"gravity's Rainbow" Entropy Theme Of Cultural Studies

As one of Thomas Pynchon's representative masterpiece, Gravity's Rainbow inherited the prominent feature of his work, which is the ingenious integration of science and art. The signature feature is the metaphor which likens the world full of uncertainty and chaos to entropy, a concept in thermodynamics. Entropy is undoubtedly the axis of this masterpiece. In comparison with his previous works, the chaotic world in Gravity's Rainbow is not only a continuation of the theme "entropy", but also an elevation of this theme.The thesis intends to explore the theme "entropy" in Gravity's Rainbow by using a subject study method. This thesis elaborates the points from three aspects. Chapter one discusses the structure of the theme in Gravity's Rainbow. Firstly, the manifestation of "entropy" is presented elaborately to point out that, instead of disappearing, the theme of "entropy" in Gravity's Rainbow is continued and elevated from previous works. Secondly, the thematic structure is analyzed. in detail. According to the four parts of the text, four stages of the development of entropy:causation, stimulation, presentation and consequence are analyzed. Thirdly, based on the aforementioned analysis, further exploration and demonstration is made on the three features of entropy:"humans as the slaves of technology and wars", "confusion of communication and identity" and "the elusion of boundaries between things." Chapter two expounds the specific representation and symbolization of entropy. In the text, the representations of entropy mainly are the "fragmented cultural representation", "multi-control and under-control" and "chaotic society".Behind the representation, "banana" and "rocket" are the two key factors in analyzing the symbolization of the metaphor trophy. The "banana" implies the energetic natural vitality, which is a convincing suspicion of technology. The "rocket" as the epitome of human reasoning, is the ultimate embodiment of human's pursuit of materials. The two seemingly irrelevant matters reflect the war between absolute reasoning and free humanity. Chapter three rethinks and meditates the implication of "entropy" in Gravity's Rainbow. On the one hand, it reflects the writer's pessimistic complex about the high-tech, modern society. On the other hand, it shows the absence of spiritual civilization notwithstanding the highly-developed material civilization. The world of disorder and turbulence under the influence of entropy surely sounds a warning bell for human-beings. Human-beings are facing an unprecedented conundrum in this disordered and entropy world. On the premise that trophy will inevitably spiral down to demise, the writer sincerely hopes that human-beings hunger for love and the order in abyss could be used to fight against entropy and find the solution to human's destiny.