This extract of ‘American Psycho’ conveys most of the wider themes of the text, with similar stylistic techniques that are seen throughout the novel. Ellis uses a peculiar chapter title with ‘End of the 1980’s’ for this extract and throughout the rest of the book. These titles usually relate to the theme of the chapter or the events within it. This extract is named ‘End of the 1980’s’ which is very significant to the wider text. The entire novel is a dark, satirical look at the consumerism of the 1980’s and how it created so many identical, self-obsessed yuppies.
The title of this is hinting again at the theme of redemption. The ‘End of the 1980’s’ is Ellis saying that this is the end of all the greed and vanity that is consuming Bateman entire existence. This is a very effective style as it bookends the theme of revelation against the last line, ‘anything is possible. ’ In my opinion this style is very effective in subtly preparing the reader for what is to come in the chapter as it does for most of the others. Ellis uses a certain style of punctuation to express Bateman’s insanity in this extract and throughout the wider text.
Hyphens are used as a literary representation of Bateman’s mind ‘moving in jump cut’ by splitting up the listing of his fantasies abruptly and representing a manic change of thought. This can be seen throughout the text reinforcing the theme of Batman’s struggle to focus on reality. Ellis then uses question marks to split up these fantasies. These give a more natural transition between fantasy and reality and show how Bateman is questioning what is real, which links to the narrative device of an unreliable narrator.
The Essay on Fantasy Is A Tree With Many Roots The Fantasy Genre
Fantasy is a tree with many roots. The fantasy genre became popular because it threads the culture into the legends. It is the product of the certain times and the response to these times; the way of reaction on the epoch. Fantasy has always been a way of escaping from the depressing reality into the Wondeland or Never Never Land. The creation of the vivid and strange world in which the reality ...
This is seen throughout the text with Bateman being unsure of wether or not he is hallucinating. Towards the conclusion of the exert Ellis uses quite a few ellipses during the conversations between Bateman and Jean. Most of these suggest a double entendre due to Bateman’s yearning to confess about his bloodlust and the fact that he’s ‘not very good at controlling it…’ In my opinion this extract uses this punctuation style very heavily, more so than the rest of the book, because it’s such a pivotal moment in the theme of the characters fall to insanity.
Ellis points out the themes of isolation, insanity and the facade in the text through various references to popular culture in the novel. One of the main mediums Ellis uses to personify Bateman’s thoughts is music. The repetition of Madonna’s line, ‘life is a mystery, everyone must stand alone’ confirms that this is one of Bateman’s key philosophies and is easily interpreted. However, Ellis contrasts obvious meanings with ones more difficult to decipher.
Bateman’s answer to his least and most favourite songs, ‘You Can’t Always Get What You Want’ and ‘Brilliant Disguise’ respectively, seem to be statements that would fit in well with Bateman’s values, but for people familiar with Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Brilliant Disguise’ will know it is about a man who seems normal but plans to kill his partner. These allusions are seen throughout the novel, with constant references to ‘Les Miserable’ (which translates to miserable people) hiding one of the texts major themes in plain sight.
This style of a more rewarding experience to the reader who is educated in the world which the character inhabits helps them relate to Bateman not only in this section, but throughout the wider text. Ellis removes most of his stylistic approach of hyper violence and gore in this extract, contrasting greatly with the wider text. Ellis expresses Bateman’s possible redemption by lessening the horrific visceral detail when referring to murder or mutilation.
The beginning of the exert describes the dreams that Bateman’s having about death and destruction as ‘terrible’ and later glosses over a gruesome road accident by only saying, ‘A pile of intestines lies on the sidewalk in a pool of blood’. The removal of the very stylised murders being committed by Bateman is very appropriate in this particular section because of the characters shifting views when thinking about the horrible crimes he has committed. Ellis shows Bateman’s altered perception of these awful events and, compared to the way murder is described in the previous chapters, it helps show the theme of change.
The Essay on The Theme Of Blood In Macbeth
In Shakespeare s Macbeth, the theme of blood is vigorously circulated throughout the play. For Macbeth, the main character, it causes him to lose his loyalty, his mind, and eventually his life. The theme of blood in Macbeth represents physical bloodshed and the force that fuels the passions and impulses of man. Shakespeare sets the play in early 16 th century Scotland. This time period is a little ...
I don’t believe that this exert represents the overall style of the novel, but uses this to convey one of the novel’s major themes in a way that splits up the flow of murder to murder and shows the reader it has some significance. Ellis’ references to Bateman changes in Bateman’s interior monologue during this extract of the book. The style of the narrative changes to support the idea of Bateman hating what he has become and trying to disassociate himself with his facade.
This technique is seen in other sections of the wider text. Ellis suggests another period of chaos and disassociation when he Bateman says, ‘You shouldn’t fawn over him…’ This is linking back to the chapter ‘Chase, Manhattan’ where Bateman starts to narrate in third person, ‘Patrick tries’ and goes on a rampage. Ellis then focuses on the overcorrection that Bateman uses to try and mask his self-loathing because of his crimes. He puts the personal pronouns ‘me’ and ‘I’ in italics to emphasise this.
Although this is not a new technique in the novel it is only really seen once, so it is partly characteristic of the style of the novel. But the main focus is reiterating the themes using various techniques, which is achieved quite well here. Ellis style uses the metaphorically imagery of blood and death to express Bateman’s true feeling about his lifestyle and better convey his decent into madness, two key themes in the text. He uses the image of blood as a way of showing the idea of corruption when it, ‘works its way into my dreams’.
Ellis reiterates this image of blood corrupting when he pictures it, ‘dripping over the city onto Manhattan’. Blood is a metaphor for the way of life that most New Yorkers, especially Bateman, live by, and this imagery shows how the consumer society consumes everyone, which is a theme seen repeatedly in the text. Ellis uses this style, of imagery having a deeper meaning, again when he describes Bateman’s fantasy going from, ‘day then night then day again and then it’s night’. This represents the theme of having two lifestyles.
The Essay on Dover Beach Theme Imagery and Sound
In “Dover Beach,” Matthew Arnold creates a monologue that shows how perceptions can be misleading. The theme of illusion versus reality in “Dover Beach” reflects the speaker’s awareness of the incompatibility between what is perceived and what truly is real. Arnold conveys the theme of “Dover Beach” through three essential developments. First, he uses ...
Ellis shows circularity of the cycle between the dark and light sides of his personality, but expresses how it will ultimately lead to insanity with the ‘it’s night’ at the end. I feel this use of imagery is very characteristic of the rest of the texts style and themes. Overall I feel this extract of the book is a very clear representation of the styles and themes of the wider text with its use of metaphorical imagery, allusion through popular culture and the punctuation that causes an insane, disjointed flow.
