Difference between revisions of "Chapter 53: 511-524"

Latest revision as of 08:09, 31 January 2015

Page 511

Kitchen Garden
The traditional kitchen garden, also known as a potager, is a space separate from the rest of the residential garden - the ornamental plants and lawn areas. Most vegetable gardens are still miniature versions of old family farm plots, but the kitchen garden is different not only in its history, but also its design. From WIKI

a Life that was like a Flirtation with the Day in all its humorless Dignity
Another reference to "the Day" as developed further in ATD; here straightforward unironic dignified life, one would gloss.

Vendue
A public sale. From WIKI

Page 512

the dark and wild men
In a gloss on the play within The Crying of Lot 49, three men in black on horseback come to assassinate.
There are some recurring stealthy black horses in visions/events within ATD.

Battoes
See page 285.

Page 513

Blue Mountain
Blue Mountain is a ridge that forms the eastern edge of the Appalachian mountain range in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It cuts across the eastern half of the state from New Jersey to Maryland, providing a distinct boundary between a number of Pennsylvania's geographical and cultural regions. To its northwest side are the southern and central mountains and valleys, the "coal region," and the Poconos. To its southeast side are the Cumberland Valley, the "capital region," Pennsylvania Dutch Country, and the Lehigh Valley. From WIKI

Juniata
The Juniata River is a tributary of the Susquehanna River, approximately 90 miles (145 km) long, in central Pennsylvania in the United States. The river is considered scenic along much of its route, having a broad and shallow course passing through several mountain ridges and steeply-lined water gaps. It formed an early 18th-century frontier region in Pennsylvania and was the site of Native American attacks against white settlements during the French and Indian War. From WIKI

Six Nations Country
The Iroquois, also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an indigenous people of North America. In the 16th century or earlier, the Iroquois came together in an association known as the Iroquois League, or the "League of Peace and Power". The original Iroquois League was often known as the Five Nations, and comprised the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca nations. After the Tuscarora nation joined the League in the 18th century, the Iroquois have often been known as the Six Nations. The League is embodied in the Grand Council, an assembly of 50 hereditary sachems. From WIKI

Gyrfalcons
The gyrfalcon or Falco rusticolus, also spelled gerfalcon, is the largest of all falcon species. The Gyrfalcon breeds on Arctic coasts and islands of North America, Europe and Asia. It is mainly resident, but some Gyrfalcons disperse more widely after the breeding season, or in winter. From WIKI

Voles
A vole is a small rodent resembling a mouse but with a stouter body, a shorter hairy tail, a slightly rounder head, and smaller ears and eyes. There are approximately 155 species of voles. They are sometimes known as meadow mice or field mice in North America. Vole species form the subfamily Arvicolinae with the lemmings and the muskrats. From WIKI

Bark canoe
Aboriginal canoes were constructed much more easily than previous types of vessels, such as bark canoes. This ease of construction played a significant role in the dugout canoes’ widespread use. While earlier vessels required a great deal of labor and time-consuming sewing to make, dugout canoes were constructed easily and in a shorter period of time. First, one would have to cut down a tree and shape the exterior into an even form. The sides of the canoe were shaped in one of two ways. They were either carved straight up and down or in a "u" shape, curving in towards the center of the boat. Next, one would literally dig out the inner wood of the log to make space for the oarsmen to sit and paddle. In some early dugout canoes, aboriginals would not make the bottoms of the canoes smooth, but would instead carve "ribbing" into the vessel. Ribbing (literally sections of wood that looked like ribs) was used to stabilize bark canoes, and though not necessary to dugout canoes, was a carryover in the transition from one canoe type to the other. Both the chopping down of the tree and the digging out of the log were easily done with an iron-axe. They also made there canoes out of tree bark, sticky tree sap to hold it together, and fallen tree limbs. From WIKI

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Quebec
Quebec is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking identity and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level. From/See WIKI

Jesuit College
See this LINK to Canadian Encyclopedia entry for Le College des Jesuites in Quebec.

