Hunter S. Thompson's Cruelty

Literature is considered a mirror of the society. The pool of content in literary writing stems from the environment in which the writer is placed. A writer will use this environment to advance his/her views of the society and at the same time drive into the audience/readers important information that he/she wishes to pass. Hunter S. Thompson has used his creativity in the novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas written in the 1960s to reflect on American society with Las Vegas as the point of reference.

the big idea: cruelty leads to dehumanization (either by idolizing someone as a hero: ‘the undefeatable’, ‘god-like’, or villainizing someone: ‘tyrannus villain’, ‘hell-creature’, ‘earth-razer’)

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair was written to expose the brutality faced by the workers in the meatpacking industry. Sinclair wanted to show people what was really going on in the factory because few people were informed about these companies work conditions. He wanted to show the public that meat was “ diseased, rotten, and contaminated” (Willie).” This revelation shocked the, public which later led to the creation of the federal laws on food and safety. Sinclair strongly shows the failure of capitalism in the meatpacking industry which he viewed as inhumane, destructive, unjust, brutal, and violent (Willie).”

of Darkness: the chain gangs, the grove of death, the payment in brass rods, the

May all the world know how he has suspended important for many, and as they are suspended he neglects them; and for others we will not oblige simply until those people shall relinquish the right of representing the legislature, a formation of tyranny. At times we shall be at peace, he puts forthwith independent of and superior armies, much without our consent; with the intention to put through the efforts of death, desolation and tyranny, and he has already started this cruelty that is simply unfit for a civilized

Dr. Hunter S. Thompson is remembered as a journalist who used his own unique style of writing to add narrative to reinvent investigative journalism as he saw it. His style inspired many journalists, and I was sadden to read of his death, at his own hand. The short story that he wrote following the World Trade Center bombings in 2001, Fear and Loathing in America, for ESPN featured a narrative that captured the reader. This article, and indeed his unique style of writing were examined in an obituary written by Richard Keil in 2005.

Looking back at mistakes everyone around the world has made, it is easy to assume people will never make the same mistakes again. An example an a small scale would be something as simple as a bad math grade. Anyone might try to improve their grade by practicing more and making corrections to the steps they messed up on. In the book Animal Farm by George Orwell, the animals overthrow the farmer Mr. Jones. By the end, all of the animals were under the control of the boar Napoleon. Many things went wrong along the way, and only some of the time the animals reflected and learned from the mistakes they made. An understanding of the past is essential in order to adequately guard against future mistakes.

Early New Journalism is a product of alienation between the generation that emerged after World War II and their predecessors. That sense of alienation led to a need for connection and a craving for societal revolution, which, in turn, generated an age of radicalism. Reflecting that radicalism, journalism of the time is written as a detailed train of thought of the writer in order to create a connection with the audience. Similarly, new journalists often braid philosophical ideas into their historical accounts to further bridge the gap between author and audience. Doctor Hunter S. Thompson in his gonzo-journalist roman à clef, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, reflects upon the decline of youth culture rebellion during the late 1960’s to early 1970’s while on a trip to Las Vegas by expressing opinions to the reader via his distinctly blunt and

Of the two readings from this week, I found the short story, ‘Fear & Loathing in America’ by Hunter S. Thompson more interesting. The reason why I prefer the short story is because it was more engaging than the article and the writer had my attention from start to finish. I felt like the article was just feeding me a bits of information, from one paragraph to next. There was nothing that could engage the me to the article that would make me want to read more to see how it ends. It was like a raw video footage that was taken without editing. It was hard for me to even remember what was read because of all the information that I had to process. It almost felt like I was reading an article for History class, especially when you’re not a fan of

Hunter showed a great interest in writing. When serving in the U.S. Air Force, not only was he fighting for our country, but he was starting his new writing career. Thompson was known as the “gonzo journalism”, his style of reporting was highly impressive. Hunter was discharged from his Air Force base sooner than he expected, but that

I have chosen Richard Martin because he is compassionate, has integrity and Perseverance. Richard Martin was born in 1754 and born in country Galway. Richard Martin started off as being an Irish Politian. He fought for a bill to be passed to stop the cruel treatment of animals which never passed parliament. He later crated another bill which was to stop the cruelty to cattle bill which passed the government and was then named the “Martins act” He was an animal cruelty campaigner and was given a special nickname by King George the fourth. Richard is mainly known for his work that stands up for bear baiting and dog fighting. When he tried to show his ideas in London he became a laughing stoke of the town and was put into cartoons with donkey

Golding’s statement is incorrect, as females possess an undeniable capability for cruelty. Teenage girls, almost more so than teenage boys, have a knack for torment, manipulation, and abuse. A wavering self esteem and a desire for approval creates a hostile environment regardless of gender. William Golding stated in an essay titled why boys become vicious that males are more cruel in nature than females due to their primitive roles as hunters. “A beginning that is very different from the female’s hearth,” he states, insinuating that a women is caring in nature and therefore unable to be cruel. Golding’s statement is incorrect, as females possess an undeniable capability for cruelty. Teenage girls, almost more so than teenage boys, have a

Animals have roamed the harsh lands and glided through the rough waters for approximately 510 million years, while humans have only been around for an estimated 200,000 years (Cain/Ramel). The earth had been the Animal Kingdom for about 509 million years until Homo sapiens started appearing, growing as fast as bacteria. They became a part of the food chain, on top; their minds were far more complex than most of the animals. They were able to think deeper, their bipedality allowed them to hunt better, and of course, their opposable thumbs were a defiant advantage over these animals (Cain). Over time these humans began taking over the animal’s kingdom, using their minds to exploit the

The strongest emotions that help a society strive are fear and hope. Unfortunately, there are moments where a discordant system betrays hope and feeds off of the naivety and fear that is withheld. The animals were lead by promises of freedom and a world that belongs to the beasts. However, the beasts did not count on achieving one portion of the goal while tyrannical leaders are left sitting on a throne of exploitation. As a means to become an allegory for the Russian Revolution, Orwell fictitiously parallels to an era that was run off of the manipulation of the young and the false hopes of a better tomorrow.

I was a little girl who loved animals, and could never see the point in killing something so beautiful and innocent. Yet year after year my dad would pester me about going deer hunting with him and my brother. My dad had grown up hunting and he had high expectations that his children would do the same. My brother, only two years older than me, followed in his footsteps and has always brought home enough food to feed our family. They always went hunting during the fall, which was only bow season. If they had no luck in bringing home a deer during that season then they would continue to hunt during the winter, which was gun season. But yet I seemed to disappoint my dad when I had no desire to hunt. I wasn’t fond of the idea of killing animals. Although during last year’s deer season that had to change, because my brother went off to college and he didn’t have enough time to go hunting. That meant my dad was relying on me to pick up where my brother left off. I didn’t exactly agree to it, but I told him I would try.