| Oedipa Maas, the protagonist of Pynchon's satire novella, finds herself named executor of ex-boyfriend Pierce Inverarity's estate. As she reluctantly takes on the task, she discovers there's more to Pierce than she knew--a gigantic stamp collection. As she goes around California to examine the estate with lawyer/lover Metzger, Oedipa stumbles upon a mysterious conspiracy--the symbol of a muted post horn and the acronym W.A.S.T.E. Mildly interested, Oedipa seems to find the symbol all around her, wrapped up in the perplexing Tristero conspiracy, an illegal courier system, which she discovers is tied to Inverarity's stamp collection. Wracked with paranoia, Oedipa finds her world falling apart, husband Mucho has lost himself to drugs, as has her psychiatrist, and the only dominating force in her life--the mystery of the
Tristero--is providing no solid answers. Oedipa is forced to examine herself as she plunges deeper into the Tristero conspiracy. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of book? - humorous Time/era of story - 1960's-1970's Internal struggle/realization? Yes Struggle over Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Battle with a psychiatrist Yes Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Ethnicity/Nationality Main Adversary Identity: - an organization Setting How much descriptions of surroundings? - 3 () United States Yes The US: - California Writing Style Sex in book? Yes What kind of sex: - actual description of hetero sex Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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