Narrative Techniques And Fragmentation In Postmodern American Literature: A Study On Don Delillo And Thomas Pynchon

The purpose of this research article is to examine the narrative techniques and fragmentation in postmodern American literature with special reference to Don DeLillo and Thomas Pynchon – the postmodernists. The paper also analyses how both authors employ the technique of having many plotlines and fragmentation as the reflection of the chaos of the modern world. Media and technology are two of the most important concerns in DeLillo’s writing, and fragmentation is used to depict the loss of self in the media culture. Whereas DeLillo uses fragmentation to break the flow of the narrative and to concentrate on the character, Pynchon uses fragmentation to express the concept of entropy and history and how history affects the character. In this study, I analyze how the selected texts undermine and rewrite the historical narrative paradigms and how they engage the reader in the process of meaning-making. The findings of the study contribute to the understanding of the postmodern narrative strategies and their application to the interpretation of contemporary texts.