Difference between revisions of "ATD 149-170"
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| − | '' | + | '''...it was a time honored principle to do nothing for free [...] Trust me. Buy Rand shares'''<br> |
| − | + | There seems to be a double meaning here. The text implies that Rand is a gold mining company (does anyone know if this is/was a real company?). Regardless, Yitzhak and Fleetwood are talking about South Africa, where the ''rand'' is the currency, the Kruger''rand'' is a gold coin, and the Witwaters''rand'' is the ridge upon which Johannesburg is built. On another level, however, it seems as though Pynchon is mocking the philosophy of Ayn Rand, which is often characterized as a defense of selfishness or strong individualism. Pynchon [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0277-335X(198201)47%3A1%3C62%3ALATWWO%3E2.0.CO%3B2-W previously parodied] Ayn Rand and her Theory of Objectivism as "Mafia Winsome" and her "Theory of Heroic Love" in ''V.'' | |
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| + | See also page 146. | ||
'''war going on'''<br> | '''war going on'''<br> | ||
The Second Boer War started 11 October 1899. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Boer_War Wikipedia] | The Second Boer War started 11 October 1899. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Boer_War Wikipedia] | ||
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==Page 168== | ==Page 168== | ||
Revision as of 14:36, 9 December 2006
- Please keep these annotations SPOILER-FREE by not revealing information from later pages in the novel.
Contents
Page 149
meteorite
Cf Smilla's Sense of Snow by Peter Hoeg.
Page 150
Tammanoid creatures, able to deliver votes
As in "Tammany Hall", the often corrupt political machine that played a role in New York City politics for nearly two centuries. Wikipedia entry.
Page 151
the Eskimo view
But cf page 142, where the Eskimos are "eager" to help.
Panic fear... affecting pose
Pynchon critiquing 9-11 opportunism.
Page 152
beautiful patterns
Cf page 81.
Page 153
recent incorporation
1898. Wikipedia
Pages 154-155
Hunter Penhallow's escape might be read as a happy ending getaway inversion of the claustrophobic opening sequence of Gravity's Rainbow, where nobody gets saved; "in this world brought low" echoes "the Light that hath brought the Towers low" on the final page of Gravity's Rainbow..."Light" may prefigure Against the Day's treatment of that subject, too.
It also echoes Lew's encounter with Drave's group (p39).
Page 156
rival school hues
Yale: blue and white. Harvard: crimson white, and black.
"Mr. Rinehart"
Anachronism from 1900. info
Page 157
"crimson" is cognate with "worm"
Largely true. The American Heritage Dictionary gives the etymology for worm as "Middle English, from Old English wurm, variant of wyrm." The root wyrm in turn derives from the Indo-European base wer-2, meaning to turn or bend. (Words descended from wer-2 include stalwart, weird, vertebra, wrath, wrong, wrestle, briar and rhapsody.) The modern word crimson derives from Middle English cremesin, which (via one of several alternative pathways) comes from Arabic qirmizy, a word based on qirmiz, the kermes insect. This insect, which lives on the Kermes oak (Quercus coccifera), was an early source for red dye but fell out of favor after the introduction of cochineal. The Arabic name for this insect probably stems from the Sanskrit kṛmi-ja-, referring to a red dye produced from worms. The -ja is from an Indo-European root *gene-, meaning "to produce" (whence, ultimately, our word "gene" and the -gen in chemical element names). The other component, kṛmi-, means "worm", and takes us back to Indo-European wer-2.
"no professional football"
NFL founded 1902. cite
Page 159
meat lozenges
Lightweight for hikers. "Brand's meat lozenges, which are about the size of a four-penny piece and a quarter of an inch thick" cite
Page 160
Dittany
Greek herb symbolising love. Wikipedia
Page 166
hair ropes
Cowboy superstition: horsehair ropes kept snakes away.
"stand your ground"
Ellmann tells a similar story about Joyce's father facing charging riders in Phoenix Park.
Page 167
...it was a time honored principle to do nothing for free [...] Trust me. Buy Rand shares
There seems to be a double meaning here. The text implies that Rand is a gold mining company (does anyone know if this is/was a real company?). Regardless, Yitzhak and Fleetwood are talking about South Africa, where the rand is the currency, the Krugerrand is a gold coin, and the Witwatersrand is the ridge upon which Johannesburg is built. On another level, however, it seems as though Pynchon is mocking the philosophy of Ayn Rand, which is often characterized as a defense of selfishness or strong individualism. Pynchon previously parodied Ayn Rand and her Theory of Objectivism as "Mafia Winsome" and her "Theory of Heroic Love" in V.
See also page 146.
war going on
The Second Boer War started 11 October 1899. Wikipedia
Page 168
"like Baku with giraffes"
Gravity's Rainbow mentions Baku by name three times, according to the Pynchon Pages index (http://www.hyperarts.com/pynchon/gravity/alpha/b.html):
352; seaport capital of Azerbaydzhanskaya SSR, Soviet Union, on the west coast of the Caspian Sea; 353; Blobadjian "pursued through the black end of Baku by a passel of screaming Arabists" 354
After reading this section, and the oddly-separated text of Fleetwood's reverie about his pursuit of wealth in the Transvaal, and his murder of the Kaffir, the family name struck me, "Vibe" = "V" I be. Certainly this section brings back the African horror of "V."
Annotation Index
| Part One: The Light Over the Ranges |
|
|---|---|
| Part Two: Iceland Spar |
119-148, 149-170, 171-198, 199-218, 219-242, 243-272, 273-295, 296-317, 318-335, 336-357, 358-373, 374-396, 397-428 |
| Part Three: Bilocations |
429-459, 460-488, 489-524, 525-556, 557-587, 588-614, 615-643, 644-677, 678-694 |
| Part Four: Against the Day |
695-723, 724-747, 748-767, 768-791, 792-820, 821-848, 849-863, 864-891, 892-918, 919-945, 946-975, 976-999, 1000-1017, 1018-1039, 1040-1062 |
| Part Five: Rue du Départ |
