Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A savage Journey to the heart of the American Dream is a novel written by Hunter S. Thompson, illustrated by Ralph Steadman. This novel was first serialized in the Rolling Stones. It deals with the implications of what he considers to be the failures of the 1960s counterculture movement. The novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is based off of two trips Thompson took to Las Vegas, Nevada.
Contents
- Hunter S. Thompson
- Plot
- Major Themes
- Title
- As a work of gonzo journalism
Hunter S. Thompson[]
American journalist and author, Hunter S. Thompson was the founder of the gonzo journalism movement. He is best known for his novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. While writing this novel, he consumed: Chivas Regal, Dunhills, cocaine, orange juice, marijuana, Heineken, huge helpings of food, LSD, Chartreuse, clove cigarettes, gin and pornographic movies.
Plot[]
The novel lacks a clear narrative and frequently delves into the surreal, never quite distinguishing between what is real and what is only imagined by the characters. The basis of the plot revolves around Raoul Duke, a journalist and his attorney, Dr. Gonzo, throughout their trip to Las Vegas in 1971. They were supposed to report on the Mint 400 Motorcycle Race. However they were unable to due to their constant use of recreational drugs. The plot leads to a series of ludicrous hallucinogenic experiences. A ride crazy scenes, such as destroying cars and hotel rooms. While discussing the inadequacies of traditional journalism and coping with the chaos created by it.
Major Themes[]
Throughout the novel Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Thompson writes to degrade, abuse, and destroy symbols of American culture and consumerism. Las Vegas is used as a symbol of the course ugliness of mainstream American culture and society. Other references to the contemporary condition of America include discussions of Nixon's perfidy about the Vietnam War. Of Thompson, the anti-war Democrat Senator George McGovern said:
Hunter was a patriot… [but] he was not a jingoist. He hated that war in Vietnam with a passion. He hated the hypocrisy of the establishment. Basically, I think he wanted to see this country live up to his ideals. And he wanted us to do better.
Title[]
"Fear and Loathing" is used as a phrase by many authors. In an interview, Thompson said "It came out of my own sense of fear, and is a perfect description of that situation to me, however, I have been accused of stealing it from Nietzsche or Kafka or something. It seemed like a natural thing."
As a work of gonzo journalism[]
Gonzo journalism is a style of journalism that is written without claims of objectivity, often including the reporter as part of the story via a first-person narrative. It involves the reporter reporting the action as they are in it. Elements are part experience and part fiction.