V-2nd - Chapter 12: Keep Cool But Care

[Mark Kohut]

Detachment or just self-containment? within one-on-oneness............

It does say "Love" as in Love and do as you will" that one overridding 
"commandment" someone sez...

How overarching is the 'help" mandate?.....help to do the work that was 24fps? 
or just help thy neighbor kind of help?   

How is the "no publicizing it" akin to P's belief in privacy or his 
Anti-Charisma bits????




----- Original Message ----
From: "kelber at mindspring.com" <kelber at mindspring.com>
To: pynchon-l at waste.org
Sent: Wed, December 15, 2010 10:15:35 AM
Subject: V-2nd - Chapter 12: Keep Cool But Care

Lackluster as the lowly Chapter 12 is, it's still the source of the oft-quoted: 
Keep cool but care.  McClintic formulates this little philosophy while he's with 
Paola.  There always seems to be wind imagery around Paola (including her last 
name).  McClintic and Paola are driving up the Hudson and here's another wind 
reference:  "their own wind was cool."

Then:  "She talked to him straight and McClintic kept cool."

She tells him her life story, which causes McClintic to ruminate:

"Love with your mouth shut, help without breaking your ass or publicizing it:  
keep cool, but care."

It's a prescription for emotional detachment, for a realization that no one can 
do much of anything about the state of the world.  Not sure Assange subscribes 
to this.  Or Dick Cheney.  But certainly, Pynchon does.

Laura