A Frail Understanding

One of the aspects that has been able to capture my attention is the different names used in the book. As I read a book I dont not usually pay attention to the names. In saying pay attention, I mean analyze what the names might symbolize. If there is a name that has a meaning, you will not find more than one. Pynchon on the other hand decided to give every name a funny aspect. There is Dr. Hilarious who “sounded like Pierce doing a Gestapo officer” (7). There is also the name Oedipa, Mike Fallopian, Mucho Mass, and many more. All of these names mean something and are there to give the reader a certain context. Lets take the example of Oedipa. Her name could be referring to the mythological character. The best thing about it, is that it works. I do form a different image in my mind about a certain character if a can associate him with something I know.

There is one name I cannot understand, and that is Mike Fallopian. He is introduced as “A frail young man in a drip-dry suit slid into the seat across from them, introduced himself as Mike Fallopian, and begun proselytizing for an organization known as the Peter Punguid Society” (34-35). Ok, at this point I can assume that his name means something. The only problem is I can’t figure out what. I tried looking his name up in Google and all I came up with was a Fallopian Tube. I can see no association with him and a Fallopian Tube. I hope that as I read on my understanding of the book also moves on and I get to understand what all of these things mean.