Rant: The Oral Biography of Buster Casey is widely known as one of the Chuck Palahniuk’s most complicated reads, a mind-blowing “out-there” novel in what is typically considered a very extreme bibliography. The unconventional narrative style, plethora of contradicting narrators, and indecipherable subject matter all combine into one oral biography of a complex, incomprehensible man by the name of Buster “Rant” Casey—a man who liked to be bitten by venomous animals, a man who could discern a person’s life story from the sweat on their flesh, and a man who, even after death, taught us how we will always be slightly different versions of ourselves to different people.
The novel begins with the recollections of a car dealer on an airplane as he sees the person he will have to sit with for the duration of the flight: some cowboy hillbilly with arms so heavily scarred that, like a car crash, he can’t help but stare at. He soon learns that this terrifying man is, in fact, Chet Casey: the father of the infamous Buster Casey—the deceased maniac Nighttimer who was the “superspreader” of a rabies epidemic that sweeped the nation. And thus, the biography of Rant Casey begins.
From there, the book chronicles Rant’s childhood antics, from him actively searching out rabid dogs to bite him and give him rabies to him faking a chronic erection to get out of school. He walked in neighborhoods in his Boy Scout outfit to find stash after stash of rare, uncirculated million-dollar coins, then used this money to turn his small-town Middleton’s economy on its head. In one memorable incident, Rant was in charge of providing the “scare factors” of the annual local Haunted House, such as brains, or cooked elbow macaroni mixed with cold butter, and eyeball...
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...o be his parents, to gain power. And, from this, we can assume that Rant and Chet and Green Taylor Simms are all, in fact, the same person. Yet, Simms traveled back in time to rape Irene and Hattie and Esther Casey, while Rant and Chet both went back in time to save these same women. Palahniuk’s Rant-Chet-Simms, then, is an exaggerated, physical representation of a person’s different personas in the face of different members of society.
Rant’s oral biography is a study in personas. Palahniuk took the different versions of people in society and stretched them, making them so exaggerated that they became different people with different names. Yet, this jumbled, complicated mess all comes together to teach the same lesson: no one will ever truly know a person for who they are. After all, as Rant used to say, “You’re a different human being to everybody you meet” (18).
In 102 Minutes, Chapter 7, authors Dwyer and Flynn use ethos, logos, and pathos to appeal to the readers’ consciences, minds and hearts regarding what happened to the people inside the Twin Towers on 9/11. Of particular interest are the following uses of the three appeals.
Although set in the 1930s, Nathanael West’s The Day of the Locust ironically resembles contemporary Hollywood. Within the glamorous setting of Hollywood, West’s characters take on multiple roles instead of assuming individual personalities. They put on and remove these imaginary personality masks, similar to those in the Commedia dell’Arte, to exhibit a range of emotions that only their character type would exhibit. Consequently, West’s characters are trapped in this restrictive atmosphere, especially at the end of the novel when they become part of a collective mob. In these manners, the characters in The Day of the Locust exhibit qualities akin to modern actors, proving that they are nothing more than a cast of personages rather than individuals.
In conclusion, David Hackett Fischer effectively tells the story of Paul Revere's ride in a way that completely and accurately depicts the events. By developing many of the historical figures that are not as well known as Paul Revere, Hackett Fischer gives the reader a more distinctive understanding of these particular historical events. Paul Revere's Ride also personalizes these events by providing numerous first hand accounts that strengthen the imagery. As a whole, the novel is an effective and interesting historical account that accurately tells the famed story of Paul Revere's midnight ride.
The author then looks back upon the time in his life when her mother decided to drive Hunter Jordan’s old car. However, she didn’t know how to drive, and was generally afraid to get behind the wheel. On that day, she drove crazily on the road, and declared to never drive again. James McBride also reflected on his life up to a teenager, who knew that bad things would occur in the not too distant future if he didn’t change his ways and behavior.
Reuben, Paul P. PAL: Perspectives in American Literature- A Research and Reference Guide. Chapter 10: James Baldwin (1924-1987). 3 November 2011. April 2012 .
James Baldwin’s short story “Sonny’s Blues” illustrates the inner struggle of breaking the hold of lifestyles unfamiliar to those normally accepted by society. Through the use of common fictitious tools such as plot, characters, conflict, and symbolic irony, Baldwin is able to explore the complex difficulties that challenge one in the acceptance of differences in one another. This essay will attempt to understand these thematic concepts through the use of such devises essential in fiction, as well as to come to an understanding of how the particular elements of fiction assist the author in exploring the conflict.
In three dynamic pieces of literature, the desperate yet hopeful characters gallantly endure the struggles of achieving their dreams as they experience the pain of desolation and the life-fulfilling happiness of a friendly companion. Through hostile resentment, the intense repulsion created by generations of territorial disputes tears apart two vengeful foes, Ulrich and Georg, in Saki’s captivating tale. Whereas in Remarque’s gory war novel, the pure terror of battle brutally slaughters the once innocent minds of soldiers as they undergo changes in their heart and soul within themselves. Although impervious to the influence of the reclusive residents tied to the ranch, as they quest for their shared aspirations, George and Lennie forge an invincible friendship in Steinbeck’s calamitous novelette.
The narrator's life is filled with constant eruptions of mental traumas. The biggest psychological burden he has is his identity, or rather his misidentity. He feels "wearing on the nerves" (Ellison 3) for people to see him as what they like to believe he is and not see him as what he really is. Throughout his life, he takes on several different identities and none, he thinks, adequately represents his true self, until his final one, as an invisible man.
McCarthy wrote the novel in ways that force readers to remove themselves from their comfort zones. He wrote The Road with a lack of punctuation that can make things somewhat confusing for readers. Some critics find that without quotation marks it makes the book hard to follow. But when I read the book I found that after the first fifty pages I understood when the characters were speaking. Finding that I had to pay a little more attention didn’t bother ...
Kurt Vonnegut: The novelist inserts himself in the sections of Chapters One and Ten that frame Billy Pilgrim's story.
To create living people should always be the goal in literature. It is how a writer can illuminate a new facet of existence and can only be achieved through the use of a sympathetic imagination. Hemingway erred however, when he argued, “A character is a caricature” (153). A caricature may be a character sometimes, but it may also be a fully realized and living person at others. As in Watchmen, when a caricature lives, it can be an extremely powerful thing.
The author skillfully uses literary techniques to convey his purpose of giving life to a man on an extraordinary path that led to his eventual demise and truthfully telling the somber story of Christopher McCandless. Krakauer enhances the story by using irony to establish Chris’s unique personality. The author also uses Characterization the give details about Chris’s lifestyle and his choices that affect his journey. Another literary element Krakauer uses is theme. The many themes in the story attract a diverse audience. Krakauer’s telling is world famous for being the truest, and most heart-felt account of Christopher McCandless’s life. The use of literary techniques including irony, characterization and theme help convey the authors purpose and enhance Into The Wild.
Bukowski, Charles, and John Martin. Run with the Hunted: A Charles Bukowski Reader. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 1993. Print.
The narrator in James Baldwin’s short story, “Sonny’s Blues”, at first glance seems to be a static character, trying to forget the past and constantly demeaning his brother’s choices in life. Throughout the story, readers see how the narrator has tried to forget the past. However, his attempt to forget the past soon took a turn. When the narrator’s daughter died, he slowly started to change. As the narrator experiences these changes in his life, he becomes a dynamic character.
Wilson, M. & Clark, R. (n.d.). Analyzing the Short Story. [online] Retrieved from: https://www.limcollege.edu/Analyzing_the_Short_Story.pdf [Accessed: 12 Apr 2014].