The Book as a “Thinking Machine”: Data Processing and the Mechanics of Reading in the 21st Century Information Novel

Abstract

This project builds on previous theories of the “encyclopedic novel” in order to develop the concept of the 21st century “information novel.” Like their encyclopedic predecessors, most notably Thomas Pynchon’s Gravity’s Rainbow, the two information novels examined here—David Foster Wallace’s The Pale King Robert Bolaño’s 2666— often employ multiple and incompatible narratives or logical systems, suffused with excessive detail. These novels invite readers to “process” the text’s data and to construct a “message” from its unresolved narrative. In the case of both The Pale King and 2666, this message is apparently political. Both Wallace and Bolaño use excessive information and chaotic systems to expose the political and ethical implications of literary engagement. In this regard, these texts ask readers to consider the practical value—beyond the entertainment value—of reading literary texts. The information novel, in its relentless “data-dumps,” often risks boring its readers; this consideration of boredom again forces readers to evaluate the value of literary engagement as well as the value of the literary text itself. By directing attention towards the political and ethical dimensions of reading and away from the personal, affective, or even aesthetic dimensions of reading, the information novel challenges the notion of the literary “masterpiece,” and thereby negotiates a new relationship between reader, book, and reality.