| One Of The Guys |
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| 1999 novels | |
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LITERARY SIGNIFICANCE & CRITICISM Though predominantly a satire, the book also works on levels of Symbolism and Allegory . The hero, Miles Derry, a recovering alcoholic who is attempting to improve his destitute condition by impersonating a gay Methodist chaplain, is an Existential and self-actualizing figure who represents the American Dream of bettering oneself, no matter how ludicrous the means or the results. While the narrative tone manages to be humorous and realistic at the same time, Derry's journey itself can be said to be Surreal as he strives to survive aboard a Navy ship that symbolizes the corruption of American institutions. In this sense, he is the heir to Tom Jones and Barry Lyndon , and one of the few modern representations of the picaresque hero, whose roguishness, low birth, and survival by wits alone serve as ironic counterpoint to the real targets of the satire, the corrupt society and institutional abuses symbolized by the whirl of madness around him. Despite the book's multiple layers, many critics and readers have enjoyed it on the level of a Tall Tale . Critic Josip Novakovich, who compared ''One of the Guys'' to '' A Confederacy Of Dunces '', has said "If you read the book in public, you will laugh so much and go through so many facial expressions that you'll run the risk of having the police called to check you out." TRIVIA After the initial publication of ''One of the Guys'' by HarperCollins in 1999, the book was held before the U.S. Congress as obscene by the American Family Association . |
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