The Modern Grotesque Hero in John Kennedy Toole's, A Confederacy of Dunces

The novel Frankenstein is wonderful in various ways, from the provoking portrayal of human emotion throughout the story; to the elements of fantasy that stimulate the imagination. However, as one (anonymous) critic put it, “[T]he work seems to have been written… …on a very crude and ill-digested plan; and the detail is, in consequence, frequently filled with the most gross and obvious inconsistencies.” (The Literary Panorama). While the critic attempts to expose some inconsistencies in the story, the acerbity in his review of the novel is unfair based on the support he provides. The irony of this review is that although he tries to expose the plot’s inconsistencies, he uses a non-issue as backing, and yet misses the most glaring oversight in the novel.

   Mary Shelley's novel, Frankenstein, sheds light on the importance of appearance through the tale of an unwanted creation that is never given a chance by society. Ironically, the supposed beast was initially much more compassionate and thoughtful than his creator, until his romantic and innocent view of the human race was diminished by the cruelty and injustice he unduly bore. Not only does the creature suffer the prejudice of an appearance-based society, but other situations and characters in the novel force the reader to reflect their own hasty judgment. The semi- gothic novel includes several instances of societal prejudice that include the isolation and outcast of Frankenstein's creation,

Do not judge a book by its cover. Those are the words of a famous American proverb that says a person’s character cannot be judged based on their appearance. This proverb is very fitting in regards to the monster from Frankenstein. On the outside, he has a terrible appearance, and as a result is victimized and made to suffer by those who cannot see past his looks. Yet he has a kind soul and is simply looking for happiness and a little compassion from others. Both the book and the play present him as a sufferer in a cruel world but ultimately the book does a better job portraying his pain and eliciting empathy from the reader. The monster in the book details his suffering in greater detail, is more eloquent and persuasive and also

“Dun-white sockets” and “shriveled complexion” are adjectives, which may show that Frankenstein is reviewing the monster; this begins to create images of what the monster may look like in the readers' head.

Alienation is a product of society’s inherently discriminatory bias, catalyzed by our fear of the unknown in the realm of interpersonal conduct. Mary Shelley, in her novel, Frankenstein, dissects society’s unmerited demonization of individuals who defy—voluntarily or involuntarily—conventional norms. Furthermore, through her detailed parallel development of Frankenstein and his monster, Shelley personifies the tendency to alienate on the basis of physical deformity, thereby illustrating the role of the visual in the obfuscation of morality.

The topic of appearance and judgment is greatly exemplified in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein as it becomes apparent that

The creature also wants to be noticed. The mountain is very beautiful, but during the storm it may look scary. The creature is can be beautiful through his acts of kindness, like helping people, but also is unattractive and can look and be grotesque. In the essay, “Frankenstein and Mary Shelley’s “wet ungenial summer””, Phillips states,

(Shelley). The fact that Frankenstein fled from his creation very shortly after it came to life, proves how he refused to accept his obligations and responsibilities after his creature was created. ?The [creature] is Frankenstein?s abandoned child? (Mellor Abandonment 357). It is unfair to bring something into the world, and then not teach it how to survive. Victor was intimidated by his hideous characteristics and felt threatened by the creature. He did not know his creation at all, so he had no right to judge him. This is an example of how various people and society place too much judgment on physical appearance. The creature had just come into the world for the first time, and the first thing he saw was his creator screaming for his life as a result of his appearance. This traumatized the creation, and caused him to seek revenge on Frankenstein. This novel shows how when people are prejudice against physical deformity or ugliness, it automatically characterizes that person as bad or monstrous (Halberstam 59). Victor was the one who gave him these characteristics; so in fact, he is to blame for the creature?s appearance being so monstrous.

"Oh, Fortuna, blind, heedless goddess, I am strapped to your wheel. Do not crush me beneath your spokes. Raise me on high, divinity" (Toole: 42). Here, Ignatius Reilly makes one of his many pleas to Fortuna, the goddess which he believes controls his destiny and his life by spinning him in circles of good and bad luck. The cycles Ignatius Reilly goes through in John Kennedy Toole's A Confederacy of Dunces play an important role in the story, as they affect not only him, but several others in the book as well. The cycles that Ignatius is put through do, indeed, influence those around him. These cycles that Ignatius goes through are very much like gears, connected to the cycles of the other characters in the novel. Although it is not

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

This example of the significance of appearance in modern society is also echoed in Frankenstein. The parallel between the society in the novel and modern society is that of snap judgements based solely on appearances. In the novel, Victor Frankenstein is a perpetrator of such judgements. Victor “selected his features as beautiful.” Here it is seen Victor’s shallowness as he picked the most perfect body parts and beauteous features, all to be pieced together in great anticipation. However as one can see, the result is horrific and due to the hideousness of the wretch that he has created, he abandons him. This same shallowness of judgement due to appearance again surfaces when Victor accuses the creature of murdering William

In the Gothic novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley integrates the rhetorical devices figurative language, imagery, and tone to impart the concept that the desire to acquire knowledge and emulate God will ultimately result in chaos and havoc that exceeds the boundaries of human restraint.

Analyse the passage (John the Savage in the hospital); discern presentation of satire and how it is wrought.

Although humanity prides itself on its continuous societal improvements, superficial judgment continues to thrive, especially between those who differ in looks. The art of physiognomy dates back to the beginning of mankind and has continued to evolve with humanity, negatively impacting those who are categorized into unfavorable stereotypes. In Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, there are flagrant displays of the upsetting role appearance plays in society, as modern-day racism parallels the prejudice the monster experiences due to his exterior. Despite its publication year of 1818, the novel is still pertinent, especially as the world struggles to override unconscious biases correlating to race or unorthodox physicality.

Author Anthony Di Renzo notes the effectiveness of O’Connor’s use of thematic revelation.Rather than opposing one another, good and evil instead exist as “equally odd, equally absurd, and equally shocking” (122).The good and evil ironically converge to relay the message of grace, common throughout her works. O’Connor wanted her stories “to reach the unbelieving reader,” and the shocking aspect of the grotesque was the most effective way to reach him/her (Hawkins 28-29).