IVIV (1) "She came along the alley and up the back steps ..."

[Robin Landseadel]

On Aug 25, 2009, at 5:19 AM, Tore Rye Andersen wrote:

> John:
>
>> Tore's point about IV's opening line being a better fit for the
>> ATD/M&D/GR 'abstract' category, rather than the direct,
>> character-introducing ones, is interesting, particularly in light of
>> recent discussions here on how to categorise Pynchon's novels. It's
>> good to see a categorisation criteria introduced which places IV in
>> such exalted company!
>
> Well, more like a category unto its own, is what I was trying to say.

One thing that's curious, novel, & a new category for Pynchon in this  
novel is a third-person narrator attempting to do the work of a first  
person narrator. Philip Marlowe is, of course, the first person doing  
the narration in all of Chandler's novels. I was so surprised to find  
that Inherent Vice was narrated from this semi-omniscient view.  
Perhaps it makes the result more like a move script, but the way the  
novel's point of view moves, we have a third-person voice that sticks  
close to Doc, one that never really gets very far away from him. More  
to the point, that third person voice seems to be riding the emotional  
waves of Doc, is justthisfaraway from being Doc's voice.

Perhaps the narrator is Doc's better angel.