A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole

With the exception of Fielding's masterpiece, The History of Tom Jones, I do not usually like comic literature. I usually dislike American literature even more, therefore I expected A Confederacy of Dunces to grind all my gears of annoyance. On the contrary, it greatly surprised and later delighted me, even causing me to laugh out loud on a handful of occasions. Much of the comedy comes from the obese, pseudo-intellectual Ignatius J. Reilly, who lives in squalid conditions with his alcoholic mother. The flatulent, gluttonous and elitist protagonist has had just enough of a university education to despise the New Orleans simpletons who plague his existence. I was anticipating the writing to blunder from one overblown farce to the next, but Toole's tone treads a careful line between excess and tragedy. Unlike most comic writers who throw everything out of the bag hoping at least some of it sticks, Toole knows when to dish it out and when to employ temperance.

The supporting cast of Dunces are all memorable in their own ways and somehow manage to transcend their stereotypes. Although Reilly is a despicable creature in his own right, one is brought to agree with his scathing denunciations of the 'cretins' surrounding him. The theme of an overeducated bigot forced into low skilled employment will be sure to resonate with today's post Recession graduates. Praised as the quintessential New Orleans novel, I confess to being rather surprised that this book has not made it onto the American literature syllabus of my own university. The local dialect of the characters, the homosexuals, and the rebellious yet affirmative black character of Jones should have been enough to satisfy the criteria for alternative representations of minority groups. It works particularly well as a snapshot into the seedy underbelly of New Orleans culture. This is an overlooked modern classic that I would recommend to a wide range of acquaintances.

Rating: 4/5