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John Kennedy Toole Biography

John Kennedy Toole

John Kennedy Toole (/ˈtuːl/; December 17, 1937 – March 26, 1969) was an American novelist from New Orleans, Louisiana, whose posthumously published novel A Confederacy of Dunces won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. He also wrote The Neon Bible. Although several people in the literary world felt his writing skills were praiseworthy, Toole's novels were rejected during his lifetime. After suffering from paranoia and depression due in part to these failures, he committed suicide at the age of 31.

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John Kennedy Toole Quotes

It smells terrible in here. ' Well, what do you expect? The human body, when confined, produces certain odors which we tend to forget in this age of deodorants and other perversions. Actually, I find the atmosphere of this room rather comforting. Schiller needed the scent of apples rotting in his desk in order to write. I, too, have my needs. You may remember that Mark Twain preferred to lie supinely in bed while composing those rather dated and boring efforts which contemporary scholars try to prove meaningful. Veneration of Mark Twain is one of the roots of our current intellectual stalemate.

Bed, Confined, Expect, Lying, Meaningful, Writing

. . . When my brain begins to reel from my literary labors, I make an occassional cheese dip.

Brain, Cheese, Dip, Literary, Occassional

Social Note: I have sought escape in the Prytania on more than one occasion, pulled by the attractions of some technicolored horrors, filmed abortions that were offenses against any criteria of taste and decency, reels and reels of perversion and blasphemy that stunned my disbelieving eyes, the shocked my virginal mind, and sealed my valve.

Abortion, Abortions, Attractions, Eye, Mind

Oh, New Orleans is such freedom.

Freedom, New Orleans, Orleans

It's not your fate to be well treated," Ignatius cried. "You're an overt masochist. Nice treatment will confuse and destroy you.

Confuse, Fate, Ignatius, Nice, Treated, Treatment

So we see that even when Fortuna spins us downward, the wheel sometimes halts for a moment and we find ourselves in a good, small cycle within a larger bad cycle. The universe, of course, is based upon the principle of the circle within the circle. At the moment, I am in an inner circle. Of course, smaller circles within this circle are also possible.

Circles, Principle, Principles, Wheel, Wheels

Stop!' I cried imploringly to my god-like mind.

Mind, Tears, Cry, Stop, Imploringly

I bet you cook good, huh?" Darlene asked. "Mother doesn't cook," Ignatius said dogmatically. "She burns.

Bet, Cooks, Mother, Said

Had that poor Reilly kook really been proud of Levy Pants? He had always said that he was. That was one good sign of his insanity.

Good, Insanity, Pants, Poor, Proud

employers sense in me a denial of their values. . . they fear me. i suspect that they can see that i am forced to function in a century which i loathe.

Century, Denial, Employers, Function, Sense, Suspect

I suspect that I am the result of particularly weak conception on the part of my father. His sperm was probably emitted in a rather offhand manner.

Father, Particularly, Results, Suspect, Weak

I refuse to "look up. " Optimism nauseates me. It is perverse. Since man's fall, his proper position in the universe has been one of misery.

Fall, Men, Optimism, Perverse, Universe

Mother went out again tonight, looking like a courtesan.

Courtesan, Courtesans, Mother, Tonight

I recommend Batman especially, for he tends to transcend the abysmal society in which he's found himself. His morality is rather rigid, also. I rather respect Batman.

Batman, Found, Morality, Recommend, Tends

Apparently I lack some particular perversion which today's employer is seeking.

Employer, Employers, Lack, Particular, Today, Work

It will all end very badly, Gus

Badly, Ends, Gus

Having once been so high, humanity fell so low. What had once been dedicated to the soul was now dedicated to the sale.

High, Humanity, Lows, Sale, Soul

This liberal doxy must be impaled on the member of a particularly large stallion!

Doxies, Doxy, Impaled, Large, Members, Stallions

Veneration of Mark Twain is one of the roots of our current intellectual stalemate.

Intellectual, Mark, Odor, Roots, Veneration

. . . I tried to end our little duel. I called out pacifying words; I entreated; I finally surrendered. Still Clyde came, my pirate costume so great a success that it had apparently convinced him that we were back in the golden days of romantic old New Orleans when gentlemen decided matters of hot dog honor at twenty paces

Back, Decided, Dog, Golden Days, New Orleans, Orleans

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