Tuesday 25 March at 17:30 in the Members Dining Room
A Confederacy of Dunces tells the story of Ignatius J. Reilly, a brilliant yet self-absorbed man living with his mother in New Orleans. Ignatius holds modern society in disdain, considering himself intellectually superior to almost everyone around him. After a series of misadventures—including a car accident that prompts his mother to force him to find a job, Ignatius reluctantly begins working at various low-level positions.
His workplaces, from a factory to a hot dog stand, lead to hilarious and chaotic situations, as Ignatius’s overinflated sense of his own importance and lack of social awareness make him a constant source of conflict with his coworkers, customers, and even the police. Along the way, the novel introduces an array of quirky, often tragic, characters who cross paths with Ignatius, each of whom is struggling with their own life challenges.
The novel’s humor comes from Ignatius’s absurdity and the absurd situations he creates, but it also highlights deeper themes like existential frustration, alienation, and the clash between intellectualism and the modern world.
Through its colorful characters and dark comedy, A Confederacy of Dunces paints a vivid portrait of a man who is both pitiable and laughable, all while satirizing society at large. Despite his flaws, Ignatius’s journey remains an engaging exploration of the absurdity of life.
To join the meeting, please email events@tattersallsclub.org
Below, Book Club member Janet Pennington, provides her review of the last Book Club book, “James” by Percival Everett
“James is the re-telling of Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” through the voice of Jim, a black slave in the confederate states, just prior to the American Civil War.
The author has turned the personalities upside down: Jim, is intelligent and savvy, absorbing literature and philosophy at every opportunity; and Huck, uneducated, naïve and superstitious. In James, the black slaves have cleverly developed deferent mannerisms for survival as the property of ‘white folks’ – including the use of a different language when in the presence of whites.
Although many of the events in the book might be considered implausible, our February Book Club members felt able to accept them, with the author effectively recounting the ‘adventures’ to illustrate racial prejudice and oppression, and in some instances with ironic humour.
In summary, our readers thought that the book successfully challenged racial stereotyping and reminded us of the cruelty of the time.
We felt that there was no need to have read Mark Twain’s classic to appreciate James- however it might enhance the experience. Mark Twain is said to have hinted at the racist assumptions of slavery, but in “James”, Percival Everett delivers that message in a very clever and forceful manner.
The average rating: 8 out of 10.
Three-word summaries included: Slave Wins Through; Adventurous Slave Rebellion; and Black Trumps White – perhaps the latter making us consider current events in the USA.”
