DOCSLIB.ORG

Filosofická Fakulta Masarykovy Univerzity

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Filosofická Fakulta Masarykovy Univerzity Masaryk University Faculty of Arts Department of English and American Studies English Language and Literature Jakub Váša Drug (Ab)use in the Works of Hunter S. Thompson Bachelor‟s Diploma Thesis Supervisor: Mgr. Kateřina Prajznerová, M.A., Ph.D. 2013 I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently, using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography. …………………………………………….. Author‟s signature I would like to thank my supervisor Mgr. Kateřina Prajznerová, M. A., Ph.D. for her pertinent remarks and patience. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 1 1.1 The Issue of Drug Abuse in Literature .................................................................... 4 1.2 Birth of LSD ............................................................................................................ 7 1.3 Alcohol .................................................................................................................... 9 2. THE PERSONALITY OF HUNTER S. THOMPSON .............................................. 12 2.1 Time and Place ...................................................................................................... 13 2. 2 Born to Revolt ...................................................................................................... 14 2.3 Junkies ................................................................................................................... 15 2.4 True American? ..................................................................................................... 16 2.5 Gonzo Journalism .................................................................................................. 18 3. A JOURNEY TO THE HEART OF AN AMERICAN DREAM .............................. 23 3.1 Clash of Cultures ................................................................................................... 24 3.2 A Journey .............................................................................................................. 26 3.3 Ugly American ...................................................................................................... 30 3.4 Coming Down ....................................................................................................... 31 3.5 Absurdity ............................................................................................................... 34 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................... 35 WORKS CITED ............................................................................................................. 39 1 INTRODUCTION Literature offers a variety of symbols and themes that stimulate human mind and imagination. Whether it uses motifs of nature, religion or society, its primary function is to provide the reader with something new. Hunter Stockton Thompson (1937 – 2005) pushes it a little bit further. With sheer audacity that is an essential part of his personality, he describes the era of the 1960‟s and 70‟s America–the most interesting period of time concerning society and self-awareness as well as experiments with the psychedelic drugs. Even though the subject of this work is the issue of drug abuse, a more precise term is the issue of drug use. The term abuse is described as “the use of something in bad, dishonest or harmful way” (Macmillan Dictionary). However, there can be no doubt about the fact that psychedelic drugs were actually beneficial for Hunter S. Thompson regarding his literary output, being his manifestation of disappointment with the failing virtues of the American Dream ideal. This issue enabled him to create a new genre which is very closely knit to the consumption of substances that change one‟s perception of the spiritual and material world. Along with Hunter S. Thompson, there are also other prominent world-known writers and poets that fit this image; however Thompson stands at the end of the drug- powered literary production, with all his recklessness and imminence. Authors such as Thomas de Quincey, Aldous Huxley, Edgar Alan Poe and others complete the line of writers that employ similar issues in their works, however while they focus rather on one specific substance, Thompson focuses on a great number of them. Nevertheless, for 1 the purpose of this thesis, only author‟s experiments with psychedelic drugs and alcohol are observed. The ambience of Thompson‟s works is very raw and direct, and Thompson builds it in such attractive manner perhaps for the reason that he partially lived a life similar to the lives of the characters described in his works. Therefore, he can most accurately describe the effects that particular substances had on him. From the twisted adventure into the heart of Las Vegas to the languorous atmosphere of Thompson‟s novel The Rum Diary set in Puerto Rico, Thompson guides the reader along the path of the people who are condemned to live on the margins of society as well as along the path of the people who voluntarily chose to do so. This thesis tries to identify author‟s feelings and attitudes in relation to the form and content of his works and find raison d'être of the author‟s need for creation of such works. For the purpose of clear organization it is divided into three sections. In its introductory part it includes an overview of the use of drugs in works of other authors, as well as a brief description of the most discussed substance–psychedelic drugs, most notably LSD which is at the centre of Thompson‟s interest in Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas. It is mainly for the reason that use