I finished Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon today.
It was part of my “Gravity’s Rainbow Challenge” to read the novel in under two months (I could have included it in my Year of Giant Novels). I wasn’t sure I wanted to do a post on it, but I felt that it is too major not to.
It is said that people have written entire Ph.D. theses on just a single page of this novel. This is an unverified rumor, but it wouldn’t surprise me. This leads me to a dilemma.
Dilemma: If I take something small and doable for a post, maybe just a detail somewhere, then it is pointless for people who haven’t read the book. There is no reference point.
But if I do just a general review, then it would be to miss the point.
So most people consider Gravity’s Rainbow to be THE postmodern novel. Some would say the greatest novel of the twentieth century (although I think Beloved officially won that).
This was not my first Pynchon experience, so I sort of knew what to expect. I also went in prepared with resources for help if I needed it.
Difficulty of Gravity’s Rainbow
Overall, it wasn’t as hard as people make it sound. There was surprisingly a clear main character: Tyrone Slothrop. There were also clear other main characters that weren’t quite as prominent.
I guess I’ll just offer advice in place of some all-out guide.
Newbies
If you are thinking about reading it but are worried, don’t be. Just do it. It isn’t that hard.
Now, you may come out having no idea what it was about, but there is a story and you should be able to get that.
For at least 200 pages, keep a list of main characters and how they relate. You probably won’t need it after that, but it will save time in the beginning with all the switching around that is done every couple of pages.
I used a blank sheet of computer paper. After I was done trying to keep track of characters, I used it to keep track of ideas or details that I thought were important.
More Advanced
For a more advanced reading, I’d say to try to figure out how each of the quotes at the beginning of the section and the name of the section are pertinent.
Trust me, it isn’t as easy as it sounds. I have at least three distinct interpretations of Part I: Beyond the Zero now.
If you don’t know German or Spanish, look up the parts that are in these languages. It may be important. Read Rilke’s Duino Elegies before starting. Be familiar with Kabala and Tarot traditions. The names of things and the act of naming something is important.
Expert
For a super-advanced reading, I’d say learn calculus (and the philosophy of infinitesimals), quantum mechanics, differential equations, Godel’s Incompleteness Theorem, Maxwell’s Demon/entropy and Heisenberg’s Uncertainty Principle.
Now I call this a “super-advanced reading,” but in my interpretation, you miss the whole point if you don’t understand how the novel relates to the incompleteness of formal systems and uncertainty in infinitesimals.
Gravity’s Rainbow Review
What did I think?
Well, it is without a doubt worth the effort.
It is the most impressive work of literature I’ve ever read. It was mostly enjoyable, too. I was expecting pure unreadable erudition, but it really wasn’t.
In fact, the style of writing changed to fit what was necessary for the section. Often times it would switch to a screenplay, play, poem, song, letter, and more as the format of writing.
I lost many nights of sleep working out what I consider to be the main theme. I actually wish I could write a big paper on this right now since I think it has been largely ignored.
Thematic Thoughts
I truly feel that it is an embodiment and expression of how the incompleteness theorem and uncertainty principle affect our everyday lives.
There is also a very interesting theory proposed that not only are unobserved particles wavefunctions, but we as humans are wavefunctions.
It is sort of zen-like.
He claims that the more we live in the moment, the more our wavefunction is spread out. The more we pay attention to the past and cling to things, the more instantiated our wavefunction is.
The act of achieving enlightenment is to be completely in the moment which means your wavefunction is completely everywhere and thus you are one with everything.
I know, I know. How can this be a guide or review or whatever when I haven’t told you anything about the plot?
This was on purpose.
If you go and read a plot summary somewhere after reading this, just know that it is not accurate.
There is no such thing as a plot summary and to try to say the slightest thing about the plot would be to miss the point of the novel completely.
It is an experience rather than a work of literature. I highly recommend experiencing it if you have the time and energy to devote to it.
