The Day of the Locust (1939) (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit

Write a ridiculously simplified synopsis.

Characters/People edit see section history

show spoilers

• Tod Hackett: Main character. He thinks of himself as a painter and artist, but who works in Hollywood as a costume designer and background painter.
• Faye Greener: An aspiring starlet. She was the interest of all the characters in the book. Tod liked her, Homer kept her without privileges, and Miguel sleeps with her causing Earle to fight with Miguel.
• Earle Shoop: A cowboy who played minor cowboy roles in Hollywood
• Harry Greener: Dies of his diseae
• Claude Estee: The successful screen writer
• Mrs. Johnson: Faye's neighbors. Insists on giving a proper burial to Harry, Faye's father--and organizes it.
• Mrs. Maybelle Loomis: Doting stage mother
• Calvin: Earle Shoop's cowboy friend
• Mrs. Audrey Jennings: Silent picture star- became a producer
• Abe Kusich: A Dwarf gangster
• Mary Dove: Faye's neighbor and friend
• Mr. Homer Simpson: The hopelessly clumsy "everyman" who falls in love with Faye and is taken advantage of. Faye moves in with him after her father died and is "tajen care of" by Homer while faye abuses him.
• Mrs. Jean Schwartzen: Tennis pro, friend of the Estee's
• Mary Dove: Faye's friend and neighbor
• Miss Ronda Martin: A boarder on the hotel where Homer worked. She was a broke drunk and had to be evicted, something Homer hated doing.
• Alice Estee: Claude's wife
• Adore Loomis: A precocious child actor
• Miguel: Earle's friend. Lived in Homer's garage and organized cockfights.
• Mrs. Carlisle: Hotel clerk where Homer worked

Setting & Locations edit see section history

• California
• Hollywood
• San Berdoo
• Waterloo
• Los Angeles

First Sentence edit see section history

Glossary edit see section history

• lollapalooza: One that is extraordinarily impressive; also : an outstanding example.

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

• Mob Violence: An expression of a generalized anxiety about the rise of fascism in Europe and possibly West's more personal anxiety about his marginalized role as a Jew in America.
• Wishes or Dreams: The importance of the wish in West's work was first noted by W.H. Auden, who declared (in one of the interludes in The Dyer's Hand) that West's novels were essentially "parables about a Kingdom of Hell whose ruler is not so much a Father of Lies as a Father of Wishes".
• Locusts: The title of West's work is likely a biblical allusion to certain passages in the Old Testament. Susan Sanderson writes: The most famous literary or historical reference to locusts is in the Book of Exodus in the Bible, in which God sends a plague of locusts to the pharaoh of Egypt as retribution for refusing to free the enslaved Jews. Millions of locusts swarm over the lush fields of Egypt, destroying its food supplies. Destructive locusts also appear in the New Testament in the symbolic and apocalyptic book of Revelation. West's use of the locust in his title, then, calls up images of destruction and a land stripped bare of anything green and living. Certainly, the novel is filled with images of destruction: Tod Hackett's painting entitled "The Burning of Los Angeles," his violent fantasies about Faye, and the bloody result of the cockfight, just to name a few. A close examination of West's characters and his selective use of natural images, which include representations of violence and impotence — and which are therefore contrary to popular images linking nature and fertility — reveals that the locust in the title refers to the character of Tod.

Series & Lists edit see section history

Preceded by An American Tragedy, and followed by Tropic of Cancer.

Preceded by A House for Mr. Biswas, and followed by A Farewell to Arms.

Preceded by Native Son, and followed by Nightwood.

Preceded by Cry, the Beloved Country, and followed by Ragtime.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Nathanael West (Author)

First Edition edit see section history

Classification edit see section history

• Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
• Dewey: 813.52

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Literature & Fiction › Authors, A-Z › ( W ) › West, Nathanael
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Classics
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Classics
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Contemporary

Movie Connections edit see section history

• The Day of the Locust (IMDb): 1975