Thomas Pynchon, Gravity's Rainbow

Sascha Pöhlmann (Ludwig-Maximilians Universität Munchen)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 3.2.4: American (US) Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary, 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Sofia Ahlberg (Uppsala University), Patrick Chura (University of Akron), Emory Elliott (University of California, Riverside), Dale Enggass (University of Utah), Christopher Hugh Gair (University of Glasgow), Matthew Hofer (University of New Mexico), Stephen E. Meats (Pittsburg State University), Kerry Myler (Birmingham Newman University), Justin Parks (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway), Nick Selby (University of East Anglia)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1973

Places

United States (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel

Resources

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“A screaming comes across the sky” (3). One of the most famous opening lines in literature might as well refer to the novel it sets off –

Gravity's Rainbow

, Thomas Pynchon's masterpiece, marks an event in literary history whose significance readers have argued and will argue for a long time, but which nobody can afford to ignore. Published in 1973, it is often considered as

the

postmodern novel, redefining both postmodernism and the novel in general. It is also often considered to be unreadable; add “turgid”, “overwritten,” and “obscene” to that, and you get the verdict of the Pulitzer Prize advisory board in 1974. At the same time, however, all the judges unanimously voted

for

the novel to receive the prize; they were overruled, and so decided not to award it to anyone.

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4712 words

Citation: Pöhlmann, Sascha. "Gravity's Rainbow". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 24 October 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=4900, accessed 19 April 2024.]

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