Saturday, June 19, 2010
Response to Fear And Loathing!
Starting this book was extremely difficult, Due to the way Thompson explains things. Though the way Hunter S. Thompson explains the events that occurred in his life are interesting they are also very confusing. I am not saying that I am a totally innocent person, but I have never been on drugs. That fact alone not only made it difficult to understand some terms but I didn’t know what the different drugs did so it made it hard to decipher what exactly was real in some instances. The journey Thompson takes his readers on to find the American Dream is definitely an interesting one and it was entertaining, but I must say I was confused at the same time. I ended up actually reading the book and then renting the movie so some instances were made clear and then some things clicked, but without the movie I feel I might have misunderstood some parts. I did love the way he made the American Dream seem like a crock. His trip to Vegas was a symbol for finding your American Dream and I really found it interesting how he made all fun instances have a down fall, which is how the USA works. One can try and try and try and still not get what they initially wanted in the end. Thompson showed this in a way that could appeal to many audiences. He told a crazy story about drugs and Vegas, which only a few can relate to, but he also told a story that allows those who couldn’t relate to the drugs, to relate to the simple situation of everything going wrong.
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I also had a very had time figuring out what was real and what was drug induced. I have never been involved with drugs and have no clue what most of the drugs talked about do. This book just made me more grateful for the fact that I stayed away from drugs in my life.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree about the story being confusing at times. It was often difficult to decipher what was reality and what were hallucinations. I thought about renting the movie afterwards to help clear some things up as well; I'm glad we're going to watch it in class! It will be interesting to see how Hollywood put Thompson's trips on screen!
ReplyDeleteI thought almost all of this story was confusing. I always had a hard time trying to decide what was real and what was real only to him! If this book didn't jump around so much, I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more! Like Courtney said, I am excited to see the movie and it's take on the book.
ReplyDeletei agree with your statement of the story being confusing because of the terms that he was using because of the drug use in the book. If someone has not been on drugs before or uses them on a regular bases it would be difficult to understand what is the truth and what is a hallucination. I on the other hand understand some of the things that he described in his story only because I have first hand seen someone/ a family member on uppers and downers all my life, even though I have not experienced them first hand but watching from the side line it was something very difficult to understand by watching it much less reading about it. I cant wait to see the movie in class!
ReplyDeleteI agree with the rest of the comments how the book was hard to follow somethimes. It was hard to tell if he was seeing things or not or if it was real. That's how people with that much drugs in their system live. The movie made it easier to understand. I agree with how no one is ever satisfied with what they have and they always whan more. When ever he was looking for the American Dream and he could never find it.
ReplyDeleteI like your point about people relating to everything going wrong. This was probably behind some of his reasoning when he was writing the book. I didn't see that until you pointed it out. I agree it was very difficult to read and confusing too.
ReplyDeleteI think most people find the plot difficult o follow. That's the point. Thompson's drug-induced stupor is what he's saying the search for the American Dream is like, a long winding, confusing mind fuck of an acid trip. The American Dream is an illusion, a hallucination. No longer do Americans want to work hard. We want to get something for nothing. Even many of us who think we're working hard to attain our goals have little idea what it's really like to truly make something from nothing. How many of us have had to fight our way out of the ghetto, to live homeless because it's all we've ever know, to get high on whatever is available because it's the only escape from the hell one knows as everyday reality? Some of us, but not probably not many in our classroom. Most of us have been handed at the very least the necessities of life but feel deprived when we can't afford the luxuries we tend to call necessities (a nice car, cell phone, internet access, etc., etc.). Thompson's presentation of the Las Vegas mentality is not so far off from that of the average American as many people might want to believe. And for a significant portion of the U.S. population, the American Dream is nothing more than an ever-illusive fairy tale. I think that is sometimes hard for white, middle class Americans to understand.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the book is appealing because of all the drug use. I haven't had the drug experiences of Thompson, and I don't want to, so living an LSD trip through him satisfies my curiosity about it in a mild, unharmful way.
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