The Crying of Lot 49 y el género policíaco

Abstract

Although it has been pointed out that thomas Pynchon's The Crying of Lot 49 can be considered a parody of detective fiction, no serious analysis of the implications of this thesis has been carried out yet. Therefore, this essay attempts to show which components of the genre the author has chosen to put to use, as well as to which trend they are related. It highlights the effects pynchon seeks to produce in his readers, as compared to the expectations he raises by using the traditional structure of detective fiction. Finally, it explores how Pynchon's reversal of the pattern affects the readers' understanding of both this novel and its author's view of reality.