Pages 226-236

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 228

228.9 Miss Borgesius is still active on the program, and Mr. Duncan Sandys is having all his questions answered.
Putting them in the same sentence is a fine example of Pynchonesque intuition; in 2000 Duncan Sandys was revealed as the "headless man" involved in a decades-old sex scandal. In 1963 photos emerged of the Duchess of Argyll performing fellatio on him, while a third person, identified as Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., was masturbating and making Polaroid snaps. And yes, there is a von Braun connection.

228.33 und so weiter German: and so forth

Page 229

229.23 From overhead, from a German camera-angle
The German, or Dutch, or Batman angle is actually a tilted camera-angle. "From overhead" implies a German bomber's (or rocket's) view.

Page 230

230.21-22 Volksgrenadier: setz V-2 ein!
German: Volksgrenadier deploy a V-2!

Page 231

231.14 Daily Herald
British newspaper, published in London from 1912 to 1964; typically associated with worker's issues and the Labour Party

Page 232

232.06 Savarin..."Severin"
Savarin: the cofee.
Severin: two possible referents:
a. Severin von Kusiemski: a character in Venus in Furs by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch.
b. Mark Severin(1906-1987): engraver of postage stamps and over 500 Ex-Libris bookplates many of which were erotic.

Although Weisenburger cites Fu Manchu stories as a source for this item, it is more clearly being used simply to inflict pain in the ritual between Katje and the Brigadier. Malacca canes are thick, with a knob at one end. They are sometimes used in sado-masochistic settings such as the one here.

232.20 tattered tommy up on White Sheet Ridge
A key land formation at the the Battle of Messines, a prelude to the Third Battle of Passchendaele a month later. In April-May 1917, the Germans held the White Sheet and Pilkem Ridges squeezing Ypres in the middle. On June 7th 1917 at 3:10am the British attack began as 19 landmines simultaneously exploded; the British opened fire and two hours later the Germans were driven from the formation.