A Confederacy of Dunces

A Confederacy of Dunces is a novel written by John Kennedy Toole, but not published during his lifetime. Through the efforts of the writer Walker Percy and Toole's mother, the book was published in 1980; it quickly became a cult classic and won a Pulitzer Prize a year later.

Related Topics:
Novel - John Kennedy Toole - Walker Percy - 1980 - Cult classic - Pulitzer Prize

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The title is a reference to a saying by the classic master of satire, Jonathan Swift: "When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him." (Thoughts on Various Subjects, Moral and Diverting)

Related Topics:
Satire - Jonathan Swift - Genius - Thoughts on Various Subjects, Moral and Diverting

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The story is set in the U.S. city of New Orleans, Louisiana, at the start of the 1960s. The central character is Ignatius J. Reilly, an intelligent but slothful man still living with his mother in Uptown New Orleans who, because of family circumstances, must set out to get a job for the first time in his life at age thirty. In his quest for employment he has various adventures with colorful French Quarter characters.

Related Topics:
U.S. - New Orleans, Louisiana - 1960s - French Quarter

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