of psychedelic drugs is an element that identifies Thompson in the context of other writers employing similar themes and to some extent the reason of his popularity. At the end, the chapter also comments on the author‟s use of the theme of alcohol and his relation to this substance. The second section is dedicated to the author‟s life and contains a very brief description of the key events of his youth. Along with that, it tries to compare author‟s ideas, personality and attitude with the ideas and attitudes of main characters of his works. More importantly, it elaborates on Gonzo journalism that became Thompson‟s legacy and contribution to the literary world and explains how author‟s rebellious 2 character and experience with drugs contributed to the birth of this literary genre. It also tries to clarify that Hunter S. Thompson was not the first author to incorporate the theme of drug abuse into his work. He is a follower of a tradition of writers even though he abandoned the concept of “record of mystical experience” predefined by the works of Huxley and Leary and set the course to a plainer and simpler description of drug frenzy. Unlike the previously mentioned authors, Thompson uses this issue as a basis on which he builds the distorted image of the American Dream and expresses his constant disappointment with its realization that fails. The third part analyzes Thompson‟s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas which represents the high point of his career, focusing on its key themes that are inseparably linked to an experience with psychedelic drugs. Just as the second part of this thesis, it tries to identify the key points, such as failure of the 1960‟s countercultural movement and collapse of the American Dream, that represent the author‟s own experience and opinions expressed via actions and thoughts of the main characters of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Nevertheless, while the former focuses mostly on author‟s writing style in general, the latter focuses on depiction of drug-induced conditions and situations that are result of main characters‟ actions in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Thompson‟s contribution lies in the way in which the situations that take place during his trip to Las Vegas are described. This new and original approach to the record of a drug-induced state that, as professor Juan Bruce-Novoa observes, brightly combines journalistic style with the stream of consciousness technique (41), enriched with Thompson‟s own insights and observations creates a new genre that brings the amount of the reader‟s involvement in the story to a new level. The most accurate description of this style is provided by Peter Tamony who asserts, quoting from Saturday Review, that the main aim of Thompson‟s style is to “find a subject that can 3 induce a paroxysm of words, scribble them out on a paper, then move on before the rush wears of and the synapses cool down” (qtd. in Tamony 74). Intentional mystification and hyperbole, which in Thompson‟s hands turns out to be a potent mixture along with the provocative issue of drug abuse that even today does not have clearly stated definition, creates a specific tenor of Thompson‟s works. The aim of this thesis thus is to provide information that has been pushed to the edge of human interest, since the psychedelic drugs, and drugs in general, are banned from use and regarded as harmful. For these purposes it focuses mainly on Thompson‟s description of his experiments and thoughts during the drug sessions described through Raoul Duke in the book Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, but it also contains a brief discussion of another book – Thompson‟s Rum Diary which centers around alcohol abuse that allows for comparison of the use of drug-related themes in his works in a time frame of approximately ten years. 1.1 The Issue of Drug Abuse in Literature Despite the fact that drugs
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Hey Rube: Blood Sport, the Bush Doctrine, and the Downward Spiral of Dumbness Pdf
    FREE HEY RUBE: BLOOD SPORT, THE BUSH DOCTRINE, AND THE DOWNWARD SPIRAL OF DUMBNESS PDF Hunter S Thompson | 246 pages | 01 Aug 2005 | SIMON & SCHUSTER | 9780684873206 | English | United States Hey Rube (book) - Wikipedia It is no accident that this column is titled "Hey, Rube. Every stop the Bush Doctrine the circuit was just another chance to fleece a crowd of free- spending rubes, suckers, hicks, yokels, johns, fish, marks, bums, losers, day traders in Portland, fools who buy diamonds from gypsies, and anyone else over the age of none in this country who still believes in his heart that all cops are honest and would never lie in a courtroom. These people are everywhere. They are legion, soon to be a majority; and 10, more are being born every day. Barnum, the circus man, explained the real secret of his commercial success by repeating his the Bush Doctrine motto, "There's a sucker born every minute. Which he did -- with a zeal that has never been equaled in the history of American show business. Barnum knew exactly what people wanted: freaks, clowns and wild animals. Those dates were special; many schools were closed when the circus came to town, and not every student returned when the public frenzy was over. We all worry about the Bush Doctrine our fine and beautiful daughters to some filthy circus tramp who catches her in a weak moment; and sometimes, it actually happens. Anita woke me up at the Bush Doctrine with a whoop and a squeal that shocked me. I love it! Our favorite columns are all bound into a book! George Bush isn't going to like this one, is he? The President really enjoys your sense of the Bush Doctrine.
