The Bonfire of the Vanities
The book The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe tells the story of an affluent businessman, Sherman McCoy, and how his life enters a downward spiral after a hit and run accident. The Bonfire of the Vanities takes place in New York City in the late nineteen eighties. Sherman is a thirty-eight year old successful bond salesman for a large Wall Street firm, Pierce and Pierce. He is married to an interior decorator named Judy and they have a six-year old named Campbell, who is very precious to him. Sherman is constantly bothered by the stress of having a million dollar loan to pay off for his Park Avenue apartment and by the guilt he feels about having a mistress. Maria Ruskin is a young, southern, attractive woman who is married to an older millionaire. The Bonfire of the Vanities also tells the story of Larry Kramer, an assistant district attorney in the Bronx. His lifestyle is dramatically different from that of Sherman McCoy. Kramer lives in a small apartment with his wife and infant son. Kramer, like Sherman, is trapped in a loveless marriage and dreams of affairs with young, sexier women than his own wife, Rhoda. One night after picking up Maria at the airport, Sherman makes a wrong turn in his Mercedes and they end up in a v
A Harlem leader and opportunist, Reverend Bacon, has gotten involved in story and turns the accident into a racially motivated attack. This causes the police to go after Sherman more fiercely than what they would normally do in this type of hit-and-run situation. These people are the wealthy WASPS, who are considered successful and the women they marry. Sherman would have also probably not have received any jail time, or even fines. This economic caste is very true in real-life New York. If Sherman and Maria had immediately told the police their story, the minority communities would not have become outraged. By not telling the police what happened that night, Sherman caused his life to enter a downward spiral. After a struggle, Maria speeds away and Sherman thinks they may have hit one of the boys so he suggests telling the police. If he had gone to the police, there would not have been such a fuss over the accident and there would have been no racial tensions involved. The whole incident would be regarded as an accident and the consequences would have been minimal. Sherman loses everything including his family, his money, his social status and his freedom. Also Reverend Bacon is similar to the real-life figures of Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson who get frequently act as a voice for the minority community in order to further their own goals. The Bonfire of the Vanities reflects the time period of the 1980's in prejudice and economic opportunities. Maria assures him that everything will be all right so Sherman pushes the accident to the back of his mind.
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Acceptance Essays
