During his childhood, Nathanael Weinstein received almost no critical recognition that he desired. Now, nearly forty years after his death, the recognition and appreciation of West has grown significantly. The satiric genius changed his name to Nathanael West, one of his many extravagant names given to him by friend and family. He managed to transfer to another college, utilizing another student’s superior grades who also had the name Nathan Weinstein. All of his works were published over the span of an eight year, ingenious career that was ended by a deadly car crash. West’s novels, The Dream Life of Balso Snell (1931), Miss Lonelyhearts (1933), A Cool Million (1934), and The Day of the Locust (1939) all contain images of influential grotesquery. The episodes in these novels show characters that “commit violent acts, succumb to sexual urges, suffer torment from self or others, meet with obscene flights of the imagination, encounter or engage in mockery of things sacred, or reel back upon witnessing the mundane atrocities that occur on personal and global levels”, which strongly represent the contemporary society in which they live (de Boer 2). What do these grotesque images indicate? What can we take from them? It is easy to conclude that all of West’s works are an alternate version of The Waste Land and that the images are cautions of contemporary society and the possible death that arises. In all of his works, West intended to explore the violence and grotesqueries that are associated with dark humor. “Forget the epic, the master work…” West claims in defense for his second novel in Some Notes on Miss Lonelyhearts. “In America fortunes do not accumulate, the soil does not grow, families have no history. Leave slow growth to the...
... middle of paper ...
...tage” effect needed to appear for laughter.
The core of West’s novels, in the context of modern grotesquery, is significant because the genre presents an estranged, even chaotic, society. Degradation of humans, and animals, irrational order, and absurd language are just a few characteristics that West uses in order to create a “half-world” that is filled with the sad, subjugated persons who are naturally grotesque and violent. All of West’s works are extremes for his personal morals and values by which he lives. Each novel communicates the same message through different methods. In A Cool Million, satire; in Miss Lonelyhearts and The Dream Life of Balso Snell, irony; and in The Day of the Locust, aesthetics of apocalypse. It is often overlooked that the themes in his work are just his concerns for society. West’s ethics prevail in the thought that all people suffer.
When an author romanticizes a piece of literature, he or she has the power to convey any message he or she wishes to send to the reader. Authors can make even the most horrible actions, such as Dustan murdering ten savages in their sleep and justify it; somehow, from both the type of mood/tone set in this piece of literature, along with the powerful word choice he used, Whittier had the ability to actually turn the tables on to the victim (i.e. the ten “savages” who were murdered in their sleep). “A Mother’s Revenge” by John Greenleaf Whittier, is a prime example of how authors can romanticize any situation into how they want to convey their message.
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 Embattled Dreams, author Kevin Starr explains the decade that begins with World War II and ends with the growth of states that were part of the war, concentrating on the United States specifically California. The book speaks about the changes that the war brought into California and how it was a catalyst for major changes in the state’s economy and society. It focuses on the development of California. Many books show the major events that changed a country, but there were smaller stories within the country that demonstrated to the development as well. The author wants to show readers that California contributed much to the war cause, building machinery and such, but this book emphasizes the effects these jobs had on society. Kevin Starr
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.
“Roman Fever” and “Hills Like White Elephants” are two stories that on surface seem very different from one another, but through careful analysis the two are quite similar. Their similarities are mainly evident through the significant use of the dialogues in the both stories. “Roman Fever” has a third person omniscient narrator which the author allows to know the inner private thoughts of both characters, Mrs. Slade and Mrs. Ansley. In contrast, “Hills Like White Elephants” is composed in a third person limited narrative where very little is known about the thoughts of both Jig and the American. At first Ernest Hemingway’s short story can clearly be viewed as the most ambiguous out of the two. With its simplistic style, written mostly in straightforward dialogue which leaves the readers to contemplate over the ultimate outcome of the story and forces them to ...
Locklin, Gerald. "The Day of the Painter, the Death of the Cock: Nathaniel West's Hollywood Novel." Los Angeles in Fiction. A Collection of Original Essays. Ed. David Fine. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1984.
It is funny and yet tragic to see that no matter where an individual’s geographical location is or for the most part when in history the duration of their lifetime occurred, that they still can share with other tormented individuals the same pain, as a result of the same malignancies plaguing humanity for what seems to have been from the beginning. Emily Dickinson’s poetry, Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary, and Lu Xun’s “Diary of a Madman” all exhibit disgust for their societies, what is particularly interesting however, is that the subject of their complaints are almost identical in nature. This demonstrates how literature really does reflect the attitudes and tribulations the society and or culture endures from which it was written. The grievances that they feel to be of such importance as to base their literary works on are that of traditionalism and, the carnivorous nature of society. Different societies will inevitably produce different restrictive and consuming faces to these problems.
with egregious murder. Historically, death at the hands of a lynch mob would be reported in the presses as occurring “at the hands of persons unknown.” To Coates this repeated ignorance is intentional, as it is necessary to preserve “The Dream.” The Dream is a repeated theme in Coates writing. He argues that white Americans live a Dream where their successful lives are the natural result of grit, honor, and good works. He argues that in reality, the lives of white Americans are built on the back of African Americans.
Through vivid yet subtle symbols, the author weaves a complex web with which to showcase the narrator's oppressive upbringing. Two literary
To the uninitiated, the writing of Flannery O'Connor can seem at once cold and dispassionate, as well as almost absurdly stark and violent. Her short stories routinely end in horrendous, freak fatalities or, at the very least, a character's emotional devastation. Working his way through "Greenleaf," "Everything that Rises Must Converge," or "A Good Man is Hard to Find," the new reader feels an existential hollowness reminiscent of Camus' The Stranger; O'Connor's imagination appears a barren, godless plane of meaninglessness, punctuated by pockets of random, mindless cruelty.
Both Conrad’s, “Heart of Darkness”, and Coppola’s, “Apocalypse Now”, profoundly illustrate the journey of man into their inner self and man’s encounters with their insanity, fears and demise. The novella and film are comprised of numerous pivotal themes that facilitate the understanding of the deeper meaning of both works. Fundamentally, theme is an extensive message or idea expressed by an author and is a crucial element of literature since it sheds light on universal concepts. The most striking parallels that can be formulated when comparing themes in both the novella and the film are associated with human nature. Specifically, Conrad and Coppola incorporate theme of hypocrisy in order to portray man’s incredible potential for evil.
Arthur Miller profoundly explores the subject of morality and human values in his two famous plays, Death of a Salesman and All My Sons. Though dealing with a common topic , the works contain major differences that help to make them unique.
Kramer, Dale. “Far from the Madding Crowd: The Non-Tragic Predessor.” Thomas Hardy: The Forms of Tragedy. Detroit: Wayne state University Press, 1975. 25-47. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Linda Pavlovski. Vol.153. Detroit: Gale 2004. Literature Resource Center. Web. 20 April 2014.
Where do dreams come from? What actually are dreams? Do they mean something that is related in our real lives? All these questions can be answered by learning about the history of dreams in various cultures throughout time.
Throughout the last few weeks we’ve been reading and discussing three largely renowned books (Metamorphosis by Kafka, The Stanger by Albert Camus and The Perfume by Patrick Suskind) that share similarity in themes, and in the character profiles of Gregor Samsa, John Baptiste Grenouille and Meursault. These themes and profiles include; isolation and alienation from humanity as well as society, sociopathic tendencies, distorted reality, feelings of apathy towards life and others, among other.