TC BOYLEDecember 1948-

Now

Writes Mostly About: Environmentalism

Racism

Consumerism

Human Nature

Insight in the Human Condition

Greasy Lake & Other Stories

Headliner Humans as Animals Negative Facets of

Human Nature

Guiding Questions for Discussion

What is/are the aspects of human nature that are being portrayed?

What clues or details show humans as animals?

Why do you think Boyle would find it important to reveal these negative parts of human nature?

Influential LifeBaby BoomerParent’s alcoholism leading to deathBoyle’s own addictionIrish and Jewish community

“But unlike some of the most demanding of the post-modernists (or superfictionists), Boyle is a writer who never forgets his audience. Most of the time, Boyle is simply not interested in prosaic reality, but rather in the magical, the visionary, the unexpected, the horrific, and the comically bizarre” (Krstovic 8).

Grabber

Boyle creates stories revolving around grave and dark topics that absorb readers. Boyle’s profound and distinctive literary voice exposes the various faults and foibles of society with a uniquely satirical outlook.

Thesis

Human Condition“Greasy Lake”“The New Moon Party”“Caviar”

“Greasy Lake”

“Before we could pin her to the hood of the car, our eyes masked with lust and greed an the purest primal badness… there we were, dirty, bloody, guilty, dissociated from humanity and civilization…shreds of nylon panty and spandex brassiere dangling from our fingers, our flies open, lips licked” (6).

“The New Moon Party”

“The American people were asleep. They were dead. The great, the giving, the earnest, energetic, and righteous American people had thrown in the towel. Rape, murder, cannibalism, political upheaval…scandal and horror were as mundane as a yawn before bed” (113-114).

“Caviar”

“I didn’t want to hurt Marie– she was my wide, my best friend, I loved and respected her– and yet there was Wendy, with her breathy voice and gray eyes, bearing my child. The thought of it… well it inflamed me, got me mad with lust and passion…Wasn’t Wendy as much my wife as Marie?” (23).

Critical Quotes “And like many satirical works remind readers

of the nature of the body and the inescapable animal side of human beings” (Lyons 74).

“One common theme is that human beings, when stripped of their technological props and the conventions of contemporary life, are, at the core, primitive creatures who are either prey or predator—or, as in nature, both, depending upon the circumstances. Another recurring focus of Boyle’s short stories is rampant consumerism, a self- indulgent materialism that engenders irrational, mindless behavior with dire, If not always obvious consequences” (Krstovic 1).

Reaction to BoyleDark and SatiricalGood SupplementAP Lit– definitely recommend!Enhanced love of literature“Tortilla Curtain” and Racial Insights