Professor Sandy Baldwin
charles.baldwin at mail.wvu.edu
293-3107x452
Click for Thomas Pynchon on the Simpsons! (thanks to Spermatikos Logo)
… we all know of him: reclusive, mysterious, genius author of massive, very important works, cultural icon of paranoia and conspiracy,
recent guest voice on The Simpsons … we could call it something like the Pynchon effect, defining the 21st Century postmodern writer, invisibly
dispersed across his text but equally into the culture he writes on and through … and so, this course will be a full serving of Pynchon …
Course Goals:
- We read Pynchon. Pynchon’s novels are rewarding and challenging (and very funny). First and foremost, a close reading of the novels. Expect to read a lot: the short stories, The Crying of Lot 49, Gravity's Rainbow, Mason & Dixon, with reference to V. and Vineland. The class will be conducted as a discussion/seminar.
- Pynchon reads Them. What do you need to know to read Pynchon? We will map context and background for the notoriously complex textuality of Pynchon's novels, exploring the literariness of this encyclopedic synthesis of materials ranging from rocket science to obscure mysticism. The aim is an archeology not simply of the relevant sources but of the literary and cultural logic of documentary material in Pynchon’s work.
- Pynchon reads Us. Reading Pynchon informs our understanding of contemporary literary studies. His novels are exemplary references for a range of theory and criticism, from meta-concerns with narrative, materiality, reference, and history; to specific theoretical formations such as postmodernism, transnational/postcolonial studies, and media theory. How does Pynchon model and interrogate literary studies? His novels define an inter- or trans-disciplinary thinking that maintains the specificity of the literary. We will explore how Pynchon situates literature in a global discourse economy.
- And don’t forget the Pynchon effect!
Required Texts Available at the WVU Bookstore
Thomas Pynchon,
The Crying of Lot 49
Thomas Pynchon,
Gravity's Rainbow
Thomas Pynchon,
Mason & Dixon
Thomas Pynchon,
Slow Learner
Partial List of Recommended Texts
(all at WVU Library; *=also at WVU Bookstore)
Henry Adams,
The Education of Henry Adams, especially Chapters XXI, XXXI, XXXII, XXXIII, XXXIV, XXXV.
Aleida Assmann, "Texts, Traces, Trash: The Changing Media of Cultural Memory,"
Representations #56,
link (JSTOR)
Hanjo Berressem,
Pynchon's Poetics: Interfacing Theory and Text
Leo Bersani, "Pynchon, Paranoia, and Literature,"
Representation #25,
link (JSTOR)
Norman O. Brown,
Life Against Death: The Psychoanalytic Meaning of History
Charles Clerc,
Mason & Dixon & Pynchon
Peter Cooper,
Signs and Symptoms: Thomas Pynchon and the Contemporary World
David Cowart, "The Luddite Vision,"
American Literature Vol. 71 #2,
link (JSTOR)
Walter Dornberger,
V2
Robert Graves,
The White Goddess: A Historical Grammar of Poetic Myth
Jacob Grimm,
Teutonic Mythology
*Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri,
Empire
Molly Hite,
Ideas of Order in the Novels of Thomas Pynchon
*Chalmers Johnson,
Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic
C. G. Jung,
Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious, Vol 9 of the Collected Works
C. G. Jung,
Psychology and Alchemy, Vol 12 of the Collected Works
J. Kerry Grant,
Companion to the Crying of Lot 49
Kathryn Hume,
Pynchon's Mythography: an approach to Gravity's Rainbow
Friedrich Kittler, "Media and Drugs in Pynchon's Second World War," in
Reading Matters: Narratives in the New Media Ecology, ed. Tabbi and Wutz
Siegfried Kracauer,
From Caligari to Hitler: A Psychological History of the German Film
Stefan Mattessich,
Lines of Flight: discursive time and countercultural desire in the work of Thomas Pynchon
Marshall McLuhan,
Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man
Mindful Pleasures: Essays on Thomas Pynchon, ed. Levine & Leverenz
Frank Palmieri, "Neither Literally nor as Metaphor: Pynchon's the Crying of Lot 49 and the Structure of Scientific Revolutions,"
ELH Vol 54 #4,
link (JSTOR)
I. P. Pavlov,
Conditioned Reflexes: An Investigation of the Physiological Activity of the Cerebral Cortex
William H. Plater,
Grim Phoenix: Reconstructing Thomas Pynchon
*Thomas Pynchon,
V.
