Series: A Chicago Classic | Publication Date: April 1, 1987
The exhausting plenitude of loosely connected detail in Gravity’s Rainbow makes it a favorite of postmodern critics, who claim it describes a modern, random, unknowable universe. Hume expands the possibilities as she discloses a mythic structure that underlies Pynchon’s work and provides easier access to his world.
“Myth turns chaos into cosmos,” Hume explains, describing how the profuse detail of Pynchon’s book allows for the creation of a “world humankind shapes out of chaos by means of ritual and myth. . . a set of interlocking stories. . . [that] fit into a narrative sequence or mythology that conveys, supports, and challenges cultural values.”
Pynchon’s “mythology is not rigidly consistent,” Hume notes, but “several strands of mythological action. . . serve a stabilizing function in this chaotic book.” Pynchon creates his own “unheroic” hero to show the way for making sense of the fragmented experience of life in the postmodern world.
“Kathryn Hume’s study of Gravity’s Rainbow is not only a strong contribution to the field of Pynchon studies and contemporary fiction, but the best-researched book on Pynchon to date.”—David Cowart
About the Author
Kathryn Hume is Professor of English at The Pennsylvania State University.
Product Details
Hardcover: 248 pages
Publisher: Southern Illinois University Press; 1st edition (April 1, 1987)
