VL-IV 1: L'amour est un oiseau rebelle [plain text]

[Mark Kohut]

Perhaps, in the context of Robin's detailed insights into the fascism theme of "Vineland", Hector can be seen
as a 'friendly fascist" as one political thinker has characterized Huey Long and Reagan's America....as well as a buffoon?

There are keystone kop-like 'fascists'---if that means 'nice guy' violaters of democratic rights....




________________________________
From: John Bailey <sundayjb at gmail.com>
To: pynchon-l at waste.org
Sent: Tuesday, December 9, 2008 12:34:13 AM
Subject: Re: VL-IV 1: L'amour est un oiseau rebelle [plain text]

I don't read Hector as a villain at all - a foil, maybe. But he's too likeable, and after the initial set-up is as much a buffoon as Zoyd is. They complement each other in that Odd Couple way.

Vond is a villain proper, but I recall feeling a fondness even for his sidekick. VL isn't a novel of good/evil, I think. I'm sure it operates on a very different logic to those gnostic readings of GR.

As for Hector's surname, I'm deeply ashamed to say that my first thought was of Daphne Zuniga who played Michael J. Fox's girlfriend in "Family Ties" (1982-84). Yep, I was a child of the Tube. And VL is all about family.


On Tue, Dec 9, 2008 at 2:05 AM, Robin Landseadel <robinlandseadel at comcast.net> wrote:

I get the feeling that many of the characters in Vineland are
based on people TRP has known, seeing as he's so
specific about time and place. Remember as well that in "Slow
Learner" OBA points out that all good "fiction" is based on life
experience. Hector is one of the funniest and "roundest" of all of
Pynchon's villains, though Pynchon's signaling of comic adversaries
Tweety Bird and Sylvester gets down to cases. 


On Dec 8, 2008, at 6:31 AM, kelber at mindspring.com wrote:


I suppose there's always the possibility that Hector is based on a real-life person.


      
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