September / Comic Novel Reading: A Confederacy of Dunces

[Dark Muse]

I like his use of the reflexive in the dialog, which is sort of a Cajun-ism you hear sometimes from natives of New Orleans. “Myself, I go down der to de Café Du Monde for dem beignets an some a dat cafe au lait.” Something like that. It’s a little more widespread over in Lafayette.

I rather liked the dilect within the story, it added a certain flavor to it for me, and it did make it more interesting and humurous.

I think modern African-Americans readers may choke on the cartoonish portrayal of Jones.

I agree that is probably true, but if they had any common sense, they could see that all of the characters are a parody and cartoonish. I mean just look at Iggy and Myrna

[Sancho]

Do you think he could’ve gotten the same effect with syntax only and skipped the spelling?

[Dark Muse]

No, I do not think it would have been quite the same effect. The story would have still worked, and I don't think that Jones is quite completely dependent upon it, but still it adds a touch or realism and brings Jones a bit more to life off the page. At least that is how I see it.

And I don't believe Toole had any racial malice in his doing so, as he pants everyone in the story with an equal brush if you ask me. I think he was just being an observer of society and American culture, and than making it into an intentional parody of itself.

[Sancho]

agreed

I’ve gotta admit the cloud formations crack me up, thunderclouds, cumulonimbus, stratus, cirrus; it just keeps going. I’m waiting for a mushroom cloud.

[Dark Muse]

I abolsutely LOVED the cloud fomations.

I am not quite done with the book yet, but as I am getting near the end, one thing that I really enjoy is the way in which Toole is making all these connections between the varrious characters and little differnet plots, and how one thing leads to another which is brining everything sort of together.

[Sancho]

I’m glad you mentioned that. I was just admiring the way Toole weaved the story (or stories).

I bogged down on this book in the middle, but this thread and Myrna’s letter re-energized me. Although published in 1980, I think the book was written the 60s, making Myrna’s political musings all that more prophetic. I’m talking about her trying to incite Ignatius to act on his theories and start the Divine Right Party, which would syphon fascist elements from other political parties and give the country a much needed three party system. I was howling by the end of her letter.

Anyhow, I’m still behind the rest of you but I plan to catch up tonight. My biggest problem now is a mechanical one: my book is sort of old and held together by a rubberband so I have to sit a desk to read it. On the bus ain’t an option.

[Sancho]

Viola, finished.

Things just aren’t going to work out for Myrna, are they: one lost cause after another.

Anyway I’m glad I stuck with it to the end. It was well worth it, if only to read the comic sketch about the kickoff rally and the interaction between the bull-dykes and the nancy-boys. What a hoot.

Does anyone think you can (or should) read this book as a stand-alone text. I mean, without knowing anything about the author or how he ended his life?

[Dark Muse]

Does anyone think you can (or should) read this book as a stand-alone text. I mean, without knowing anything about the author or how he ended his life?

Considering that is what I did, I would definately say you can. I know nothing about Toole or his life, but I thorughly enjoyed reading this book, and do not feel my ignorance on the authors life has negatively impacted my reading of the book.

Personaly if a book cannot be read as a stand alone text I do not think it truly makes a very good book, a reader should not have to be a shcolar upon authors biography to be able to read and understand thier works.

OK, here is a question. At the end of the book, Iggy's interest in Myrna's hair... I find it a little icky because I cannot help thinking there is connection with the long hair and the dog. Does anyone get the same feeling?I think it was Bouquin who nominated it

I did not feel like her hair was connected to the dog really, and though the dog scene was strange to say the least, perhaps you are trying to make too much of it.

Though I did find that scene at the end to be a bit odd, it felt almost out of character for Iggy to me. Though he was desperate to escape from the Charity House, it is hard for me to believe that in that moment he would commit such a complete 180 of his personality. Though in the future I do not know if there is much genuine hope of Iggy truly making any sort of change for the better, I had a little trouble completely buying the ending of the book.

But perhaps his long going antitheses with her through their letters back and forth was really just Iggy's way of having something of a connection with her, and at the root of it, maybe he truly did like her all along, but he is just too socially inept to be able to expresses his feelings in any other way but the negative.

[Sancho]

Personaly if a book cannot be read as a stand alone text I do not think it truly makes a very good book, a reader should not have to be a shcolar upon authors biography to be able to read and understand thier works.

By and large, I agree. In fact I'd probably enjoy Hemingway more not knowing that he could be quite a tool in his private life. Charles Dickens was notoriously prickly towards criticism and that knowledge doesn't detract from my enjoyment of Tale of Two Cities. But this book may be an exception to the rule.

I don’t know a lot about the author either, except what was written in the forward by Walker Percy. He gives the story of how the book came to be published. The other thing that jumps out is the copy write: 1980 by Thelma Toole. I, and others on this forum, have wondered how much of the novel autobiographical. So with this book, it seems to me, the whole story behind the book has become part of the book.

Here’s a thought I had after setting the book aside and thinking about it for a couple of days. And it sort of goes along with knowing a little about the author – sort of but not really.

To enhance the experience of the book, I think it helps to know a little about New Orleans: its topography, geography, climatology, sociology, and its history. If the United States is a melting pot, then New Orleans is dat gumbo what goes in da pot.

The characters in the book represent a nice cross-section of greater the New Orleans population. The history of the place, to a certain extent, is written in their last names:
Reilly, Mancuso, Jones, Lee, Levy, Robichaux. The Acadian (Cajun) name runs a close third in prevalence down there to Boudreaux and Thibodeaux. Also, I don’t think it was an accident that the only Anglican name was given to an African-American.

I enjoy reading about places I’m familiar with. It gives me a frame of reference. I can put a place with a name when he talks about the Algiers ferry dock, the Quarter, St Charles Street, the Causeway Bridge, or even Slidell. Also it helps to know the dubious history of the state penitentiary at Angola.

Anyway, it was just a thought.

[Dark Muse]

I have always had a certain fascination with New Orleans, and I rather enjoyed myself the fact that the book was set within New Orleans, and reading about Ig's experiences on the French Quarter and the references to Mardi Gras.

[Sancho]

I’ve never had a bad time in NOLA but I haven’t been there since Katrina.

Here’s something kind of spooky (if you believe Wiki). Hollywood has had several aborted attempts to make a movie of Confederacy of Dunces, but the leading character keeps dying. So far they’ve cast John Belushi, John Candy, and Chris Farley.

Anyhow, Muse, looks like you and I are the only two hep-cats still chatting about this book so I guess it’s time for me to go down to my local book-monger and find something new to read. Any suggestions?

[Dark Muse]

That is eerie if it s indeed true.

Haha well other then Confederacy of Dunces, I am not sure what sort of books you might be inclined to like and my own reading tastes are very ecclectic so I am not sure where to begin with trying to reccomend anything.

[Sancho]

Ha!

Thanks, I'll find something. Browsing the stacks just may be my favorite part.

Cheers

[Scheherazade]

Ha!

Thanks, I'll find something. Browsing the stacks just may be my favorite part.

Cheers

Maybe you would consider taking part in our next reading?


I have just read a quick read of Toole's biographie on Wiki and I am not sure if his work is exactly autobiographical (even though there might some similarities especially the mother).

And I have very little knowledge of New Orleans area but it didn't stop me from enjoying the book (true that I might have enjoyed it more had I been familiar).

[Sancho]

Hey thanks, Sher.

It sounds like fun. Sadly though, I’ve never been too reliable where making commitments are concerned.