Pynchon's negative thoughts on GR

[Mark Kohut]

Let's assume he judges, self-judges, at the HIGHEST LEVELS---like he tries to 
write.

Therefore, despite all the oft-brilliance, he wanted it to........cohere...to 
be, like great art,
so much more than the sum of good lines.......

So, he worried............

But 'piece of shit' is surely for self-deprecating effect? (I shouldn't call him 
Shirley--he
DOES seem to think CofL49 is a piece of shit)...........

Shit. Who knows?


----- Original Message ----
From: Humberto Torofuerte <strongbool at gmail.com>
To: Pynchon-L <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Sent: Fri, February 11, 2011 2:27:38 PM
Subject: Re: Pynchon's negative thoughts on GR

I can't tell if this is criticism or just a teensy bit of insecurity
on his part.

On Fri, Feb 11, 2011 at 10:45 AM, Albert Rolls <alprolls at earthlink.net> wrote:
>
> Gerald Howard: "As most Pynchonians know, Corlies Smith — universally called 
>Cork — was Pynchon's editor from the very start of the author's career. [...] On 
>October 20 [1969] [Cork] wrote again to [Edward Mendelson, perhaps Pynchon's 
>most astute and devoted academic critic,]: 'Sorry, nothing new on Pynchon's 
>novel.' On March 5, 1970, Pynchon wrote to Cork to apologize that he was not 
>going to make an April 1 deadline and asking that it be moved to July 1, 1970. 
>He thanked him for his forbearance and ended by expressing his worry, with what 
>degree of irony only he can say for sure, that the novel 'could be the biggest 
>piece of shit since The Crying of Lot 49.'"
>
>http://gravitys-rainbow.pynchonwiki.com/wiki/index.php?title=Gravity's_Rainbow_Reviews
>s
>
> -----Original Message-----
>>From: Mark Kohut <markekohut at yahoo.com>
>>Sent: Feb 11, 2011 10:28 AM
>>To: Michael Bailey <michael.lee.bailey at gmail.com>, P-list 
<pynchon-l at waste.org>
>>Subject: Re: Pynchon's negative thoughts on GR
>>
>>As P said about Ian & Sylvia's eternal love song, He is
>>always saying---see Slow Learner---that the stuff he uses
>>in his books is ALWAYS for the reasons of his art in those
>>books........
>>
>>Basic Lit 101 and we have to keep trying to read him with that in mind, imho.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>----- Original Message ----
>>From: Michael Bailey <michael.lee.bailey at gmail.com>
>>To: P-list <pynchon-l at waste.org>
>>Sent: Fri, February 11, 2011 10:15:12 AM
>>Subject: Re: Pynchon's negative thoughts on GR
>>
>>> wasn't it in the letter to the Dude?
>>>
>>
>>which I can't find online now, but there was a thread on this list
>>about it a couple years ago.  The full text was made available
>>somewhere at the time. I believe it sold at auction for a hefty price.
>>In it he expresses disagreement with the notion that GR is
>>historically or scientifically rigorous.
>>
>>Dave Monroe probably remembers.
>>
>>I don't think Pynchon actually says anything to deny that it is a
>>fantastically great novel, just that people are giving him credit for
>>a hypertrophied science bone (or words to that effect) when his
>>outstanding parts are the artistic ones (which he doesn't actually
>>say, but I read it in his non-denial of that charge)
>>I said something like the above back then, but not nearly so succinctly.
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>



 
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