The Crying of Lot 49 Sexuality and Sexual Identity Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #7

"Have sexual intercourse Maybe there'll be something about China tonight. I like to do it while they talk about Viet Nam, but China is best of all. You think about all those Chinese. Teeming. That profusion of life. It makes it sexier, right." (5.31)

What do you make of Nefastis's perversity? What is the link between sexual intercourse and the violence in Vietnam? Or China, for that matter?

Quote #8

"My big mistake was love. From this day I swear to stay off of love: hetero, homo, bi, dog or cat, car, every kind there is. I will found a society of isolates, dedicated to this purpose, and this sign, revealed by the same gasoline that almost destroyed me, will be its emblem." (5.71)

What is Inamorati Anonymous parodying? How did the IM founder decide that his mistake was love? Why is it ironic that he is the only man Oedipa can ultimately reach out to? And can you be addicted to love?

Quote #9

Despair came over her, as it will when nobody has any sexual relevance to you. (5.76)

Is there truth in this aphorism? Is there some sexism in how Pynchon imagines that Oedipa's mind works?