    [Show full text]
  • Literary Journalism Studies Journalism Literary Return Address: Literary Journalism Studies Literary Journalism Studies Vol
    Literary Studies Journalism Return address: Literary Journalism Studies Literary Journalism Studies Vol. 4, No. 1, Spring 2012 State University of New York at Cortland Department of Communication Studies L P.O. Box 2000 J Cortland, New York 13045-0900 S U.S.A. Fear and Vol. 4, No. 1, Spring 2012 2012 Spring 1, No. 4, Vol. Loathing in Las Vegas + 40: Hunter S. a special issue Thompson Published at the Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University 1845 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208, U.S.A. The Journal of the International Association for Literary Journalism Studies S11 LJS cover Final.indd 1 4/3/2012 10:52:56 AM Reprinted with permission of the Hunter S. Thompson Estate. Our cover photo for this issue is a self-portrait taken by Hunter S. Thompson in 1965. It is eerily self-revealing about how he saw himself when he was younger, especially given his inscription on the back side. Contributed by Margaret Har- rell, Thompson’s copy editor at Random House for his volume Hell’s Angels. S11 LJS cover Final.indd 2 4/3/2012 10:52:57 AM Literary Journalism Studies The Journal of the International Association for Literary Journalism Studies Vol. 4, No. 1, Spring 2012 ––––––––––––––––– Information for Contributors 4 Note from the Editor 5 ––––––––––––––––– Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas Forty Years Later: A Special Issue 6 The Two Sides of Hunter S. Thompson by William McKeen 7 “The Right Kind of Eyes”: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as a Novel of Journalistic Development by Robert Alexander 19 “A Savage Place!” Hunter S.
    [Show full text]
  • A Hunter S. Thompson Bibliography
    117 Literary Journalism Studies A HUN T ER S. THOMPSON BIBLIO G RAPHY Prepared by William McKeen BOO K S BY HUN T ER S. THOMPSON Hell’s Angels (New York: Random House, 1967). Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (New York: Random House, 1972). Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail (San Francisco: Straight Arrow, 1973). The Great Shark Hunt(New York: Summit Books, 1979). The Curse of Lono(New York: Bantam Books, 1983). Generation of Swine (New York: Summit Books, 1988). Songs of the Doomed (New York: Summit Books, 1990). Screwjack (Santa Barbara, Calif.: Neville, 1991).* Better than Sex (New York: Random House, 1994). The Proud Highway(New York: Villard Books, 1997). Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Other American Stories (New York: The Modern Library, 1997). Mistah Leary, He Dead (Pasadena, Calif.: X-Ray Publishing, 1997).* The Rum Diary(New York: Simon and Schuster, 1998). Fear and Loathing in America (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2000). Screwjack and Other Stories (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2000). Kingdom of Fear (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2003). Hey Rube (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2004). Fire in the Nuts (Tucson, Ariz.: Sylph Publications, 2004).* Fear and Loathing at Rolling Stone (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2011). The Mutineer (New York: Simon and Schuster, in press). [*] denotes limited edition 118 Literary Journalism Studies BOO K S FEA T URIN G HUN T ER S. THOMPSON (as a character or with an example of his work), with occasional annotations. Acosta, Oscar Zeta. The Autobiography of a Brown Buffalo (San Francisco: Straight Arrow, 1972).
    [Show full text]
  • The Gonzo Text – the Literary Journalism of Hunter Thompson Phd 2013 Matthew Winston
    The Gonzo Text – The Literary Journalism of Hunter Thompson PhD 2013 Matthew Winston Declaration This work has not been submitted in substance for any other degree or award at this or any other university or place of learning, nor is being submitted concurrently in candidature for any degree or other award. Signed ....................................... (candidate) Date .............................. STATEMENT 1 This thesis is being submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of PhD. Signed ....................................... (candidate) Date .............................. STATEMENT 2 This thesis is the result of my own independent work/investigation, except where otherwise stated. Other sources are acknowledged by explicit references. The views expressed are my own. Signed ....................................... (candidate) Date .............................. STATEMENT 3 I hereby give consent for my thesis, if accepted, to be available for photocopying and for inter-library loan, and for the title and summary to be made available to outside organisations. Signed ....................................... (candidate) Date .............................. STATEMENT 4: PREVIOUSLY APPROVED BAR ON ACCESS I hereby give consent for my thesis, if accepted, to be available for photocopying and for inter-library loans after expiry of a bar on access previously approved by the Academic Standards & Quality Committee. Signed ....................................... (candidate) Date .............................. ii Abstract More
    [Show full text]
  • Eric C. Shoaf Collection on Hunter S. Thompson
