Difference between revisions of "Pages 114-120"

Revision as of 10:14, 25 April 2010

This page-by-page annotation is organized by sections, as delineated by the seven squares (sprockets) which separate each section. The page numbers for this page-by-page annotation are for the original Viking edition (760 pages). Editions by other publishers vary in pagination — the newer Penguin editions are 776 pages; the Bantam edition is 886 pages.

Contributors: Please use a 760-page edition (either the original Viking edition with the orange cover or the Penguin USA edition with the blue cover and rocket diagram — there are plenty on Ebay for around $10) or search the Google edition for the correct page number. Readers: To calculate the Bantam edition use this formula: Bantam page # x 1.165. Before p.50 it's about a page earlier; as you get later in the book, add a page.

Finally, profound thanks to Prof. Don Larsson for providing the foundation for this page-by-page annotation.

Page 114

114.5 Section 8
A category of discharge from the United States military for reason of being mentally unfit for service

Page 115

115.3 greensickness
Chlorosis (also known as "green sickness") is a form of anemia named for the greenish tinge of the skin of a patient. Its symptoms include lack of energy, shortness of breath, dyspepsia, headaches, a capricious or scanty appetite and amenorrhoea. Today this disease is diagnosed as hypochromic anemia.

115.3 tetter
A broad term for numerous types of skin diseases.

115.3 kibes
An inflamed area on the skin, especially the heel; a chillblain

115.3 purples
Bright splotches on the skin.

115.3 imposthumes
A accumulation of pus; an abcess

115.4 almonds in the ears
Swollen lymph glands, per Weisenburger

115.4 scurvy
A disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C. It leads to the formation of spots on the skin, spongy gums, and bleeding from the mucous membranes.

115.19 Primo Scala's Accordion Band
An English group, well-known by the mid-1930s, that consisted of four accordions, two pianos, bass, drums and guitar, under the direction of Harry Bidgood.

115.32-33 Compton Mackenzie novels
British novelist, (1883-1972), both acclaimed and neglected, who wrote more than 100 novels, plays, and biographies

115.35 Sèvres vase
Sèvres is a French porcelain manufacturer dating to 1740. It was originally a royal, then an imperial, factory, and is now run by the Ministry of Culture.

115.37 Wardour Street
A street in Soho, London.

Page 116

116.21 Lafitte Rothschild
Château Lafite Rothschild (Pynchon adds an extra 't' in 'Lafite') is a wine estate in France, owned by members of the Rothschild banking family of France since the 19th century. The name Lafite comes from the Gascon term "la hite" meaning "small hill".

116.23 Bernkastler Doktor
German vineyard along the Mosel

116.35 Gilbert & Sullivan
Composer Sir Arthur Sullivan (1842-1900) and librettist W.S. Gilbert (1836-1911) collaboratively developed a distinctive English form of the operetta.

Page 117

117.15 ...exactly the sort of thing Hop Harrigan used to pull to get Tank Tinker to quit playing his ocarina...
Both Hop and Tank are aviation heroes from DC comics. Hop is a pilot; Tank is his mechanic. More here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hop_Harrigan --Jpicco 09:20, 27 May 2009 (PDT)

Page 118

118.12 Cubeb? He used to smoke that stuff.
Not an uncommon practice, apparently. "Edgar Rice Burroughs, being fond of smoking cubeb cigarettes, humorously stated that if he had not smoked so many cubebs, there might never have been Tarzan." More here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cubeb#Cigarettes_and_spirits --Jpicco 09:24, 27 May 2009 (PDT)