UVM Theses and Dissertations
Format:
Print
Author:
McGuiggan, John
Dept./Program:
English
Year:
2012
Degree:
M.A.
Abstract:
The works of the American poet, author and playwright James Purdy have been largely ignored in the study of American literature. Championed by many fellow authors, Purdy has nonetheless failed to capture the attention of a wide readership or, for that matter, the publishing world. Despite a large output of work over a career spanning fifty years, Purdy's works have not been so much misunderstood as they have been denied understanding. Some works are banned due to subject matter or a subversive nature. Purdy's were not banned but rather pushed aside and ignored. This is a result of their undeniable ability to disturb, and the tendency of publishers and readers alike to draw back from that which causes true discomfort, not simple shock.
It is this discomfort that the works of James Purdy so consistently provokes that shall be examined in the following pages. Specifically, this study will analyze one of, if not the most, prevalent source of the unease that these works create. Purdy creates worlds in which characters move through their lives as if through a fog, an allegorical waking dream state. These characters interact with the world around them as strangers in their own lives. Again and again Purdy's works come back to the same notion of self identity. The characters that people his world are orphans, outcasts, sometimes monsters of humanity. Whatever situations they find themselves in, however bizarre their journeys become, it is the struggle of living without a sense of oneself that ultimately drives their actions. Absurd, grotesque or heartbreakingly alone, Purdy's characters live in a world that happens around them, as they struggle not to find their bearings but to find themselves.
It is this motif of the incomplete self, this lack, that is central to the being of these characters, that causes the discomfort so common to reading these works. When one cannot understand or even begin to define himself, he runs the risk of having himself constructed by outside forces. If one is to be so constructed by outlying influence, how then can one ever truly be one's own self? By examining different forms of outside influence in some of Purdy's works -that of the parents, the perceived exterior at odds with the interior, and the role of outside communication in the construction of identity this work will explore the toll that this way of convincing one's self of their identity takes upon these characters. More than just allegorical figures, they are characters; characters, though, that struggle to find an integral part of themselves. It is this journey of self searching and results of the process that have made Purdy such a difficult author to reconcile with what one wants or needs of a character. This study aims to show how beneficial a journey it is.
It is this discomfort that the works of James Purdy so consistently provokes that shall be examined in the following pages. Specifically, this study will analyze one of, if not the most, prevalent source of the unease that these works create. Purdy creates worlds in which characters move through their lives as if through a fog, an allegorical waking dream state. These characters interact with the world around them as strangers in their own lives. Again and again Purdy's works come back to the same notion of self identity. The characters that people his world are orphans, outcasts, sometimes monsters of humanity. Whatever situations they find themselves in, however bizarre their journeys become, it is the struggle of living without a sense of oneself that ultimately drives their actions. Absurd, grotesque or heartbreakingly alone, Purdy's characters live in a world that happens around them, as they struggle not to find their bearings but to find themselves.
It is this motif of the incomplete self, this lack, that is central to the being of these characters, that causes the discomfort so common to reading these works. When one cannot understand or even begin to define himself, he runs the risk of having himself constructed by outside forces. If one is to be so constructed by outlying influence, how then can one ever truly be one's own self? By examining different forms of outside influence in some of Purdy's works -that of the parents, the perceived exterior at odds with the interior, and the role of outside communication in the construction of identity this work will explore the toll that this way of convincing one's self of their identity takes upon these characters. More than just allegorical figures, they are characters; characters, though, that struggle to find an integral part of themselves. It is this journey of self searching and results of the process that have made Purdy such a difficult author to reconcile with what one wants or needs of a character. This study aims to show how beneficial a journey it is.