Rapunzel and Uncle Sam: The Crying of Lot 49 - First Chapter

In the first chapter of The Crying of Lot 49 I experimented with Pynchon's way of writing and got an introduction to the novel.  I found some comical moments and got to know some of the main characters: Oedipa Maas, 'Mucho' Maas and Roseman. The structure of this novel and the long sentences made it hard to understand at times, and required more than one time of reading it. I believe some of the jokes come through the characters names such as Dr. Hilarius, Roseman and Mucho Maas. Roseman's name might be linked to his personality by showing a type of romance. I recall a part were he told Oedipa to run away with him and that is what lead me to think this. Some of the words in spanish might show the author knows this language and "mucho mas" (meaning 'a lot more') might have a deeper meaning.

Some of the parts that stood out in the beginning of the book were the references to Rapunzel and Uncle Sam. Oedipa Maas compares herself to Rapunzel indicating a claustrophobic and trapped personality. I believe she wants to be saved by her ex - boyfriend Pierce Inverarity (now deceased), but when this fails it can show a failure of their relationship. "...only when Pierce had got maybe halfway up, her lovely hair turned, through some sinister sorcery, into a great unanchored wig, and down he fell, on his ass." This is another funny part in the novel and when mentioning "some sinister sorcery" this might mean a powerful source didn't let their relationship succeed.

Thomas Pynchon uses Uncle Sam to describe the moment when Dr. Hilarius tells Oedipa he wants her for an experiment. Here, a weak Uncle Sam is described with "his eyes gleaming unhealthily, his sunken yellow cheeks most violently rouged..." This description of Uncle Sam might mean the United States are fragile or the author doesn't like this country. I am also intrigued about the author's mentioning of Germany in several cases such as the connection with the German symphonies. Will this play an important role further on during the novel? If so, this can be connected both to A Clockwork Orange and The Man in the High Castle. In A Clockwork Orange the German symphonies are also mentioned, and in The Man in the High Castle Germany occupies the United States. I am also intrigued about how Oedipa Maas will carry out the execution of Pierce's will.