AtD (34) p. 963 and 969

[kelber at mindspring.com]

"... a further narrowing of choices" degenerates into something approaching determinism, by p. 969:

"It would be many years before he learned that this dog's name was Ksenjia, and that she was the intimate companion of Pugnax, whose human associates the Chums of Chance had been invisibly but attentively keeping an eye on the progress of Reef's family exfiltration from the Balkan Peninsula.  Her task at this juncture was to steer everyone to safety without appearing to."

This is the first instance of the Chums actively controlling what's going on down below.  Very different from their earlier "prime directive" of non-interference, when they were taking orders from some unknown controlling force.  Now that they're on their own, they no longer leave things to chance, they ARE Chance, rigidly controlling people who mistakenly think themselves free agents.  One has to wonder why they're so determined to help Reef and his family (as opposed to, say, Yashmeen and her family).

Laura

-----Original Message-----
>From: Mark Kohut <markekohut at yahoo.com>
>Sent: Jul 5, 2008 10:49 AM
>To: pynchon -l <pynchon-l at waste.org>
>Subject: AtD (34) p. 963
>
>Each day would show Reef, Yashmeen and Ljubica only a further narrowing of choices...
> 
>Leitmotif expreseed elsewhere in exactly those words................
> 
>"pressed by the movements of forces"......................'they're coming in from all directions".
> 
>History is Fate, not freedom (for them).........
>
>