"Degeneracy, rather than signaling the downfall of a society, as it once did, will now signal peace for a troubled world. We must have new solutions to new problems." (Pg 270).
This quote comes directly from one entry in Ignatius's "The Journal of a Working Boy", and it certainly does introduce a new layer to his character one that's pushing this novel in a direction I can't say I expected Ignatius to advocate for weaponizing homosexuality in pursuit of world peace, but John Kennedy Toole has surprised me again and again with this hilarious novel, so I can't say it's too big of a shock. In chapters 8 through 11, Ignatius's new job as a hot dog vendor for Paradise Vendors leads him to various misadventures, culminating in what seems like preparations for the book's climax. The book's brilliantly interwoven plots are one piece of the answer to an important question regarding this book: why AP? Why should an AP class read this novel, if at all?
Sophistication in literature is a subjective concept, and it's ultimately very difficult to achieve. However, A Confederacy of Dunces has some truly phenomenal aspects, primarily its characters and dialogue, that convey major societal issues in a real yet humorous way. One major point where this stood out was the plot point centered around Mr. and Mrs. Levy, as well as Miss Trixie. Mrs. Levy, obsessed with finding employment for the elderly Miss Trixie despite her openly hating her job and being unfit to work, forces her to be re-employed at Levy Pants, where she meets Ignatius's seemingly dim-witted replacement, Mr. Zalatimo. Toole writes, "The door closed and Mr. Zalatimo came over to Miss Trixie, absently scratching himself. He tapped her on the shoulder and asked, "Say, lady, maybe you can help me out with this. What would you say comes first, Willis or Williams?" Miss Trixie glared at him for a moment. Then she sank her teeth into his hand." (Pg 281). This little interaction, while brief and humorous, perfectly encapsulates Miss Trixie's purpose as a character in the novel: an example of how ridiculously long people are forced into employment under conditions they despise, her rage built up over years and years finally being released. Miss Trixie cannot be faulted for her actions, they are the product of a society that wants whatever dedicated labor it can get. That's a clear example of "why AP," this novel uses small interactions to make powerful statements.
Sophistication in literature is a subjective concept, and it's ultimately very difficult to achieve. However, A Confederacy of Dunces has some truly phenomenal aspects, primarily its characters and dialogue, that convey major societal issues in a real yet humorous way. One major point where this stood out was the plot point centered around Mr. and Mrs. Levy, as well as Miss Trixie. Mrs. Levy, obsessed with finding employment for the elderly Miss Trixie despite her openly hating her job and being unfit to work, forces her to be re-employed at Levy Pants, where she meets Ignatius's seemingly dim-witted replacement, Mr. Zalatimo. Toole writes, "The door closed and Mr. Zalatimo came over to Miss Trixie, absently scratching himself. He tapped her on the shoulder and asked, "Say, lady, maybe you can help me out with this. What would you say comes first, Willis or Williams?" Miss Trixie glared at him for a moment. Then she sank her teeth into his hand." (Pg 281). This little interaction, while brief and humorous, perfectly encapsulates Miss Trixie's purpose as a character in the novel: an example of how ridiculously long people are forced into employment under conditions they despise, her rage built up over years and years finally being released. Miss Trixie cannot be faulted for her actions, they are the product of a society that wants whatever dedicated labor it can get. That's a clear example of "why AP," this novel uses small interactions to make powerful statements.
While the plotline with the Levys and Miss Trixie takes up a decent portion of these chapters, it's nowhere near as significant as Ignatius's tales from the meat vending industry, especially the one providing context for the quote I started off with. While vending in the French Quarter, dressed up as a pirate, Ignatius encounters an outwardly feminine man who bought his mother's hat back in chapter one of the book. After a brief scuffle, Ignatius ends up having a conversation with the man, whose name turns out to be Dorian Greene. Ignatius, upon seeing one of Dorian's friends dressed up as a sailor, realizes that the entirety of the United States' armed forces might potentially be impostors, and he formulates a plan to create a political party based around replacing the military with gay men. Ignatius states, "The power-crazed leaders of the world would certainly be surprised to find that their military leaders and troops were only masquerading sodomites who were only to eager to meet the masquerading sodomite armies of other nations in order to have dances and balls and learn some foreign dance steps." (Pg 252). This quote, while ridiculous, highlights another important aspect of the book: the complexity of Ignatius. Toole can write nuanced, deep characters with actions reflecting their complex motivations. Ignatius is someone who desires peace for everyone and he desires revolution, that much is clear from his plans to globally weaken the military. These are qualities you'd traditionally see as "good." However, his pseudo-intellectualism, blatant racism and homophobia (he still refers to gay people as "degenerates" despite seeing them as tools for creating world peace) and overall laziness are clearly horrible traits, which makes judging his character quite the dilemma, which is sophisticated and worthy of an AP classroom. I eagerly await more insights into his character as I read the final chapters of this book.
Ignatius seems a hard character to like, which can sometimes make a book hard to like. Do you see that here, or are there redeeming qualities and beliefs in him, such as his desire for peace?
ReplyDeleteI also think this book deserves to be in an AP course. The dialogue, and the characters, like you said, really makes up the book and makes scenes so powerful. It truly captures complexity, sophistication, and character development.
ReplyDeleteI entirely agree that this novel is AP-worthy. It truly captures the character complexities and how the characters make up the book. I honestly don't think Toole was trying to make it as sophisticated as it turned out to be, but it's nice to see how well it did.
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