The treatment of historical space in selected works by Thomas Pynchon

Abstract

This dissertation uses the concept of various "spaces" in a literary work to attain a historical perspective on selected works by Thomas Pynchon: The Crying of Lot 49 (1966); Gravity's Rainbow (1973) and Mason & Dixon (1997). The historical space forms the focal point for a discussion, since history is an important theme in Pynchon's novels. Different views of history can be constructed from each text by noting the interaction of the spaces and how they relate to the historical space. The Crying of Lot 49 focuses on the individual in relation to history from a post Second World War perspective. Gravity's Rainbow concentrates on the Second World War and war in general as a metaphor for the twentieth century and how this is situated historically. Mason & Dixon reaches further into history to the eighteenth century as the "Age of Reason" to explore it from postmodernism. Throughout shifts in emphasis the spaces in each novel can be successfully used to bring the theme of history to the fore and analyse it.