Article
Author: Friedrich Kittler (Humboldt University)
The novels of Pynchon are often discussed amongst literary experts as a prime example of so-called postmodernism. If Thomas Pynchon didn't already exist in secrecy, he would simply have to be invented, in order to verify postmodernism, just as Georg Cantor demonstrates Bacon's authorship of the works of Shakespeare. In any case, a vast cartel of quoters seem more than eager to ever increase a supposedly fresh complexity. Niklas Luhmann, when he was still smiling, occasionally joked that he knew not of any postmodernism, only of a modern post. Seeing themselves confronted with the facts and circumstances of Pynchon's novels, where the well-rehearsed tools of the humanities miserably fail, these prophets might find that the easiest way to escape their dilemma is simply to tag it as postmodern.
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How to Cite: Kittler, F. (2008) “Pynchon and Electro-Mysticism”, Pynchon Notes.(0). doi: https://doi.org/10.16995/pn.30