheartedy agree that "AtD", even if it
> had no discernible point or unifying theme (Müller-Sievers says the
> novel's theme is WW I, me, I haven't found out yet), would still be
> "eternally justified" by the embarrassment of riches on every single
> page. On the other hand, I assume, having reached page 200, that
> Müller-Sievers' assessment of the novel as "utopian" underestimates its
> dark undercurrents.
>
> Jim Jarmusch and Tom Waits are poor choices indeed. I like them, but for
> me their sensibilities don't seem to square with Pynchon's. The Scorsese
> of "After Hours" and "Age of Innocence", ok. Michael Mann, no, although
> I enjoy his work. Peter Greenaway, no, too abstract. Only the Knights of
> the Living Dead could do justice to Pynchon, i.e. a collaboration of
> Billy Wilder and Stanley Kubrick.
>
> Thomas
>
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