    http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c8jh3svh No online items Guide to the Eric C. Shoaf Collection on Hunter S. Thompson Kate Dundon University of California, Santa Cruz 2019 1156 High Street Santa Cruz 95064 [email protected] URL: http://guides.library.ucsc.edu/speccoll Guide to the Eric C. Shoaf MS.273 1 Collection on Hunter S. Thompson Contributing Institution: University of California, Santa Cruz Title: Eric C. Shoaf Collection on Hunter S. Thompson source: Shoaf, Eric C. Identifier/Call Number: MS.273 Physical Description: 18 Linear Feet14 boxes Date (inclusive): 1961-2018 Language of Material: English Conditions Governing Access Collection is open for research. Conditions Governing Use Property rights for this collection reside with the University of California. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. The publication or use of any work protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use for research or educational purposes requires written permission from the copyright owner. Responsibility for obtaining permissions, and for any use rests exclusively with the user. Preferred Citation Eric C. Shoaf Collection on Hunter S. Thompson. MS 273. Special Collections and Archives, University Library, University of California, Santa Cruz. Biographical / Historical This collection was created by the author and educator Eric C. Shoaf. Shoaf published Gonzology, a bibliography of the work of American journalist and author Hunter S. Thompson, in 2018. Content Description This collection primarily comprises magazines and newspapers that feature work by the author Hunter S. Thompson, or feature reviews and articles about Thompson and his work. Also included are collected ephermeral items related to Thompson including posters, broadsides, photographs, and promotional material, and well as research files generated by Shoaf in creating his bibliography of Thompson's work, Gonzology.
    [Show full text]
  • The “Most Accurate, Least Factual” Writer: Hunter S. Thompson, Journalist by Marion Suzanne
    The “Most Accurate, Least Factual” Writer: Hunter S. Thompson, Journalist by Marion Suzanne Stotesbury July, 2010 Chair: Jeffrey Johnson Department: English New Journalism, as practiced by Tom Wolfe, Jimmy Breslin, and other writers, loosened the accepted bounds of journalism in the 1960s. Embracing these unrestricted journalism practices, Hunter S. Thompson adapted the New Journalists’ techniques and added some of his own to create Gonzo Journalism. A mix of satire, dark humor, and parody, Gonzo focused on the persona telling the story rather than the events that the writer on which was supposed to be reporting. Objectivity, the mainstay of traditional reporting in the 20th century, was not the goal in Gonzo. Thompson’s writing more closely resembled the news writing that came before the rise of objectivity. Today, Thompson’s influence on the modern media has lead the way for satirical news programming such as The Colbert Report and publications like The Onion. Thompson’s writing was also the also a forbearer of the modern polarized media. People who read his reportage understood that they were getting a story from his point‐of‐view; similarly, shows like Fox News provide the news from a certain viewpoint. The “Least Factual, Most Accurate” Writer: Hunter S. Thompson, Journalist A Thesis Presented To the Faculty of the Department of English East Carolina University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of the Arts by Marion Suzanne Stotesbury July, 2010 Copyright © 2010 Marion Suzanne Stotesbury The “Least Factual, Most Accurate” Writer: Hunter S. Thompson, Journalist By Marion Suzanne Stotesbury Approved by: Director of Thesis:__________________________________________________ Thomas Douglass Committee Member:________________________________________________ Liza Wieland Committee Member: _______________________________________________ Alex Albright Chair of the Department of English:____________________________________ Jeffrey Johnson Dean of the Graduate School:________________________________________ Paul J.
    [Show full text]
  • Crossroads:Rereading the Works of Hunter S. Thompson As Picaresque
    Crossroads: Rereading the Works of Hunter S. Thompson as Picaresque Narratives Sean Wilkinson 24 April 2014 Wilkinson 2 Table of Contents Introduction……………………………………………………………………… 3 Chapter One……………………………………………………………………… 7 Chapter Two………………………………………………………………………24 Chapter Three……………………………………………………………………..39 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………...60 Works Cited……………………………………………………………………….63 Wilkinson 3 INTRODUCTION: APPROACHING THE WORK OF HUNTER S. THOMPSON This thesis will argue that the work of Hunter S. Thompson can be read as American Picaresque due to Thompson's utilization of episodic narrative structure, Picaresque archetypes, and various Picaresque themes such as the criticism of “civilized” society and the picaro’s fear of aging. Thompson gained notoriety after the success of his 1971 novel, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream. In the book, Thompson showcases his unique genre of writing, which he affectionately referred to as Gonzo Journalism, a style that is a unique adaptation of the traditional Picaresque narrative. Both Picaresque and Gonzo narratives are centered on a kind of character often identified as a picaro, a rogue who critiques, and often mocks, the society in which he refuses to participate. Such tales are also episodic; there is no continuous plot, and the picaro lacks character development. Although Gonzo Journalism shares numerous devices with the traditional picaresque narrative, it is also different in many ways: as opposed to the picaros of classic Spanish literature, Thompson's picaro-like characters firmly believe that there is no saving their society, and facilitate the episodic structure of the picaresque through drug abuse—blackouts are a recurring motif in Thompson’s work. So far, most of the scholarly articles written on Thompson's texts focus on how the literary community classifies his work in the spectrum of journalism.
