Abstract
The 42nd Parallel is a famous novel written by John Dos Passos. This book offers an interesting portrait of the early 20th century in America. The extract we will focus illustrates Charley's psychology; a young man shared between his professional aspirations and his emotional and personal aspects of his life.
Extract
[...] The Underlying Social and Political Critique Denunciation of Social and Economic Injustice Michaelson is the occasion for the writer Dos Passos to criticize social inequalities. Indeed, this character is confronted in his personal life to an important economic and social crisis. This social problem concerns at first lower class, people who work with his hands which is the case of Michaelson. It's very difficult for him to have a new life. An important sentence of this passage « He was a great admirer of Bob La Follette and had a theory that the Wall Street bankers were conspiring to seize the government and run the country by pauperizing the farmer » show how this character is trying to think about his situation and that he is not only passive. [...]
[...] The 42nd Parallel - John Dos Passos (1919) - How does this extract illustrate the author's critique of capitalism and the class struggle? The 42nd Parallel is a famous novel written by John Dos Passos. This book offers an interesting portrait of the early 20th century in America. This novel offers an interesting perspective of the society in all its aspects. We can analyse the destiny of different characters, their psychologies and also the political and social aspects of theirs lives in a way that combinate history and History. [...]
[...] Through this character, Dos Passos criticizes capitalism. Political Engagement and Social Ideals But Michaelson representants populism. It is this character who will awake Charley's political consciousness. Bob La Follette is a lawyer and a political who had a great influence in History and who was a important representant of populism. Inspired by Michaelson's rhetoric and ideals of a fairer society, Charley becomes more attuned to social issues. His decision to join a union signals his growing awareness of the importance of collective action and solidarity in the face of injustice. [...]
[...] This character seems to be fragile and insecure. He's seekinf for sense in a kind of chaotic life. For example, this passage of the text shows how confused he can be with this young woman : « After he'd given her a last rough kiss, feeling her tongue in his mouth and his nostrils full of her hair and the taste of her mouth in his mouth he'd walk home with his ears ringing, feeling 10 sick and weak; when he got to bed he couldn't sleep but would toss around all night thinking he was going mad » Indeed, in this passage we can see that the woman behaves in a kind of passionate way towards him : « rough kiss ». [...]
[...] Stylistic Techniques and Their Symbolic Impact Dos Passos employs various stylistic devices to enhance the emotional intensity of the narrative. One example is the metaphor " some rouge on her face which symbolically conveys Charley's emotional suffocation. This vivid image reflects the conflict between Charley's personal aspirations and his emotional entanglement with Emiscah, illustrating how his passions complicate his ability to pursue his goals. Charley is very touched by the destiny of his friend and his poverty: « It made Charley feel bad to see how miserably pale and ill fed they looked and what poor clothes they had on in these zero weathers ». [...]
