I have a burning and probably not immediately answerable question: Who is Dr. Lazlo Jamf?
Almost every thread of GR links back to him, yet I feel I don't really know him. We know a fair amount of details about him and his work, but I only feel that I've "heard of him" but not "met" him like I have with Pynchon's other characters.
With that out of the way, I particluarly liked the use of yin-Yang at the end of part 2 to illustrate the inexorable connection between Roger and Pointsman. The system of Yin and Yang is a binary one like Pointsman who may only exist at zero or one. However, regardless of their contrast to each other, they exist as a blended entity in nature. By that token, Roger, lying in the infinite domain from zero to one, provides the necessary link between Pointsman's binary universe and the far more complex real world of a war. In that same real world of a war where man's law and nature's law stand in open conflict, Roger faces the loss of Jessica, his salvation. Roger is among elect, the war has not passed him by costing him his salvation. "Lord Acton always sez, History is not woven by innocent hands" (281).
On the lighter side of things, I can't ever recall reading a book where a character smokes a joint and then proceeds to get the munchies (p372 "'I'm really hungry,' it occurs to Slothrop")
I completely agree about Jamf; I really haven't got a clue as to anything about him except for his profession. And that description of his crypt. Maybe that's why we haven't "met" him yet--because he's dead? I get the feeling that we're probably going to learn more about him as things with Slothrop escalate. And maybe we don't know much about him because Slothrop doesn't yet? I mean, maybe Pynchon is keeping things rather vague because Slothrop's knowledge about Jamf and his past is still vague. I hope that as Slothrop learns more about his past, we'll learn more about Jamf (and be less confused!).
Jamf. I wanted to know more about him! I had completely forgotten about him so it took a while for me to figure out his previous "role" in the novel.
I also liked this section a lot. I noticed it reiterated some of the general ideas we discussed after the first reading. The yin-yang reference was a good way to bring up the concept of opposites again and the reversal of cause&effect/fantasy&reality with Operation Blackwing and Schwarzkommando.
Speaking of Schwarzkommando, I asked my German-speaking friend what that means and he said it means "Black Commando." I think "commando" was a perfect word choice because its definition links it to the Boers in South Africa during the South African War (1899-1902). I seem to be really interested in definitions this week for some reason.