Jailbird (Masterplots II: American Fiction Series, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
- First Published: 1979
- Type of Plot: Antinovel
- Time of Work: 1977
- Setting: Cleveland; Cambridge, Massachusetts; New York City; and rural Georgia
- Principal Characters: Walter F. Starbuck, Ruth, Alexander Hamilton McCone, Leland Clewes, Mary Kathleen O’Looney
- Genres: Long fiction, Antistory
- Subjects: 1970’s, New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Communism or communists, South or Southerners, New York City, Midwest, Antiheroes, New England, Wills, Wit or humor, Millionaires, Corporations, Watergate Affair
- Locales: New York, NY, Georgia, Cleveland, OH, Massachusetts
The Novel
After a rambling autobiographical prologue relating the quasi-historical backgrounds of some of the characters, Jailbird presents the memoir of one Walter F. Starbuck, recently released from jail after serving time for a minor role in the Watergate conspiracy. The novel relates the events of Starbuck’s first two days of freedom, during which he goes to New York City and encounters two people from his past: Leland Clewes, whom he accidentally ruined in the 1940’s by testifying that Clewes was a former Communist, and Mary Kathleen O’Looney, now a bag lady...
[The entire page is 2332 words long]
Join eNotes
Over 3,500 study guides, question and answer forums, literature criticism, reference content, and much more!
Navigate
See Also
Related Topics
