What's In a Name

While reading, I was intrigued my numerous parts of the story, even within the first chapter. One of the main things that caught my attention, however, were the interesting names of the characters. The reader encounters names such as Oedipa, Pierce Inverarity, Mucho Maas, and Dr. Hilarious. Initially all of these names sound odd; but, when I contemplated them even further, I feel they contribute an entirely other meaning to the story.

The protagonist possesses one of the most recognizable names, Oedipa. Oedipa is extremely similar to Oedipus. Most of us know Oedipus as the Greek character who slept with his mother and killed his father. Obviously, at least not thus far in the story, Oedipa has not displayed such extreme characteristics; however, she is searching for a sense of freedom or liberation. I relate her search for liberation to Oedipus's sense of "liberation" of gained from eventually fulfilling his lustful desires. We haven' really read far enough to say for certain, but I could easily see Oedipa's search for liberation being along the lines of sexual freedom as well.

Pierce is a very strong name. I don't really believe his name has any hidden connotation, I just feel that it contributes to the story. He is portrayed as a very savvy businessman and a name such as Pierce contributes to his look. A name like Bob or Jim just doesn't give off the presence of someone who is as business-minded as Pierce appeared to be.

Oedipa's husband, Mucho Maas, also has a very interesting name. In Spanish, "mucho" means "a lot" and "mas" (very similar to "Maas") means more. I wasn't sure if this was a signifier to how much he demanded of Oedipa or something else along those lines. I perceived his particular character as someone who lacked ambition and just continuously drained Oedipa. If my assumptions are correct, the alleged connotation of his name would correspond nicely.

Finally there is Dr. Hilarious. This name doesn't require much explaining. He comes off as a more or less a "quack" rather than a justified doctor. I'm not aware of too many doctors that attempt to persuade their patients to use LSD. "Hilarious" is a term often associated with that which is funny or comical; something that is not to be taken seriously. Dr. Hilarious was no exception and I believe Oedipa eventually came to realize that.