ATD: unanswered questions #2-3

[John Bailey]

I'm more ignorant of the scientific metaphors, but I can't help but see ATD
as the singling up of P's increasingly explicit ponderings on Time & Light
(so general relativity, right?) with a questioning of historiography and
different modes of history writing (esp. in M&D). I think he finally gets
right the scientific idea of emergence from GR onwards - increasingly
complex systems produce results not predictable from their components alone.
I think the books also like to play with obsolete scientific forms of
thought too, along with other kinds of intellectual waste. But ATD is
aaaaaall about Time, surely.

On Sun, Sep 21, 2008 at 3:59 AM, <bandwraith at aol.com> wrote:

> Bekah:
>
> "You think these metaphorical lines (of history, of fate,
> of science and love triangles) can be singled up?"
>
> Dunno, but I wouldn't want to fall into the trap of
> insisting that it was impossible. I think that all of Mr.
> P's novels have, if not dared, than at least threatened,
> to collapse into the framework of some "over-arching"
> metaphor(s)- perhaps along those axes- which may be in
> competition with each other for the position of narrative
> keystone.
>
> I usually gravitate toward the scientific metaphors,
> that being the area where I might br a little less ignorant,
> although not by much. But along that, uh, vector of
> interpretation, the question that begs for some
> attention, is: What is the underlying scientific metaphor
> of ATD? And, how is it threaded into the narrative?
>
> The scientific perspective iteself, as a worldview, has
> probably been in play in all the novels, but the "particular"
> scientific metaphor has differed with each:
>
> V. -I would argue, Molecular Biology
> The Crying of Lot 49 -Thermodynamics, Information Theory
> Gravity's Rainbow -General Relativity
> Vineland -Complex Systems, Chaos Theory
> M&D -Quantum Mechanics
> ATD -?
>
>
>
>
>
>
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