    [Show full text]
  • Hunter S. Thompson, Transmetropolitan, and the Evolution from Author To
    Hunter S. Thompson, Transmetropolitan, and the Evolution from Author to Character By Ashlee Amanda Nelson A thesis submitted to the Victoria University of Wellington in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in English Literature Victoria University of Wellington 2014 2 Table of Contents Figures Page 3 Acknowledgements Page 4 Abstract Page 5 Introduction Page 7 Chapter One Page 12 Chapter Two Page 38 Chapter Three Page 68 Conclusion Page 95 Works Cited Page 98 3 Figures Fig. 1 p. 41 Spider Jerusalem’s car (Transmetropolitan 1:10) Fig. 2 p. 43 Spider Jerusalem (Transmetropolitan 1:4) and Hunter Thompson (Ancient Gonzo Wisdom) Fig. 3 p. 43 Spider Jerusalem (Transmetropolitan 1:28) and Hunter Thompson as drawn by Ralph Steadman in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (14) Fig. 4 p. 45 Mitchell Royce (Transmetropolitan 1:20) and Jann Wenner (Bazilian) Fig. 5 p. 50 Spider’s articles (Transmetropolitan 4:40) Fig. 6 p. 53 Spider acting out an imaginary conversation (Transmetropolitan 5:12) Fig. 7 p. 57 “The Beast” (Transmetropolitan 1:94) Fig. 8 p. 60 The “The Smiler” (Transmetropolitan 3:45) Fig. 9 p. 82 Spider’s article (Transmetropolitan 1:65) Fig. 10 p. 83 Spider’s journalism (Transmetropolitan 3:53) Fig. 11 p. 84 Fonts and speech box styles (Transmetropolitan 5:63-64) Fig. 12 p. 86 Spider’s interviews with the homeless (Transmetropolitan 7:106) Fig. 13 p. 87 Spider’s article juxtaposed against him writing it (Transmetropolitan 7:109) Fig. 14 p. 88 Article by Spider (Transmetropolitan 5:38) Fig. 15 p.
    [Show full text]
  • Fear and Loathing in America, Has Just Been Released
    Fear & Loathing in America By Hunter S. Thompson Page 2 columnist It was just after dawn in Woody Creek, Colo., when the first plane hit the World Trade Center in New York City on Tuesday morning, and as usual I was writing about sports. But not for long. Football suddenly seemed irrelevant, compared to the scenes of destruction and utter devastation coming out of New York on TV. Even ESPN was broadcasting war news. It was the worst disaster in the history of the United States, including Pearl Harbor, the San Francisco earthquake and probably the Battle of Antietam in 1862, when 23,000 were slaughtered in one day. The Battle of the World Trade Center lasted about 99 minutes and cost 20,000 lives in two hours (according to unofficial estimates as of midnight Tuesday). The final numbers, including those from the supposedly impregnable Pentagon, across the Potomac River from Washington, likely will be higher. Anything that kills 300 trained firefighters in two hours is a world-class disaster. And it was not even Bombs that caused this massive damage. No nuclear missiles were launched from any foreign soil, no enemy bombers flew over New York and Washington to rain death on innocent Americans. No. It was four commercial jetliners. They were the first flights of the day from American and United Airlines, piloted by skilled and loyal U.S. citizens, and there was nothing suspicious about them when they took off from Newark, N.J., and Dulles in D.C. and Logan in Boston on routine cross- country flights to the West Coast with fully-loaded fuel tanks -- which would soon explode on impact and utterly destroy the world-famous Twin Towers of downtown Manhattan's World Trade Center.