Page 515

Rococo
Rococo (less commonly roccoco) is a style of 18th century French art and interior design. Rococo rooms were designed as total works of art with elegant and ornate furniture, small sculptures, ornamental mirrors, and tapestry complementing architecture, reliefs, and wall paintings. It was largely supplanted by the Neoclassic style. From WIKI

Chops
A chop is a signature or identifying mark made by a furniture or cabinet maker to identify his work. From WIKI

Kite-wires and Balloon-cables rise into clouds... the Jesuit Telegraphy
Here, finally, the specifics of the mysterious Jesuit Telegraph of the novel are revealed, in wonderful detail. See pages 287 & 472.

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Portes-Cocheres
Freight depot

Soutane... Cassock
The cassock, an item of clerical clothing, is a long, close-fitting, ankle-length robe worn by clerics of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, Anglican Church, and some clerics of the Reformed, and Lutheran churches. The cassock derives historically from the tunic that was formerly worn underneath the toga in classical antiquity. From WIKI

Tourmaline
Tourmaline is a crystal silicate mineral compounded with elements such as aluminium, iron, magnesium, sodium, lithium, or potassium. Tourmaline is classed as a semi-precious stone and the gem comes in a wide variety of colors. The name comes from the Sinhalese word "turamali" or "toramalli", which applied to different gemstones found in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). From WIKI Mysterious power of tourmaline is vastly used in Alfred Döblin's famous novel "Berge Meere und Giganten" ("Mountains Seas and Giants"). Pynchon, probably, should be familiar with Döblin's book.

Page 517

the smell of Ozone
Ozone, the first allotrope of a chemical element to be recognized by science, was proposed as a distinct chemical compound by Christian Friedrich Schönbein in 1840, who named it after the Greek verb ozein (ὄζειν, "to smell"), from the peculiar odor in lightning storms. The formula for ozone, O3, was not determined until 1865 by Jacques-Louis Soret[3] and confirmed by Schönbein in 1867. From WIKI

Catalepsies
Catalepsy is a nervous condition characterized by muscular rigidity and fixity of posture regardless of external stimuli, as well as decreased sensitivity to pain. From WIKI

Page 518

La Viudas de Cristo
The Widows of Christ, which M&D were hipped to at Lepton Castle, ie. the female that could have been Austra had been of the Order. See page 419.

White Roses
History and meaning of white roses HERE - of course here Eliza is the flower spoken of.

Doxy
A beggar

More accurately, a beggar's female companion; later, a prostitute or mistress. Recall, Mason referred to Molly and Dolly as such; he is unlikely to have implied them to be a beggar's companions, as this would be a slight to Franklin, an unlikely intention. Hence, it is more likely to mean prostitute, esp. considering the character in question is frequently mistaken for a "blowsy and cheeky [doxy]".

Page 519

moment musicale
Musical time

Sister Grincheuse
Sister Grumpy

Sister Crosier
A crosier (crozier, pastoral staff, paterissa, pósokh) is the stylized staff of office (pastoral staff) carried by high-ranking Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and some Lutheran and Pentecostal prelates. The other typical insignia of most of these prelates, but not all, are the mitre and the episcopal ring. From WIKI

Page 522

Wolf of Jesus
The Spanish Visitor from a few pages previous

Crofter
A croft is a fenced or enclosed area of land, usually small and arable with a crofter's dwelling thereon. A crofter is one who has tenure and use of the land. From WIKI

Ortholatry of the Roman Empire
A nice twist here, playing on Orthodoxy; Here, the "rightness" is in angles, not doctrine.

no true soldier of Christ
A sly reference to the No true Scotsman fallacy? The line of reasoning exhibited is echoed by the Spanish Visitor's thoughts on those of other religious backgrounds on p. 524.

la Obra
The Work

Page 523

Feng Shui
See page 228.

"Pues Entonces..."
For Then...

Siempre Alguien derrama la Judias
Someone Always spills the Beans

Kabbalism
See page 356.

Annotation Index