Superfluous Existence
In juxtaposing the work White Noise by Don DeLillo and that of Paula Fox's Desperate Characters one finds similarities as well as stark differences. Both works address the pitfalls of modern life and the ills that pervade the portrayed societies, yet the authors approach their commentary on their constructed worlds in entirely different manners. The ills of society as seen by Fox and DeLillo, while not mirror images, are similar. Fox portrays a society that values style over substance while De Lillo paints a picture of a society approaching cultural death. I contend that both authors would agree that their novels address the superfluous existence that has cast its pall over modern society. While their views appear to be analogous regarding the superfluous nature of our society, it is their distinctly disparate approaches to this topic that makes the comparison of these two works interesting. DeLillo's novel borders on surrealism. I am not alone in the ideas that DeLillo has a surrealistic bent; Arnold Weinstein mentions this when he calls DeLillo's style "cool to the point of being hip...exquisitely focused on the inane, the bizarre, [and] the surreal" (288). I describe DeLillo's work as surreal in that it paints a pictu
Even as she tried to name it, it was dissolving, and he left her suddenly just as she had forgotten what she was trying to remember" (20). A new state program they're still battling over funds for. The differences between the approaches of Fox and DeLillo in depicting our society's superfluous existence are stark: Fox on the side of realism, and DeLillo setting his tale in surreal environs. She lay there for a moment, thinking of the cat, how surprised she'd been, seeing it again, when she and Otto had come home. Unfortunately he is not a member of a society that allows the individual to effect change on the status quo. I find that the settings of these works provide another interesting viewpoint. Jack recognizes that things are not quite as they should be, and unlike Sophie, has the internal fortitude to make that change. The phrase "just another city stray" has import in the novel as well. A slowly moving line, satisfying, giving us time to glance at the tabloids in the racks. These authors use two separate writing styles to shine a light on the woes of modern society; perhaps this can serve as a model by which our society can strive to better itself. Conversely, DeLillo uses a surreal setting to explicate his societal concerns via Jack's inability to inflict change upon his society. As Jonathan Franzen writes "The reader who happens on Desperate Characters in a library today will be as struck by the foreignness of the Bentwoods' world as by its familiarity. Sophie is so frantic to have an original experience that she views the cat bite as a life-altering event: "when Sophie awoke it was 3:00 a. Despite these two authors having similar views regarding the woes our society faces, it is interesting to consider what each might project as an outcome for our society.
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Acceptance Essays
