John Kennedy Toole's A Confederacy Of Dunces

How can two people watch or read the same story and yet, interpret it completely differently? Does it have to do with the author’s intentions, or maybe it has to do with the viewers’ own backgrounds and ideologies? Whatever the case may be, viewing one piece of work can lead to a wide array of opinions and critiques. It is through the diversity of such lenses that Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller has become one of the most well-known plays in modern history. There are many different ways in which a play can be criticized, however, criticisms from the approaches of a Marxist and reader-response will be utilized to further dissect Death of a Salesman. Marxist criticism sees pieces of works as a struggle between different socioeconomic classes; what better way to see Miller’s play than for what it is at face value, the struggle of a middle-class man trying to achieve the American dream (1750). On the other hand, a reader-response criticism comes from either an objective or subjective view; in this case Death of a Salesman will be viewed with a subjective lens based on Willy’s deteriorating mental health (1746).

Charles Chesnutt’s “The Doll” is a story of seeking truth, facing discrimination, and making bold choices for the sake of one’s own livelihood. Through Tom Taylor’s slow-building narrative, Chesnutt reveals the complications keeping the barber from exacting his revenge on the man who murdered his father, Colonel Forsyth. Despite having the perfect opportunity to do so, Tom remains steadfast in the face of the colonel’s taunts, ultimately deciding to stay silent. Aside from highlighting Tom’s emotional turmoil throughout the tale, “The Doll” also ponders how black Americans are to advance and protect themselves, especially as individuals within a societal system built against that very idea of social mobility. The story therefore

The character Ulysses Everett McGill is a dashing ex-convict bestowed with the “gift of gab” and crafty scheming skills he employs to help him and his friends escape the law on their way to stop a “bona fide” suitor from marrying his wife Penny. The similarity between these two characters improves and gives direction to the plot because Everett applies his Odysseus-like skills to escape various perils and assist him and his friends in their journey home. For example, Everett’s smooth talking allows the group to record at a radio broadcast station under the name of and disguise of “the Soggy Bottom Boys” and this leads to their fame. As a result of their fame, they are pardoned by the mayor, allowing Everett to provide for his family. His ability to disguise himself in costume also leads to the discovery of the non-incumbent governor’s status as the leader of the Ku Klux Klan in the area. These significant developments in the plot are spurred by the action and characterization in The Odyssey.

Tall, dark, and handsome has long been the standard of a desirable man. There is undoubtedly something about a “man’s man” that is intriguing and beguiling. However, there must be a point where too much masculinity becomes a problem. As society continues to praise men with the biggest muscles, the nicest cars, and the most women, it is becoming increasingly hard to draw the line between healthy masculinity and toxic masculinity. In Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire, toxic ideas about what it means to be masculine ultimately ruins several characters, but most overtly Stanley, Stella, and Blanche, showing that toxic masculinity is a threat to everyone’s well-being, both male and

James M. McPherson sets out to discover what motivated the Confederate and Union soldiers to continue fighting in the Civil War in his book What They Fought For. McPherson analyses nearly a thousand letters, journals, and diary of Union and Confederate soldiers to determine what urged them to fight is this defining American Conflict. McPherson reads and groups together the common thoughts of the everyday soldier, from their letters and journals that none of which had been subjected to any sort of censorship, in that time period. He then generalizes the motivations that they used to fight for their country. Whether it be for slavery or for the Union, the author views both sides of the fighting to analysis their ideological issues, how deep their belief coursed through their veins to continue fighting, and how the soldiers held their convictions close to heart in the time of war.

James M. McPherson, author of For Cause and Comrades, uses more than 25,000 unaltered letters and closely 250 private journals from Civil War soldiers—both Union and Confederate—in his attempt to explain what possessed these men to endure the roaring, gruesome chaos of war. What better way to express the motivation behind fighting than words straight from the pens of the men who were physically there and experienced the Civil War to its fullest? I personally feel as though McPherson succeeded in his explanation of the different driving forces that kept each man going during these difficult years of battle. The Wall Street Journal describes McPherson’s work as “an extraordinary book, full of fascinating details and moving self-portraits.”

Jurgis and his family soon adjust to their new lives, as well as to the work presented to them at Durham’s. After lodging with friends and fellow immigrants for some time, they decide to purchase their own house in Packingtown, a village comprised mostly of the innumerable workers employed at Durham’s. Unbeknownst to Jurgis and his family, however, working at Durham’s would prove to be a turbulent and eye-opening experience, regardless of the fact that Durham’s was an essential catalyst for their new life in America.

