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A Confederacy of Dunces

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'A Confederacy of Dunces' by John Kennedy Toole is a dark comedy set in New Orleans, following the eccentric and obnoxious protagonist, Ignatius J. Reilly. The plot revolves around Ignatius' misadventures and interactions with a range of bizarre characters in the city, showcasing a mix of humor and sadness. The writing style is described as unique, blending humor with a touch of melancholy, and featuring well-developed characters in a vividly constructed setting.

Characters:

The characters in the novel are vividly drawn, with Ignatius as a grotesque anti-hero, and a range of eccentric supporting characters that enhance the chaotic New Orleans setting.

Writing/Prose:

Toole's writing style is vibrant and humorous, employing satire, colorful descriptions, and witty dialogue that encapsulates the quirky characters and their chaotic lives.

Plot/Storyline:

The plot centers on Ignatius J. Reilly's comedic journey through New Orleans, showcasing a series of absurd misadventures while interacting with quirky characters, ultimately leading to chaotic resolutions.

Setting:

The setting in early 1960s New Orleans, especially the French Quarter, is vibrant and integral to the narrative, offering rich cultural context and atmosphere.

Pacing:

The pacing is uneven, mirroring Ignatius's chaotic life, with some repetitive elements but ultimately builds to an intricate climax.
A green hunting cap squeezed the top of the fleshy balloon of a head. The green earflaps, full of large ears and uncut hair and the fine bristles that grew in the ears themselves, stuck out on either ...

Notes:

The book features a cockatoo as a minor character, but the cover art depicts a different bird.
Ignatius J. Reilly is depicted as an arrogant, self-centered, and loathsome character, yet he is still endearing to readers.
Despite being a comedic novel, the protagonist, Ignatius, exemplifies serious mental and social issues.
John Kennedy Toole committed suicide before the novel was published, and his mother found the manuscript, which led to its posthumous publication.
The title refers to Jonathan Swift's quote about genius and dunces being in confederacy against each other.
The story is set in 1960s New Orleans, a city that becomes a character in its own right.
The novel explores themes of loneliness and disillusionment, intertwined with humor.
It won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1981, a decade after Toole's death.
Many readers describe Ignatius as an insufferable antihero, yet he remains a memorable character in American literature.
The book has inspired diverse opinions—some readers find it hilarious, while others see it as tedious or offensive.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Content warnings include themes of mental illness, body humor, racism, and offensive portrayals of sexuality prevalent in the 1960s.

From The Publisher:

"When a true genius appears in the world,

You may know him by this sign, that the dunces

Are all in confederacy against him."

-Jonathan Swift, "Thoughts on Various Subjects, Moral and Diverting"

"A green hunting cap squeezed the top of the fleshy balloon of a head. The green earflaps, full of large ears and uncut hair and the fine bristles that grew in the ears themselves, stuck out on either side like turn signals indicating two directions at once."

So enters one of the most memorable characters in American fiction, Ignatius J. Reilly. John Kennedy Toole's hero is one, "huge, obese, fractious, fastidious, a latter-day Gargantua, a Don Quixote of the French Quarter. His story bursts with wholly original characters, denizens of New Orleans' lower depths, incredibly true-to-life dialogue, and the zaniest series of high and low comic adventures' (Henry Kisor, Chicago Sun-Times).

Ignatius J. Reilly is a flatulent frustrated scholar deeply learned in Medieval philosophy and American junk food, a brainy mammoth misfit imprisoned in a trashy world of Greyhound Buses and Doris Day movies. He is in violent revolt against the entire modern age. Ignatius' peripatetic employment takes him from Levy Pants, where he leads a workers' revolt, to the French Quarter, where he waddles behind a hot dog wagon that serves as his fortress.

A Confederacy of Dunces is an American comic masterpiece that outswifts Swift, whose poem gives the book its title. Set in New Orleans, the novel bursts into life on Canal Street under the clock at D. H. Holmes department store. The characters leave the city and literature forever marked by their presences-Ignatius and his mother; Mrs. Reilly's matchmaking friend, Santa Battaglia; Miss Trixie, the octogenarian assistant accountant at Levy Pants; inept, bemused Patrolman Mancuso; Jones, the jivecat in spaceage dark glasses. Juvenal, Rabelais, Cervantes, Fielding, Swift, Dickens-their spirits are all here. Filled with unforgettable characters and unbelievable plot twists, shimmering with intelligence, and dazzling in its originality, Toole's comic classic just keeps getting better year after year.

Ratings (100)

Incredible (25)
Loved It (26)
Liked It (17)
It Was OK (12)
Did Not Like (14)
Hated It (6)

Reader Stats (190):

Read It (101)
Currently Reading (1)
Want To Read (55)
Did Not Finish (6)
Not Interested (27)

4 comment(s)

It Was OK
1 week

I read this early last year and gave it 3 stars. This time around it might be more close to 2.5 but I'm not sure. It must have done somewhat of a impact on me that made me reread it even if I clearly remembered not liking the character. It's not a type of character I come across in literature and it's quite interesting bit not very enjoyable

 
Hated It
1 month

Not as clever as it thinks it is and certainly not humorous. Unique and grotesque would’ve be better descriptors.

 
Hated It
2 months

I thought I would love this book, but I hated the character of Ignatius Reilly so deeply that I just couldn't get past my feelings enough to see the humor. I also hated his mother. People seem to either love this book or hate it. I think it was just a bad chemistry thing for me. I tried twice. I couldn't do it.

 
Incredible
6 months

Easily the funniest damn book I've ever read.

 

About the Author:

John Kennedy Toole was born in New Orleans in 1937. After receiving a bachelor's degree from Tulane University, Toole received a master's in English from Columbia University, and taught at Hunter College and the University of Southwestern Louisiana (University of Louisiana-Lafayette). In 1961, while pursuing a doctorate and Columbia University, Toole was drafted into the United States Army, where he spent his time teaching English, while stationed in Puerto Rico. After two years in the army, Toole returned to New Orleans, where he taught at Dominican College. In 1969, frustrated at his failure to interest a publisher in A Confederacy of Dunces, he committed suicide. Toole's book was eventually published, after his mother brought the work to the attention of the author Walker Percy and insisted that he read her son's manuscript. Percy became one of the novels many admirers and A Confederacy of Dunces would eventually be awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1981, one year after the books first printing. Following the success of A Confederacy of Dunces, The Neon Bible, which Toole had written when he was only sixteen, was first published by Grove Press in 1989.

 
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