Demons of Chance, Angels of Probability: Thomas Pynchon’s Novels and the Philosophy of Chance and Probability

Abstract

This article discusses the relationships between Thomas Pynchon’s novels and the philosophy of chance and probability, especially in connection with quantum theory, which radically redefined our thinking concerning both concepts, and to begin with, the nature of physical reality. The article considers how different scientific theories dealing with chance and probability figure in Pynchon’s major novels, which, the article argues, helps us to think more deeply about Pynchon’s use of these theories or other mathematical and scientific theories, and about the relationships among literature, philosophy, and mathematics and science in general.

Keywords

• causality
• chance
• multiplicity
• probability
• quantum theory
• reality