    [Show full text]
  • Magisterarbeit
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by OTHES MAGISTERARBEIT Titel der Magisterarbeit „Hunter Stockton Thompson“ Chronist des Amerikanischen Traums Verfasser Michael Schröder Bakk. phil. angestrebter akademischer Grad Magister der Philosophie (Mag. phil.) Wien, 2009 Studienkennzahl lt. Studienblatt: A 066/841 Studienrichtung lt. Studienblatt: Publizistik- und Kommunikationswissenschaft Betreuerin / Betreuer: Univ.-Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Duchkowitsch 1 2 ABSTRACT Hunter S. Thompson war in den USA einer der bekanntesten zeitgenössischen Journalisten und Schriftsteller. Nach seinem Tod im Jahr 2005 hat er es auch in Europa zu einem mittleren Bekanntheitsgrad gebracht. Inzwischen gibt es einige seiner wichtigsten Bücher und Artikel in deutscher Übersetzung zu kaufen. Die vorliegende Arbeit hat es sich zur Aufgabe gemacht, mehr über den einzigen Gonzo-Journalisten herauszufinden. Dabei reicht der Blick weiter als nur zu seinem von Alkohol und Drogen geprägten öffentlichen Image. Zu diesem Zweck wird Thompsons Leben von Kindheit an beleuchtet und zu den geschichtlichen und gesellschaftlichen Rahmenbedingungen in Kontrast gesetzt. Dieselbe Vorgehensweise wird auch bei der Untersuchung von Thompsons Werk angewandt, um abschließend die so gewonnenen Ergebnisse in ein ganzheitliches Bild der journalistischen und privaten Person Hunter S. Thompson zusammensetzen zu können. Als Leitfaden dient das Modell kommunikationswissenschaftlicher biographischer Forschung , welches sich seinerseits an der neuen
    [Show full text]
  • University of Nevada, Reno Rags, Riches And
    University of Nevada, Reno Rags, Riches and Rye: Hobohemian Practice in Twentieth Century American Literature A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in English by Jennifer H. Forsberg Dr. Justin D. Gifford/Dissertation Advisor May, 2016 THE GRADUATE SCHOOL We recommend that the dissertation prepared under our supervision by JENNIFER H. FORSBERG Entitled Rags, Riches and Rye: Hobohemian Practice in Twentieth Century American Literature be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Justin D. Gifford, PhD, Advisor Ann Keniston, PhD, Committee Member Jen Hill, PhD, Committee Member Dennis Dworkin, PhD, Committee Member Greta de Jong, PhD, Graduate School Representative David W. Zeh, Ph. D., Dean, Graduate School May, 2016 i ABSTRACT This dissertation examines hobo symbolism in the literary works of the American writers Jack London, John Steinbeck, Jack Kerouac, Hunter S. Thompson and Charles Bukowski. I argue that these authors utilize the social status of working- class identity in the tramp, hobo, migrant, or bum as a narrative technique and aesthetic model. These twentieth-century white, male writers construct an ideological and intellectual fantasy of the cultural frontier by enacting empowered mythological orders of the working class, despite its relegation to economic dispossession and social marginalization. I call attention to character types such as the tramp, hobo, migrant, and bum to investigate the circulation of mythologies about self-making, industriousness, and American progress into the twenty-first century. The inclusion of the hobo or other working-class figures in the hobo narrative incorporates, appropriates and often co-opts these American mythologies to exhibit generational and countercultural gain for white masculinity.
    [Show full text]
  • The New Journalism and Its Editors: Hunter S
    THE NEW JOURNALISM AND ITS EDITORS: HUNTER S. THOMPSON, TOM WOLFE, AND THEIR EARLY EXPERIENCES By ELI JUSTIN BORTZ A THESIS PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN MASS COMMUNICATION UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2005 Copyright 2005 by Eli Justin Bortz This document is dedicated to Meredith Ridenour, who provided only patience, guidance, and love throughout this project, and Hunter S. Thompson, whose wordplay continues to resonate. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS As I worked on this thesis over the last two years, I attempted to keep a list in my mind of everyone I needed to thank. As the list grew, I realized I was bound to forget names. Indeed, so many people provided guidance, help, and support that imagining the list is fairly overwhelming. I must first thank the chair of my supervisory committee, Dr. Bernell Tripp, for providing remarkable patience and advice as this project developed and progressed. I realized early on that I would need someone with an editor’s eye to guide my writing. She provided that, and more. It was with her encouragement that I was able to complete this project. I am also indebted to my other committee member, Dr. William McKeen, who accepted the task of serving on my committee during what can only be described as a busy time in his life. I wish him and his growing family all the best. Dr. Leonard Tipton, my other committee member, gave me encouragement and advice in the earliest stages of this project and recognized my interest in the New Journalism.
    [Show full text]