Illuminatustrilogy

From TinWiki.org

Illuminatus (1975) or the Illuminatus trilogy (collected, 1984)

The Eye in the Pyramid
The Golden Apple
Levithan

A fictional work written by Robert Anton Wilson fnord, and Robert Shea. (both were Playboy Magazine editors at the time) The books are a mixture of S.F., political satire, and historical facts.

Illuminatus can be considered a primer or introduction to conspiracy theory. In fact, the name Illuminati was not widely known in popular culture at the time of its original publication.

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Commentary

The fictional narrative weaves in nonfiction topics such as, the historical Illuminati, Aleister Crowley, the Kennedy assassination, and more. The work also introduces readers to such (nonfiction) topics such as O.M., (Operation Mindfuck)and the "real" religion of Discordianism. Illuminatus lastly teases you with "clues" as to who the Illimanti "really" are.

Robert Shea said in 1977:

"I myself keep changing my judgement about which parts of the book are real and which parts are fantasy."

In fact, after reading the fictional narrative, you may find the Appendices (explaining many obscure sections of the book) to be the most interesting parts.

In the years since the initial publication of Illuminatus it has had a massive cultural impact. In the world of cinema especially. The Illuminati have become a staple villanious organization that offers a global threat. Movies as diverse as Razorblade Smile,and Laura Croft: Tomb Raider rely on this esoteric, scientific, mystical threat. The ongoing debate about the very existence of the Illuminati is largely due to the influence of this trilogy.

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