Gravity's Rainbow - Part 2 - Chapter 0: The Film Set in Motion
Gravity's Rainbow Analysis: The Title and Epigraph of Part 2, Un Perm' au Casino Hermann Goering
Part 2: Un Perm’ au Casino Hermann Goering
Every so often you may feel a weight lifted off your shoulders; you realize that They have given you a reprieve of sorts, and you feel grateful. Things momentarily become easier and less worrisome. You feel at ease.
You must realize though that everything They do is a part of Their greater plan. They would not willingly take even an ounce of weight off your shoulders if it meant a possible loss or required an extra ounce of Their own effort.
It was revealed in Part 1 that The White Visitation and other large entities had an interest in attaining and conditioning Slothrop, as well as discovering the mechanism surrounding Jamf’s conditioning. The entire point of Beyond the Zero was to set these entities in motion, and now that they are set up and ready to go, we can press play. But Slothrop’s paranoia has reached an absolute peak. As is often done with us, when the world is going to hell and They have failed to completely mask the true intentions behind their usual methods, he is given that furlough — the perm’ of the title — to take his mind off of what may be going on behind the scenes. To let him know that he is free and that surely there is no one trying to harm him.
Though, it is not a furlough to just anywhere — it is a furlough to the Casino Hermann Goering. The casino, in the grander sense, is a place where the house always wins, and in this case, it is owned, run, and in favor of the Nazi regime (not to mention the title is in French and the Casino is in France — so the Reich is clearly spreading).
In all, though the title is a bit less mystical and more literal than Beyond the Zero, we will now begin to see how They hide their plans in the most purportedly normal of places.
The Epigraph:
You will have the tallest, darkest leading man in Hollywood.
— Merian C. Cooper to Fay Wray
These were the words spoken to Fay Wray, an actress, by Merian C. Cooper, a director. Little did she know, the “man” who he spoke of would be King Kong.
Slothrop will begin to meet a variety of characters within this next section: some whom he has met before and many who he has not. They will all present themselves as one way but in reality, will have their own intentions that have already been set forth by someone higher up — for they are actors, of course.
These things go both ways, because though we typically are aware of Slothrop himself being lied to and disillusioned, the quote clearly shows the director speaking to the actor, and the people ready to play their part in the great Slothrop plot are Wray’s equivalent. So even though they believe they know what they’re getting into, Slothrop may not be what he is told to be, or the plot may not be exactly what is told to them. They may be told they are being given the gift of a grand position which they will be adequately compensated for, but they likely have no idea what they’re really getting into. Only the director knows the schematics for what will occur down the line, but any free thinking mind will be able to catch onto certain oddities placed before it, whether it’s actually as obvious as a giant gorilla or something far subtler.
A short one this week, but I hope it gave a few ideas of the themes and devices to look out for.
Up Next: Part 2, Chapter 1