metafictional note is swiftly rejected (or ignored) as they turn their attention to the monster again. The threat is neutralized by offering up their onboard computer as something for the creature to communicate with to ease its loneliness. Finally Hagbard managed to defeat the Illuminati Primi and went to Alpha Centauri in 1999. Characters Carmel – a pimp living in Las Vegas Freeman Hagbard Celine – leader of the Discordians and a central protagonist in The Illuminatus! Trilogy George Dorn – reporter for Confrontation Saul Goodman – New York City detective Rebecca Murphy Goodman – Saul Goodman's wife Howard – a porpoise Joe Malik – editor of Confrontation Mao Tsu-Hsi – Illuminati recruiter Simon Moon – anarchist Barney Muldoon – New York City detective Tarantella Serpentine – an Illuminati-trained prostitute Markoff Chaney – a midget on a cross country mission to spread chaos Fission Chips – a British secret agent Harry Coin – a perverted assassin Robert Putney Drake – a mob boss obsessed with the occult Titles The titles of the three volumes or parts (the front covers were titled Illuminatus! Part I The Eye in the Pyramid, Illuminatus! Part II The Golden Apple and Illuminatus! Part III Leviathan) refer to recurring symbols of elements of the plot. The Eye in the Pyramid refers to the Eye of Providence, which in the novel represents particularly the Bavarian Illuminati, and makes a number of appearances (for example, as an altar and a tattoo). The Golden Apple refers to the golden apple of discord, from the Greek myth of the Judgement of Paris. In the trilogy it is used as the symbol of the Legion of Dynamic Discord, a Discordian group; the golden apple makes a number of appearances, for example, on the cover, on a black flag, and as an emblem on a uniform. Leviathan refers to the Biblical sea monster Leviathan, which is a potential danger to Hagbard's submarine Leif Erickson (from the name of the Icelandic discoverer of America). It also refers to Thomas Hobbes' seminal work of political philosophy, Leviathan, as a metaphor for an all-encompassing, authoritarian state – a common metaphor used in libertarian discourse. Publishing history The trilogy was originally written between 1969 and 1971 while Wilson and Shea were both associate editors for Playboy magazine. As part of the role, they dealt with correspondence from the general public on the subject of civil liberties,