Analysis of Gravity's Rainbow, Part 3 - Chapter 1: Slothrop in Nordhausen, Introductions to Major Duane Marvy, Oberst Enzian, Geli Tripping, and Vaslav Tchitcherine
It'll help some to know Lyle Bland is fictional but Hugo Stinnes is real; Psychochemie AG is fictional but I.G. Farben is real, Project Hermes is real, and of course the Hereros very real. ... Part of the pleasure of the book is that he gives us things to research on our own, and that shapes our worldview, changes our understanding of history, and also places his fictional story in an exact historical context that makes meaning echo throughout everything that's fictional, like Lyle Bland -- he is fictional and yet we also know exactly who he is...
He does such a fantastic job of blending real historical events with fictional parallels. One of the hardest parts writing about the recent chapters has been trying to fluidly say what is real and what is not, mostly because I don't want it to sound too much like " *literary analysis* and this pairs with this which REALLY HAPPENED" which evolves from my aesthetics in writing these posts too, but I think I just need to include more footnotes for those who are interested in the historical aspects of the novel.
Hi Jed, I'm trying so hard to figure out who Lyle is representing if you're alluding to a single person in your last sentence there. 2 days now trying to figure it out and my guess is either jp Morgan or Charles Dawes maybe? I didn't get the impression Bland was on that level of importance, so my final answer was jd Rockefeller. But I'm really curious for more of your thoughts. The book and the real events are a cloud to me, I can see them but never grasp anything and they're just so interesting to observe. If not a single person do you just mean an amalgamation of figureheads at that time? Thanks and wanted to mention, enjoying your comments just as much as Andrew's great analysis. Take care!
gratitude & goodwill to you sir. You motivate me to pull my act together and do another chapter.
I wrote that poorly. I should have said, we recognize the type of guy that Lyle Bland is. I do think he's a composite character or amalgamation, and not 1:1 with any single real person, but since he's so into masonic theosophy or whatever it is, and human trafficking -- maybe DuPont? Somebody really freaky. I definitely see going with John D. but I don't think John D. would abandon his worldly wealth to journey away from his body on a psychic journey. Maybe like Clint Murchison or one of those "colorful" Texas oil guys. He reminds me of Bill Gates.
Sometimes with Pynchon it's a direct reference, but just as often or more often, I'd say, it's a vibe -- this is a type of person who exists and is grotesque in a way that is amplified by their immense riches. Peter Theil type.
Edit: Oh and the other thing is that often when Pynchon does mean to reference a real person he'll just use his real name, like Hugo Stinnes. If a name isn't obviously ridiculous in that amazing way of Pynchon names, it's worth googling.
It'll help some to know Lyle Bland is fictional but Hugo Stinnes is real; Psychochemie AG is fictional but I.G. Farben is real, Project Hermes is real, and of course the Hereros very real. ... Part of the pleasure of the book is that he gives us things to research on our own, and that shapes our worldview, changes our understanding of history, and also places his fictional story in an exact historical context that makes meaning echo throughout everything that's fictional, like Lyle Bland -- he is fictional and yet we also know exactly who he is...
He does such a fantastic job of blending real historical events with fictional parallels. One of the hardest parts writing about the recent chapters has been trying to fluidly say what is real and what is not, mostly because I don't want it to sound too much like " *literary analysis* and this pairs with this which REALLY HAPPENED" which evolves from my aesthetics in writing these posts too, but I think I just need to include more footnotes for those who are interested in the historical aspects of the novel.
As always, thank you for the great additions!
Hi Jed, I'm trying so hard to figure out who Lyle is representing if you're alluding to a single person in your last sentence there. 2 days now trying to figure it out and my guess is either jp Morgan or Charles Dawes maybe? I didn't get the impression Bland was on that level of importance, so my final answer was jd Rockefeller. But I'm really curious for more of your thoughts. The book and the real events are a cloud to me, I can see them but never grasp anything and they're just so interesting to observe. If not a single person do you just mean an amalgamation of figureheads at that time? Thanks and wanted to mention, enjoying your comments just as much as Andrew's great analysis. Take care!
gratitude & goodwill to you sir. You motivate me to pull my act together and do another chapter.
I wrote that poorly. I should have said, we recognize the type of guy that Lyle Bland is. I do think he's a composite character or amalgamation, and not 1:1 with any single real person, but since he's so into masonic theosophy or whatever it is, and human trafficking -- maybe DuPont? Somebody really freaky. I definitely see going with John D. but I don't think John D. would abandon his worldly wealth to journey away from his body on a psychic journey. Maybe like Clint Murchison or one of those "colorful" Texas oil guys. He reminds me of Bill Gates.
Sometimes with Pynchon it's a direct reference, but just as often or more often, I'd say, it's a vibe -- this is a type of person who exists and is grotesque in a way that is amplified by their immense riches. Peter Theil type.
Edit: Oh and the other thing is that often when Pynchon does mean to reference a real person he'll just use his real name, like Hugo Stinnes. If a name isn't obviously ridiculous in that amazing way of Pynchon names, it's worth googling.