hi all
Marco posted
> WHICH COMES FIRST? This is the beginning of all the technique. He assumes
> TIME as a tenet. His metaphysics is based on the assumption that everything
> is a "quality EVENT" (ZAMM) and, as event, must have a time in which it
> happens.
The discussion of Indians and the peyote ceremony coupled with this quote from Ch 3 of Lila:
" The ceremony would be a kind of spine to hold it all together. From it he would branch out and
show in tangent after tangent the analysis of complex realities and transcendental questions that
first emerged in his mind there." ....got me to thinking about "Which came first" in whole ZAMM/Lila
development. So using the 25th anniversary ZAMM, Guidebook to ZAMM, and Lila I set out to
reconstruct Phaedrus's timeline. I think the " which came first" is right but most of the dates are
guesses except where specifically stated in quotes from these sources.
1928- Born Robert M. Pirsig
Late 1930's-Early 40's- On scholarship to Blake "What school was that? "Blake" Redford's eyes became
intense.. (Lila p246)
1943 - "Phadrus and finished his first year of University science at age fifteen"(25th Edition ZAMM
p113)
1945- "was at the age of 17 expelled from the University for failing grades."(25th Edition ZAMM
p113)
1945-to 1949- Travels to Montana, backpacks, just drifts."In a stunned state Phaedrus began a long
series of lateral drifts that led him into a far orbit of the mind, but he eventually returned along
this route [after Army discharge in Seattle?] we are now following" (25th Edition ZAMM p121)
Late 1949- In Army "The drift took him into the Army, which sent him to Korea.(Korean War-1950 -53)
Earliest late 1950- Latest 1953- Out Army " upon discharge "returned to University [of Minnesota ?]
to study philosophy" (25th Edition ZAMM p122) "Winter early 1950's" -Unversity of Minnesota
creative writing seminar (Intro 25th Edition ZAMM xii) Source of first person narrative style.
NOW IT BECOMES IMPROBABLE BECAUSE HE PACKS "THIS SPAN OF TEN YEARS HE LIVED IN INDIA" (25th Edition
ZAMM p143) BETWEEN THE KOREAN WAR WHICH STARTED JUNE 25,1950 AND BEING IN CHICAGO IN THE SUMMER OF
1960 AND SOMEHOW TEACHING IN BOZEMAN IN BETWEEN. GUESS THAT ' S THE MYSTICAL PART OF A PEYOTE TRIP.
But he also says on p 143 " There's a span of about ten years" looks like the teaching span at
Bozeman was very short and/or he was in India only seven or eight years.
Late 1950's-(assume 58 or 59 to at the latest spring 1960) Teaching Montana State Freshman
English-(Deduced from other dates)
Late 1959 or early 60- Peyote ceremony (Source deduced from Lila quote " a few months before leaving
Bozeman for another teaching job" P 33)
Summer 1960- University of Illinois teaching rhetoric "that was the feeling of Chicago that summer"
(25th Edition ZAMM p347)
Fall 1960- Registers University of Chicago- "grew out of actual experience at the University of
Chicago in 1960" (Intro 25th Edition ZAMM xi)
Winter 1960- Sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas Phaedrus cracks "October had come and gone
p367" "Thanksgiving comes" p393 " "His time consciousness begins to go." "On the third day he turns
the corner at an intersection of unknown streets and blanks out." "After that he does not leave the
apartment." P 395 25th Edition ZAMM.
Late 1960 -Early 1961- Phaedrus becomes a ghost.
Oct 13, 1961 - " Quality in Freshman Writing" paper delivered by RMP at Rocky Mountain Modern
Language Association regional convention (Guidebook to Zen p 356)
1966- "Verne Dusenberry,,,, Died brain tumor" (Lila p29)
1966- Buys ZAMM motorcycle
June July 1967- ZAMM trip- "narrator's acquistion of 1964 Honda Superhawk...bought second-hand two
years before" (Guidebook to Zen p 226) 64+ 2yrs +some time for original owner to make coast to coast
trip+1.=67. Plus Chris had to be out of school usually early to mid June.
17 DAYS LATER ON WEDNESDAY PHAEDRUS REAPPEARS AFTER A SIX YEAR DEATH. ZaMM p361-373
Late 1967 Early 1968 - Starts ZAMM
June 6, 1968- Letters to publisher John C Willey about writing of ZAMM (25th Edition ZAMM p 421)
1968-1970 -Writing original ZAMM manuscript (25th Edition ZAMM p 425)
1970-74- Editing and publishing of ZAMM (25th Edition ZAMM p 425-9)
1974-75- ZAMM critical success interviews and promotion of book (Guidebook to Zen p 356)
1976?-1979 Cruising on Boat ( basis of Lila trip?) "Cruising blues & their cures: Esquire,
(Guidebook to Zen p 356) In England" ..where my second wife and I lived aboard a sailboat"(25th
Edition ZAMM p 415)
Saturday, November 17, 1979- Chris murdered (25th Edition ZAMM Afterword p 415)
Early 1980 -RMP & second wife back in Minnesota Nell conceived " "In any event, it was not many
months later that my wife conceived." (25th Edition ZAMM Afterword p 415)
Late 1980 -Early 1981- Nell born ( deduced from historical biological patterns)
1984-Afterword about Chris added to ZAMM editions after that. RMP then in Sweden. (25th Edition ZAMM
Afterword p 418)
Late 80's- Writing and editing of Lila.
November 1991- Lila Published
1999- 25th anniversary Edition of ZAMM published.
So... WHAT IS TIME?
The space between the event of your birth and the event of your death (even your psychological ones)
for all that shit to happen.
3WD
MOQ.org - http://www.moq.org
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