VLVL (13) - Cesare Lombroso

[kelber at mindspring.com]

Well, I was being a little ironic.  I'm not into absolutes, and I don't personally get into casting people as pure evil, nor do I indulge in hero-worship (particularly its current incarnation, Obamamania).  Still, I don't think Pynchon shows us Vond's frailties or flaws in the way he does with characters such as Vibe or Deuce Kindred.  while he doesn't go for categories like "good" and "evil," Pynchon clearly prefers Zoyd and DL, say, to Vond, while Frenesi's more weak than "evil."

-----Original Message-----
>From: Paul Mackin <mackin.paul at gmail.com>
>Sent: Mar 10, 2009 11:24 AM
>To: pynchon-l at waste.org
>Subject: Re: VLVL (13) - Cesare Lombroso
>
>Vond as pure evil?  I duuno. I sympathsize with Laura's repugnance, but 
>woudn't pure villainy be an unlikely Pynchonian construction? Even comic 
>book monsters aren't pure evil anymore (just as action heroes are no longer 
>pure good).  Good can result from Brock's presence on earth. Don't his 
>insights into the student revolutionary psyche constitute important lessors 
>to be learned? Not saying they WERE learned necessarity.
>
>Pure evil is so George W. Bush.  Obama is more up to date, able to envision 
>good resulting from the actions of enemies.
>
>----- Original Message ----- 
>From: <kelber at mindspring.com>
>To: <pynchon-l at waste.org>
>Sent: Monday, March 09, 2009 11:32 AM
>Subject: Re: VLVL (13) - Cesare Lombroso
>
>
>> By casting Vond as a latter-day proponent of Lombroso, Pynchon's going all
>> out in portraying Vond as across-the-board pure EVIL. Lombroso gets
>> mentioned a few times in ATD: (p. 172, 252, 606), but the EVIL Vibe isn't
>> tagged as a disciple. Vibe, the robber--baron capitalist, isn't
>> necessarily racist:  he's more than happy to exploit and kill white
>> people.  Capitalists will exploit anyone and sell to anyone - racism isn't
>> crucial to profit margins.  Vond's a government-variety fascist.  His
>> interests lie in power and control, and Lombroso's theories work well in
>> the fascist police state of his dreams.
>>
>> Laura
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>>>From: Richard Ryan <richardryannyc at yahoo.com>
>>>Sent: Mar 9, 2009 12:26 AM
>>>To: Pynchon-L <pynchon-l at waste.org>
>>>Subject: VLVL (13) - Cesare Lombroso
>>>
>>>
>>>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cesare_Lombroso
>>>
>>>Cesare Lombroso, born Ezechia Marco Lombroso (November 6, 1835 – October
>>>19, 1909) was a Jewish-Italian criminologist and founder of the Italian
>>>School of Positivist Criminology. Lombroso rejected the established
>>>Classical School, which held that crime was a characteristic trait of
>>>human nature. Instead, using concepts drawn from physiognomy, early
>>>eugenics, psychiatry and Social Darwinism, Lombroso's theory of
>>>anthropological criminology essentially stated that criminality was
>>>inherited, and that someone "born criminal"' could be identified by
>>>physical defects, which confirmed a criminal as savage, or atavistic....
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>