Nov 10, 2009

The Day of the Locust | Introduction

The Day of the Locust, by Nathanael West, is set in 1930s Hollywood and follows the lives of a handful of people peripherally associated with the movie industry. Today, many critics consider it the best novel about Hollywood ever written, but it received little notice from the general public when it was released in 1939. According to Richard B. Gehman in his introduction to the 1976 reprint of the novel, many critics at the time considered the novel to be in "bad taste."

The novel combines realistic features, such as characters who are flawed, with the artificial and surreal atmosphere of the movie industry. Tod Hackett, recently graduated from Yale University, is an illustrator and set designer for a film company. He lives in the same apartment building as Faye Greener, an aspiring and ambitious actress who will not date Tod because he is neither rich nor handsome. Through Faye, Tod meets a cast of seedy and sad characters whom he intends to include in his large painting, "The Burning of Los Angeles." Tod's life is spent unsuccessfully pursuing Faye and imagining the violent scenes that will make up his painting.

The Day of the Locust Summary

Chapters 1-7
The Day of the Locust begins after Tod Hackett has recently graduated from Yale University, and has been living in Hollywood for about three months. While preparing to go to a party, he thinks about Faye Greener, the very attractive aspiring actress who lives just below him with her father, Harry. He is also reminded of his friend Abe Kusich, because he has found Abe's card stuck in his door, a note on it offering a tip on a horse race. He also thinks about his planned painting, "The Burning of Los Angeles," and the people who "come to California to die" that he will depict in it. When Tod sees these people on the streets, he notices that they are poorly dressed and "their eyes are filled with hatred."

At the party, hosted by Claude Estee, a successful screenwriter, Tod sees the fake dead horse the Estees have bought to shock and surprise their guests. He tries to leave the party, but Claude grabs him and forces him to come with the rest of the partyers to Audrey Jenning's whorehouse to watch a dirty movie. The movie projector, playing Le Predicament de Marie, breaks just as the exciting part is about to start, and the guests hoot and clap in displeasure.

Tod begins to spend more time at Faye's apartment, helping out with Faye's sick father. Tod enjoys hearing the stories Harry tells of his life as a clown in vaudeville shows. He meets Homer Simpson, one of Faye's suitors. Homer is shy and naive and has just moved to Hollywood from the Midwest.

Chapters 8-12
The novel begins to focus on Homer and how he came to live in Hollywood. He moved to California at the suggestion of his doctor after he became quite ill with pneumonia. While he was absent from work, he lost his bookkeeping job of twenty years. When Homer thinks about his life in Iowa, he also thinks about Romola Martin, who was a drunken resident of the hotel where he worked. When Homer first met Romola, she disturbed him with her drunken and flirtatious behavior, and he "hurriedly labeled his excitement disgust." Later, when his boss asked that he evict her from her room, Homer realized, "through his growing excitement," that he was sexually attracted to her. While evicting Romola, Homer offered her money to pay her back rent, which she happily interpreted as money for sex. Just as they begin holding each other on her bed, the phone rang; it was one of Homer's colleagues checking to make sure he did not need the police to help with the eviction. This interruption completely ruined the moment for Homer. Now in California, Homer feels that he missed his chance to be with Romola, and he still cries about that missed opportunity.

Homer's house is in the style of an Irish cottage, complete with a thatched roof. He gets settled in very quickly... » Complete The Day of the Locust Summary