Final Paper
When asked to write about any author from this semester, one author in particular comes to mind. Hunter S. Thompson iswithout a doubt, the most interesting author I have ever researched. Hunter S. Thompson pioneered Gonzo Journalism and became very successful at it. Many regarded Thompson as the author of the "greatest book on the dope decade" (The New York Times). Before this class, I had never even heard about him and now he is one of my favorite authors. Thompson created a whole new style of writing that would take the reader into another world. In reading his work, Thompson would thrust the reader into a world full of drugs hysteria and disorder. In Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream, he would include things like We had two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high powered blotter acid, a salt shaker half full odf cocaine, and a whole galaxy of multi colored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers . . . and also a quart of tequila, a quart of rum, a case of budweaiser, a pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls"(Thompson 4). This type of description would boggle anyone's mind. It is almost impossible to comprehend the amount of drugs depicted in the story. His discriptions of the trips were also memorable. In the beginning of the story during the early stages of the trip, he describes, "We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold. I remember saying something like "I feel a bit lightheaded; maybe you should drive..." And suddenly there was a terrible roar all around us and the sky was full of what looked like huge bats, all swooping and screeching and diving around the car, which was going about a hundred miles an hour with the top down to Las Vegas. And a voice was screaming: "Holy Jesus! What are these goddamn animals?" (Thompson 5). This event puts us right in the middle of Raoul Duke's drug trip. One may waonder how Thompson was able to get the ball rolling while writing. According to his late wife Anita Thompson, "Oh, did I mention another one of Hunter’s techniques to get his mind working to write, along with dialogue and good music was swimming? Perhaps that is one of the reasons he wrote so much good stuff during the last 5 years of his life."(A. Thompson 1) This is another interesting aspect of Thompson's writing style. I look forward to reading more work from Hunter S. Thompson. There will never be a dull moment in his work.
Works Cited
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream
By Hunter S. Thompson, Ralph Steadman
Illustrated by Ralph Steadman
Published by Vintage Books, 1989
The New York Times
Owl Farm Blog: News and Views From Owl Farm
When asked to write about any author from this semester, one author in particular comes to mind. Hunter S. Thompson iswithout a doubt, the most interesting author I have ever researched. Hunter S. Thompson pioneered Gonzo Journalism and became very successful at it. Many regarded Thompson as the author of the "greatest book on the dope decade" (The New York Times). Before this class, I had never even heard about him and now he is one of my favorite authors. Thompson created a whole new style of writing that would take the reader into another world. In reading his work, Thompson would thrust the reader into a world full of drugs hysteria and disorder. In Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream, he would include things like We had two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high powered blotter acid, a salt shaker half full odf cocaine, and a whole galaxy of multi colored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers . . . and also a quart of tequila, a quart of rum, a case of budweaiser, a pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls"(Thompson 4). This type of description would boggle anyone's mind. It is almost impossible to comprehend the amount of drugs depicted in the story. His discriptions of the trips were also memorable. In the beginning of the story during the early stages of the trip, he describes, "We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the drugs began to take hold. I remember saying something like "I feel a bit lightheaded; maybe you should drive..." And suddenly there was a terrible roar all around us and the sky was full of what looked like huge bats, all swooping and screeching and diving around the car, which was going about a hundred miles an hour with the top down to Las Vegas. And a voice was screaming: "Holy Jesus! What are these goddamn animals?" (Thompson 5). This event puts us right in the middle of Raoul Duke's drug trip. One may waonder how Thompson was able to get the ball rolling while writing. According to his late wife Anita Thompson, "Oh, did I mention another one of Hunter’s techniques to get his mind working to write, along with dialogue and good music was swimming? Perhaps that is one of the reasons he wrote so much good stuff during the last 5 years of his life."(A. Thompson 1) This is another interesting aspect of Thompson's writing style. I look forward to reading more work from Hunter S. Thompson. There will never be a dull moment in his work.
Works Cited
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream
By Hunter S. Thompson, Ralph Steadman
Illustrated by Ralph Steadman
Published by Vintage Books, 1989
The New York Times
Owl Farm Blog: News and Views From Owl Farm