Over 150 years, the Civil War had been the bloodiest war in the American history, also known as “The War Between the States” or “Brother Against Brother”, it was fought between the Union or the United States of America and the Confederate States of America. The war lasted four years from 1861 to 1865. What motivated these men to fight and what is the cause of the Civil War is a subject that many historians tried to find out.

Fanny Trollope, an English novelist and writer, travelled to America in the early 19th century for a glimpse of life outside of England. In her work, “The Domestic Manners of the Americans”, Trollope captured her experience in countless opinionated, highly critical observations that judged Americans based on their behaviors and practices. Many aspects of American life captured Trollope’s attention, but these aspects were not seen in a positive light. It was obvious through her story that Trollope did not care for the American life; however, there seemed to be much more to Trollope’s opinions besides petty distastes. Trollope found the American lifestyle repulsive because it seemed to revolve around pride in their impolite and offensive behavior, creating an environment of arrogance and superiority over outsiders like herself.

In understanding the complex nature of the American Dream, Tom is the most egotistical of them all. His family has enormous wealth. Tom represents “old money” and the intergeneration transfer of wealth; which he offensively exploits. He lives in East Egg where the old aristocrats live. Tom is also a hypocrite, and his constant use of racist comments towards other ethnic groups and those less fortunate than himself indicate to me the reader that he feels he is superior.

A Confederacy of dunces is much more than a comedy beneath the hilarious and unlikable characters lies a much more subtle message.Walker Percy writes, in the introduction of the novel “I hesitate to use the word comedy - though comedy it is - because that implies simply a funny book, and this novel is a great deal more than that …It is also sad. One never quite knows where the sadness comes from.”(Percy, Walker “foreword”, A Confederacy of Dunces, p ix). Truly this book aside from being a brilliant comedy offers a view and psychoanalysis to the world of our main character Ignatius J. Reilly. From the beginning lines of the novel John Kennedy Toole does not try to impress us with the main character. Ignatius is far from the stereotypical

The pressure to lose weight in today’s society inhibits the personality and health of overweight people while essentially increasing the weight of the people who experience these pressures (Worley 163-167). So reasons Mary Ray Worley in her article, “Fat and Happy: In Defense of Fat Acceptance.” Worley uses her personal experience as well as a small number of facts to dispute why overweight people struggle as they attempt to contribute to society (163-167). In the beginning of her article she references an association of which she is a member, the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance, to convey the possibilities to advance society when judgement based on size is abandoned (163-164). The association holds a conference every year, and Worley continually refers to the atmosphere at the convention as “another planet,” suggesting that the scarcity of judgment during the convention differed significantly from her everyday experiences (163-164, 167). Applying her encounters to all people of her weight category, she declares that even doctors blame the majority of sicknesses on weight (165). She also proclaims that people should not diet and exercise in order to lose weight, as this triggers loss of motivation without results, but to improve their attitude and mood (166). Referencing Dr. Diane Budd from the convention, she states that attempts to lose weight cause “lasting harmful effects on one’s appetite, metabolism, and self-esteem” (164). While Worley’s unjustifiable

Life in the Iron Mills is a tragic yet poignant story of the effects of a man’s socioeconomic status. Although set in the nineteenth century, the story is all too familiar. The short story begins with a reflective narrator begging the audience to read the story with an open mind not tainted by the ideals of high society (Davis). The narrator suggests the story be read from the perspective of the protagonist, Hugh Wolfe, a lowly puddler at the iron mill (Davis). Hugh works long, hard hours at the mill for little to no pay in attempts to provide not only for himself but also for his cousin, Deborah, and a young girl, Janey (Davis). In Hugh’s spare time at the mill, he carves sculptures out of korl (Davis). Hugh leads a typical life of a working class citizen.

In William Faulkner’s “As I Lay Dying” and Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesmen” there is Notable themes of gender role and gender identity. Faulkner’s Character Anse is Comparatively Similar but also Contrastingly different in the roles they both convey as head of their households, In their families and in society. Both Families can also be analyzed by their time period in which each piece of fictional literature took place. Faulkner’s novel “As I Lay Dying” was written in 1930 while Miller’s play was written in 1949.

Ignatius Jacques Reilly is a beautifully ludicrous character in nearly all aspects of his large nature. At the very center of the complex interwoven story of A Confederacy of Dunces, is the bizarre Ignatius, surrounded by a diverse group of odd yet endearing characters. Ignatius and an ensemble of eccentric characters portray the painful truths of everyday life, such as racial and class inequality, in the most hilarious way possible. In his journey of absurd misadventures, the grotesque and gluttonous Ignatius, in turn points out how absurd society looks, looking up and wanting to move up.