The Floating Opera and The End of the Road
The Floating OperaandThe End Of The Roadare  John Barth's first two novels.  Their relationship to each other is  evident not only in their ribald subject matter but in the eccentric  characters and bitterly humorous tone of the narratives.  Both concern  strange, consuming love triangles and the destructive effect of an  overactive intellect on the emotions.  Separately they give two very  different views of a universal human drama.