I’ve seen DFW pretend in interviews that he barely knows who Pynchon is - apparently he was devastated when Kakutani compared his stuff to The Crying of Lot 49. This, and yet those that knew DFW claim his discovery of Pynchon was transformative for him. Frankly, I think DFW was pretty damaged and really insecure - basically a man-child who wanted to be worshipped, whereas Pynchon was/is a visionary with real wisdom. When you compare the sheer poetry of Pynchon’s writing with DFW, it isn’t even close. It’s on the level of Rilke or Blake.

For me, Infinite Jest is “look how clever I am… will you worship me now?” whereas Gravity’s Rainbow is “look how truly possessed I am, as a real artist and visionary.” One is intellectual hijinks borne of entitlement, desperation, and insecurity, the other is the real deal