STetc - Towards a theory of cheese in ST

[Joseph Tracy]

I too mentioned the idea of further inquiry to the nuances of cheese in 
ST. Are we talking advanced  string cheese theory or just cheese 101?
***********

Along with what Michael mentions, Another common metaphoric  use of 
Cheese is along the lines of sentimental schlock or emotionally 
manipulative by using emotionally charged stereotypes. Cheesy. And 
indeed 'cheesy' also responds to cheese as a universally appealing food 
ingredient or additive. Fatty, slightly salty, fungal, creamy and with a 
variety of flavors and textures.

It can also be used in more derogatory ways: cheap, smelly, fake

Then there is "the big cheese" which derived from the earlier use of 
"the cheese" to refer to a boss, person of wealth or fame etc. early 
appearance of big cheese in this 1922 poem: considering the role of 
Foley in ATD, perhaps not unknown to Pynchon.

Foley, say there, Foley, with your hair of reddish hue
And your Irish smile, begorra!
Blarneyed them into meeting you.
The big mayor of Olean fair,
You’re the big cheese on the scene.
Foley, tell us, Foley, is your city song
The Wearin of the Green?

Radioactive cheese sounds ridiculous but in fact there was a plethora of 
radioactive products for cosmetics, and consumption in the 20 and early 
30s. One millionaire seeking to revive his sexual vitality( a common 
sales pitch) died a horrible death in 1932 but products were still on 
the market into that decade including bread made with very slightly 
radioactive water in Hungary and Czechoslovakia. 
https://www.history.com/articles/radium-cures-health-fad-early-20th-century

There sems to me to be some emphasis on radiocheese as the reason for 
the local pursuit of Bruno A, but little emphasis on this in Praediger's 
pursuit. Do we ever really know who is after him and why?

To cut the cheese- to fart.
cheese it- run and hide from police
cut to the chase: the job of investigation for truth or profit.

King Donald the Tyrranosaurus Rump of narcissism( america=me as biggest 
of big cheeses) , known to release bad odors, cheese colored hair, fake 
patriotism, manipulator of crowds via toxic promises. Always evading the 
law.

I would suggest that there is a fair amount of paralelloposionality 
going on here. Probably a good idea to get out the old  Acme 
paramophoscope for a full UNDER-SAND understanding.

My focus is in and out, but here is one way of looking at it. Once you 
are in the inner circle of big cheesedom, you are very hard to control 
because you are always dangerous to some and an asset to others. You are 
in a world where toxic ambitions reign and nobody is sure who has the 
most power. You can boast of murder and be heroized for it. You can sell 
radioactive cheese to multitudes if your timing is right. You have the 
ultimate insulation from accountability, as inscrutable as the machine 
that is eating the world.  Even if you are sitting on a mountain of hot 
air ( Airmont) you can be the most dangerous force imaginable, because 
what you possess possesses you from the radioactive depths of the 
kingdom of the damned.




On 9/4/26 10:58 PM, Michael Bailey via Pynchon-l wrote:
> (this sounded a lot better in my head...)
>
> Cheese as a transformation of milk (as in human kindness)
> Cheese as a slang for money, replacing kindness in human interactions
>
> That's not necessarily completely bad; kindness can also be hard to come by, easy to squander, and evanescent - arguably it's convenient in a human society to have a tangible thing one can count on to evoke a near-universally conditioned love response... countable, bankable...& cheese can be stored longer and more easily...
>
> So then, mixing and mingling the ideas - love, money, cheese, human intercourse - love & kindness are like Lacan's true but unattainable object of desire, the big A, while cheese and money are the unsatisfying (cheese unsatisfying, money as a further abstraction even more unsatisfying) but sometimes attainable little a.
>
> but radioactive cheese?
>
> normal accumulation of cheese would range from, like, little appetizer cubes on toothpicks, to a sandwich, a compartment in the fridge, a shop, a wholesaler, a producer, and eventually those Cheese Combines so concerning for Praediger and others;
>
> normal accumulation of cheese's further abstraction - wealth - might operate like accretion of dust in a new solar system, in that uneven forces gradually create clusters that can grow and grow into heavenly bodies which acquire an attractive force of gravity
>
> whereas radioactive cheese as it accumulates would emit alpha and beta particles and x-rays and so forth, while it grows closer to a critical mass; instead of an attractive force, it could generate a catastrophically dispersive force -
>
> and radioactive money, as it piles up and inevitably fails to generate "jouissance", instead starts to send out destructive rays of greed, Mammon-worship, disregard for other values; how much money does it take to create a critical mass? - you read about winning the Lotto messing up people's lives...
>
> and then, Bruno was advertising Radio-Cheez as a boost for people's sex lives?
> even after the dangers became known?
>
> Heinous!
>
>
>
>
>
> --
> Pynchon-L:https://waste.org/mailman/listinfo/pynchon-l