VL 249 F1

[Max Nemtsov]

thank you, Alice, for this final clarification
Mx

On 30.09.2013 14:46, alice wellintown wrote:
>
> It's Nam talk. So, there isa rotation, from point to walking slack, 
> usually. The men walking slack need to protect the point, but here, 
> the point lady, DL, who has remained a maverick, and prefers, as she 
> says, to go out as Scout, or slow down the enemy as her troops retreat 
> or move on, has only a couple of slackers to walk slack for her, these 
> boys are not soldiers, they are not even sure if they want to stay in 
> the fight or run away. So, P applies the chaotic behavior of soldiers 
> in Nam to the 24fps "Tet", and we see Zoyd and his Buddy, loyal as an 
> old hound dog, heading up and away as the US pulls in not out, and all 
> the freaky  people head for the hills.
> On Mon, Sep 30, 2013 at 5:06 AM, Max Nemtsov <max.nemtsov at gmail.com 
> <mailto:max.nemtsov at gmail.com>> wrote:
>
>     thank you thank you everyone who replied
>     yeah, I did that (checking contexts and finding a surprising
>     number of war stories, which makes the expression what, a war
>     lingo?) - and exactly after it i asked ))
>     well, its somewhat clearer now
>     Mx
>
>     On 30.09.2013 3:33, Markekohut wrote:
>
>         Put " walking slack" into Google Books---a great way to search
>         uses---and you will see that it means walking behind the point
>         person who is leading; second in a line march of
>         soldiers....lotsa examples from Vietnam diaries and novels.
>         ....
>         it can be two persons, as a couple-three examples explicitly
>         state..." Both of us were walking slack together".
>
>         I cannot copy and paste a link.
>
>         Hope this helps, Max.
>
>         Sent from my iPad
>
>
>         On Sep 29, 2013, at 6:46 PM, Bekah <bekah0176 at sbcglobal.net
>         <mailto:bekah0176 at sbcglobal.net>> wrote:
>
>             It's really not clear,  imo,  because if Howie and Sledge
>             are "loyal to the end" they might be "walking carefully"
>             and "scoping out the situation."    But if they're "just
>             in shock"  then I think they'd be more likely to be
>             tagging along.
>
>             Bekah
>
>             On Sep 29, 2013, at 3:06 PM, kelber at mindspring.com
>             <mailto:kelber at mindspring.com> wrote:
>
>                 Have to admit that I'm stumped by this too. Pynchon
>                 uses the phrase again on p. 318, in a similar fashion,
>                 that also doesn't illuminate. If it's a reference to
>                 slack (as opposed to tight) rope walking, it would
>                 mean "walking carefully," I guess. Could it mean that
>                 Howie and Sledge are walking carefully ahead of her,
>                 to scope out the situation? That's about all I can
>                 figure. Sorry I can't be more helpful. Anyone?
>
>                 Laura
>
>
>                 -----Original Message-----
>
>                     From: Max Nemtsov <max.nemtsov at gmail.com
>                     <mailto:max.nemtsov at gmail.com>>
>                     Sent: Sep 29, 2013 10:56 AM
>                     To: pynchon-l <pynchon-l at waste.org
>                     <mailto:pynchon-l at waste.org>>
>                     Subject: VL 249 F1
>
>                     guys, could someone with a good ear please help
>                     the stumped translator?
>
>                     Vineland, p 249:
>                     DL in the meantime had come straggling back to
>                     Berkeley, to the workshop
>                     off San Pablo, with Howie and Sledge, either loyal
>                     to the end or just in
>                     shock, walking slack for her, and found they were
>                     just about all that
>                     was left of 24fps.
>
>                     "walking slack for her" - the exact shade of
>                     meaning? i'm suddenly at a
>                     loss with the preposition: do they just tag along
>                     - or do they cover her
>                     back somehow?
>                     thank you
>                     Mx
>                     -
>                     Pynchon-l / http://www.waste.org/mail/?list=pynchon-l
>
>                 -
>                 Pynchon-l / http://www.waste.org/mail/?list=pynchon-l
>
>             -
>             Pynchon-l / http://www.waste.org/mail/?list=pynchon-l
>
>
>     -
>     Pynchon-l / http://www.waste.org/mail/?list=pynchon-l
>
>

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