Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas Analysis

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Ben gekfse Mrs. Breezee American Literature 14 Oct. 2012 Unreliable Narrator in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas “Theres nothing more helpless and irresponsible than a man in the depths of an ether binge”(4). If this does not make readers doubt the narrator, nothing will. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is a story of two men on “a savage journey to the heart of the American dream”(20), or at least that’s what they call it. This might not sound appealing, but the insanity of this book is amazing. Throughout the entire story, Raoul Duke and his attorney, Dr. Gonzo, are on a trip to Las Vegas while pumping their bodies full of many dangerous drugs. Duke is narrating this drug-filled adventure, which presents unreliability in its greatest form.…show more content…
From gathering the drugs, to finding a car, he describes events which have lead up to their current situation. Most of this is very unreliable due to the fact that he is in a completely different world than the reader. At first no one can be completely sure of what was truth or just a hallucination from an ether binge. Right off the bat, the reader is confused with delusional thoughts from a drug filled lunatic. “You’re full of acid, you fool. It’ll be a goddamn miracle if we can get to the hotel and check in before you turn into a wild animal” (22). Lines like this makes the reader question whether or not to believe the thoughts of someone who’s “full of acid.” But this was only the beginning. Duke and his attorney make their way to the Desert Inn, this is where the real strangeness begins. After the two check into the room, they decide to have a night on the town, while inhaling large amounts of ether. “The main advantage of ether is to make you behave like the village drunkard in some early Irish novel... total loss of all basic motor skills: blurred vision, no balance, numb tongue-severance of all connection between the body and brain” (44). As Dr. Gonzo and Duke continue their insane journey through the Circus-Circus, things only get increasingly…show more content…
Duke and his attorney go to a drug convention, on drugs of course, for reasons inexplicable. As the reader hears the stories of what they learn about drugs, there are many distractions throughout. Before the convention, Dr. Gonzo and Duke consume large amounts of “downers, reds, grass, and booze” (144). “We weren't fit to go into a convention filled with cops and snitches, but we did” (145). Duke described many people who he said were cops, but the reader could never be sure whether it was just a hallucination or reality. So thought the entire journey, Raoul Duke and his attorney, Dr. Gonzo were under the influence of many insane drugs. There was no real point to this besides the experience, or “the American dream.” As the reader learns everything that Duke and his attorney consume, inhale, or smoke, nothing could be taken seriously. From beaver people, to acid trips, and ether binges, now one can be entirely sure what was reality or a hallucination. Duke described unheard of situations, which also makes the reader question his reliability. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas without a doubt has one of the most unreliable narrators in all post modern books, due to the fact that everything he told us, he was high while it happened. Works Cited- Thompson, Hunter S. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream. 2nd ed. New York: Vintage, 1998.

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