*Thomas Pynchon,
Vineland
Pynchon: A Collection of Critical Essays, ed. Edward Mendelson
Rainer Maria Rilke,
The Duino Elegies and
Sonnets to Orpheus
Rchard Sasuly,
IG Farben
Lance Schachterle, "Information Entropy in Pynchon's Fiction,"
Configurations Vol 4 #2,
link (Muse)
Gershom Sholem,
Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism
Max Weber,
The Theory of Social and Economic Organization, especially part III
*Stephen Weisenburger,
A Gravity's Rainbow Companion: Sources and Contexts for Pynchon's Novel, (not in the library)
*Norbert Wiener,
The Human Use of Human Beings: Cybernetics and Society, especially chapters I, II, V, XI
Edmund Wilson,
To the Finland Station: A Study in the Writing and Acting of History
George Zipf,
Human Behavior and the Principle of Least Effort: An Introduction to Human Ecology
Requirements
- Essay on a topic arising from the course, 10 pages minimum. Plan a paper suitable for conference presentation. One page proposal due in class August 2. Final version due via email August 10. 30%
- Class presentation, 15 minutes minimum. Sign up via email for one book-length text from the recommended list. Firstly, write a critical review of the text, inlcuding summary and evaluation, 2-3 pages.
Secondly, write a lesson plan for the text, with reference to Pynchon's work. Imagine a class of your choice; how the texts are taught is up to you. Present the
critical review and teaching plan to the class. 30%
- 4 reflection/responses, 700 words minimum, due by class time via email. Choose a specific passage in the text and respond to it. Respond to the language, to cultural or literary context, or otherwise. 10% each.
- Regular attendance, preparation, and participation are assumed.
- Join Pynchon-L, the list for pynchonoids. Link.
Social Justic Statement
West Virginia University is committed to social justice. I concur with that commitment and expect to maintain a positive learning environment based upon open communication, mutual respect, and non-discrimination. Our University does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, age, disability, veteran status, religion, sexual orientation, color or national origin. Any suggestions as to how to further such a positive and open environment in this class will be appreciated and given serious consideration.
If you are a person with a disability and anticipate needing any type of accommodation in order to participate in this class, please advise me and make appropriate arrangements with the Office of Disability Services (293-6700).
Schedule |
| Date |
Reading |
*Due* |
[Presentation] |
| July 1 |
Introduction |
| July 2 |
Slow Learner (Introduction, "Low-Lands," "Entropy") |
*Sign-up for Presentations* |
| July 5 |
Holiday |
*Response 1* |
| July 6 |
Slow Learner ("Under the Rose," "The Secret
Integration"), "Is it OK to be a Luddite?" link |
| July 7 |
The Crying of Lot 49 |
| July 8 |
The Crying of Lot 49 |
| July 9 |
The Crying of Lot 49 | |
| July 12 |
The Crying of Lot 49, all |
*Response 2* | Mandi Fredrick, The Human Use of Human Beings |
| July 13 |
The Crying of Lot 49 | | Elayna Vanscoy, Companion to The Crying of Lot 49
|
| July 14 |
Gravity's Rainbow |
| July 15 |
Gravity's Rainbow |
| July 16 |
Gravity's Rainbow | | Reid Harward, "Media and Drugs in Pynchon's Second World War" and "Pynchon, Paranoia, and Literature" |
| July 19 |
Gravity's Rainbow, through 278 |
*Response 3* | |
| July 20 |
Gravity's Rainbow | | |
| July 21 |
Gravity's Rainbow | |
|
| July 22 |
Gravity's Rainbow | | Konni Jacobs, The White Goddess |
| July 23 |
Gravity's Rainbow | | Rebecca Skidmore, From Caligari to Hitler |
| July 26 |
Gravity's Rainbow, through 616 |
*Response 4* | Matt Haas, Signs and Symptoms |
| July 27 |
Gravity's Rainbow |
|
Bridgit Ferris, Major Trends in Jewish
Mysticism |
| July 28 |
Gravity's Rainbow | | Jay Marinelli, Life Against Death |
| July 29 |
Gravity's Rainbow | | Jim Greene, Sonnets to Orpheus & Duino Elegies |
| July 30 |
Mason & Dixon | | |
| August 2 |
Mason & Dixon, through 206 |
*Paper Proposal* |
Nick Hales, Empire |
| August 3 | Mason & Dixon | | Lori Zerne, Mason & Dixon & Pynchon
|
| August 4 |
Mason & Dixon |
|
Andrea Cooke, Sorrows of Empire |
| August 5 |
Mason & Dixon |
| August 6 |
Mason & Dixon |
| August 11 |
|
*Paper Due* |