Information AboutCosmopolis |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT COSMOPOLIS | |
| 2003 novels | |
| novels by don delillo | |
| american novels | |
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''Cosmopolis'' (ISBN 0743244249) is Don DeLillo 's thirteenth novel, released on April 14 , 2003 . It was published by Scribner , and the Hardcover runs 224 pages. SYNOPSIS ''Cosmopolis'' is the story of Eric Packer, a 28 year old multi-billionaire asset manager who makes an Odyssey (or anti-odyssey) across midtown Manhattan in order to get a hair-cut. Like Delillo's other novels, repetition of thoughts and a disjointed timeline give the novel a distinct Delillo feel. Like James Joyce 's '' Ulysses '', ''Cosmopolis'' covers roughly one day of time and includes the typical subtleness of ''Ulysses'' at times (c.f., Joyce's "man in the macintosh" with Delillo's "man at the ATM"), a funeral which the hero takes part in (c.f. Patty Dingham's in ''Ulysses'' to the fallen Sufi rap star's in ''Cosmoplis''), and highly sexed women (c.f. Leopold Bloom's wife Molly and mistress to Packer's wife of 22 days {albeit slightly asexual at first}, his mistress, and his bodyguard), and the theme of the son separated from the father (Packer's father died of cancer suddenly during the son's childhood). Unlike Joyce's novel, Delillo's "day" is rather eventful including a presidential visit to the city which causes magnificent traffic jams that impede the hero's progression across midtown, a riot, a funeral procession, several "chance" meetings of his wife (seeing her in a taxi, bookstore, and laying naked in the street taking part of a movie as an extra), attacks by the "pastry assassin" and the "credible threat", two murders, and two hair-cuts (one symbolic, the other literal). Through the course of the day Packer loses incredible amounts of money for his clients by betting against the rise of the marble, bullet-proofed against outside gunfire, and cork lined to protect against street noise (unsuccessfully, Parker notes). EXTERNAL LINKS Reviews
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