>the “Mischianza,” that memorable farewell Ball stag’d in ’77 by the British who’d been Occupying the City
According to Wikipedia:
>The Mischianza was an elaborate fête given in ... 1778
What's the point of all this erudition if you get basic facts wrong? By reading this book, we get stupider.
>inb4 unreliable narrator
Wrong. Pynchon himself has admitted to using words that he didn't actually know the definition of. If he's capable of that, he's capable of getting facts wrong.
There's also a story about a robot duck that wants to frick a French chef as she becomes an angel.
In Mason & Dixon?
Yes
This book sounds ghastly.
Christian balks
>he's capable of getting facts wrong.
Wait until you get to the chapter where the english invent pizzas.
I think you meant to post this on reddit, stupid newbie.
This is now an M&D discussion thread where you lovely IQfyards help a brainlet understand.
What on earth does this mean? Reverend Cherrycoke says:
>had I then been ‘resurrected’ into an entirely new Knowledge of the terms of being, in which Our Savior,— strange to say in that era of Wesley and Whitefield,— though present, would not have figur’d as pre-eminently as with most Sectarians,— howbeit,— I should closely resemble the nomadic Parson you behold today. . . .”
I get that Cherrycoke is talking about his own supposed ressurection. But what does he mean that: "Our Savior ... would not have figur'd as pre-eminently as with most Sectarians ..."?
I think it’s pretty literal, but maybe the old-fashioned syntax is throwing you off. Cherrycoke is talking about a state where Christ is “present” but not as pre-eminently as He is for “most Sectarians.” Like an all-embracing Deist or perennialist perspective. Pynchon is a bit of an Orientophile and interested in mysticism, as these constantly show up in his books (references to Buddhism, Hinduism, various forms of occultism like the Kabbalah, the Tarot, Freemasonry, Rosicrucianism, Gnostic Catharism, etc.), so I think it’s Pynchon’s New-Age-esque universalistic conceptions shining through.
Sort of like a Zen “Buddhism without the Buddha,” or the Buddha being killed in the road, wooden statues of him burnt by an abbot to shock a disciple into awakening, etc., and thereby paradoxically getting closer to the Buddha’s authentic teachings. Pynchon’s thoughts on Christianity come through maybe most clearly in this book than any other of his I’ve read. When it’s turned into a political entity or hate-driven one, it’s clearly the target of his ire or scorn (like sinister Jesuits described in the book), but Dixon’s Quakerism (unconventional even by the standards of this unconventional sect, as he loves women and drink) is something he seems to respect a lot.
Ok the passage makes more sense now, thanks for sharing. Pynchon seems to be no fan of Catholicism, I see.
Pynchon just makes a lot of shit up. If you want to enjoy him, you have to indulge him.
But why? Why be a year off? I can deal with things being entirely made up, like these two examples ...
... but when you're one year off, that tells me that you tried to be accurate and failed.
https://waste.org/pipermail/pynchon-l/2017-April/205054.html
Best explanation you'll get
Wow, I really must be new here.
>Rev. Wicks Cherrycoke
okay that's funny
>the dates are off by a year? le caught you!
Good thing you’re a pathetic friendless incel, otherwise I’d tell you to kys, but as you are there wouldn’t really be any point
Nonfiction books have errors of this kind missed by editors, Pynchon is writing fiction so it's even less relevant. Don't see any point in mentioning it except as a feeble attempt to flex
>feeble attempt to flex
is what Pynchon does by filling his books with supposed erudition
You can tell in M&D and the first 30 pages or so I read of ATD that he had a lot of fun writing the books.. but there was something empty.. a kind of weakness of it's non-totality with respect to indians and slaves.
And while the latter is somewhat addressed thru the Black Hole of Calcutta business it lacked the metaphysical darkness and death-driving libinal thumping power of GR by a long-shot, I thought.
All that being said, nothing really better than a book that gives you St. Helena, Capetown Katsep devil's seasoning, smoking weed with G. Wash's slave and eating edibles. Very fun ride.
Curious if anyone here had any thoughts on the significance of the Inner-world part in the last third of the book? I tried to justify it by some sort of 'the old has gone; the new has come' AND finding a place for the old world, and the moving Sod, etc., what with the extra-day business and the standardization of the calendar in the book and all.
Rambling a bit now, haven't posted here since the golden age 2015-17 but worth chatting if anyone has any readings on the above.
You're too good for this board, don't let it suck you back in.
>Golden age was election tourism
Late 2015 is when all the redditors came.
I can forgive an author making factual errors, but even if he didn't catch this his editors should have.