Gravity's Rainbow - Part 3 - Chapter 27: Deadly Revelations

Analysis of Gravity's Rainbow, Part 3 - Chapter 27: Närrisch Interrogated, New Intel on the 00000, Planning a Raid on the Schwarzkommando, Tchitcherine's Epiphany

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Some time ago (back in 3.13, right around the time when Slothrop was first meeting Erdmann and boarding the Anubis), Enzian and the Schwarzkommando, in a wind-tunnel testing chamber at Peenemünde, interrogated Horst Achtfaden for any knowledge he may have had regarding the Schwarzgerät and the 00000 Rocket. They drugged him to the point that he envisioned himself upon the Rücksichtslos, also known colloquially as the Toiletship. While he could not provide them with the information they needed, he did provide them with the name of someone who could: Klaus Närrisch. Närrisch himself, as we later read, was with der Springer (Gerhardt von Göll) at Swinemünde when Slothrop arrived (post-Anubis) on the vessel of Frau Gnahb (3.19). Together, Slothrop, der Springer, Närrisch, Frau Gnahb, her son Otto, and a few other randoms including a circus leader with his chimpanzees, moved from Swinemünde to Peenemünde after Springer stated he could attain the Schwarzgerät for Slothrop. This mission led to der Springer’s capture at the hands of the Russians, his rescue (which included Slothrop and Närrisch binding Tchitcherine who also happened to be there with the Soviet army), and the group’s escape sans Närrisch who stayed back to fight the Soviets in order to allow his friend, der Springer, to escape (3.20).

Tchitcherine, and his army, as we read in the opening of this current chapter, were able to capture Närrisch before the Schwarzkommando without killing him (though it did cause them to lose a number of their own). Just like the Schwarzkommando did to Achtfaden, Tchitcherine and his men do Närrisch, thus learning what information the Schwarzkommando originally sought.