GR translation: who was crossing the great Rio forever

[Mike Jing]

The published translation is something like this:

At the time, the dealer was going to cross the Rio Grande, into the
wasteland of Mexico, and never to return.

So the interpretation is that he was crossing the river for good, but I
don't think that's the same as "crossing the river forever".


On Sun, Jun 5, 2022 at 4:30 PM Mark Kohut <mark.kohut at gmail.com> wrote:

> I don't think so but......
>
> On Sun, Jun 5, 2022 at 11:09 AM Mike Jing <gravitys.rainbow.cn at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> The published translation interpreted "forever" as "for good", but I
>> don't think it's the same thing, is it?
>>
>>
>> On Sun, Jun 5, 2022 at 4:53 AM Mark Kohut <mark.kohut at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Right or wrong, I have always read this line as about an archetypal faro
>>> dealer....unlike
>>> Whappo and Crutchfield he has no name, he is a constant type and his
>>> type is one who
>>> is always, has always, crossed the great Rio over and over. Forever.
>>>
>>> On Sun, Jun 5, 2022 at 12:24 AM Mike Jing <gravitys.rainbow.cn at gmail.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> V69.10-13, P70.28-31   Whappo is wearing chaps of imported gazelle hide
>>>> that Crutchfield bought for him in Eagle Pass from a faro dealer with a
>>>> laudanum habit who was crossing the great Rio forever, into the blank
>>>> furnace of the wild Mexico.
>>>>
>>>> What does it mean for the faro dealer to be "crossing the great Rio
>>>> forever"? Did he actually cross it, or was he forever in the process of
>>>> crossing it?
>>>> --
>>>> Pynchon-L: https://waste.org/mailman/listinfo/pynchon-l
>>>>
>>>