Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in A Confederacy of Dunces, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Medievalism, Modernity, and Fate
The Legacy of Slavery
Sexuality, Attraction, and Repulsion
Freedom
Appearance, Identity, and Disguise
Hypocrisy and Self-Interest
Summary
Analysis
Ignatius spends the rest of the day in bed, alternating between napping and masturbating. He feels that his persecutors have finally gotten their claws into him, and the situation with Mr. Levy and Mr. Abelman concerns him greatly. Irene will not look at or speak to him and spends all day on the phone with various relatives to whom she complains about Ignatius. When Irene listens outside Ignatius’s door, she hears the squeaking of his bed springs and feels that there is only one thing that she can do.
Although Ignatius claims to despise sex, he masturbates frequently, which suggests that he is not as repulsed by the idea of sex as he claims to be. Ignatius does not believe that he is in control of his fate—instead, he believes a medieval goddess, Fortuna, controls his destiny—and, therefore, takes no responsibility for his actions and feels that he cannot change the outcomes that life has in store for him. Although this is not strictly true, it is true that uncontrollable circumstances are sometimes difficult to escape, as will prove to be the case with Santa, Irene, and Claude’s plot to institutionalize Ignatius.
Themes
Irene phones Santa and tells her that, for Ignatius’s own good, they must have him committed to the charity hospital. Santa agrees this is a good idea. She tells Irene that Claude is afraid of Ignatius because Ignatius is so big and kicked up such a fuss when he saw Claude at the hospital. Irene says that they must get Ignatius declared “temporary insane” before the police take him away. Santa asks what has happened and Irene cries that Ignatius made a mistake when he was working for Levy Pants.
Unlike Santa, who wants to lock Ignatius up because he interferes with her plans but who pretends this is for Irene’s benefits, Irene genuinely believes that Ignatius will be better if he is in the asylum. There, he cannot be sued for the letter he wrote to Mr. Abelman.
Themes
Santa says that she will call the hospital and tells Irene to get herself out of the house and come around to hers. Claude will be there, too, and the people from the hospital will sort Ignatius out. Irene hangs up and hastily prepares to leave. As she heads out the door, however, she has a moment of guilt and knocks on Ignatius’s door to say a tearful goodbye. Ignatius reluctantly open the door and kisses her. Irene sobs that she is sorry she ever crashed the car and dashes out of the house.
Santa pushes Irene toward her decision to institutionalize Ignatius merely because Ignatius irritates Santa and she wants him out of the way so she can have fun and plan Irene and Claude’s wedding. Although Santa pretends that this is what’s best for Irene, really, her motives are self-interested and will probably hurt Irene in the long run as they will damage her relationship with her son.
Themes
Ignatius suspects Irene is up to something. He heard her whispering on the phone to Santa, and she has mentioned to him that Santa wants him committed to a mental institution. Ignatius realizes suddenly that, if he is committed, he cannot stand trial for the lawsuit against Mr. Levy. Ignatius suspects that Irene has acted for his own sake, but he despises modern psychiatry and does not want to be locked away.
Ignatius understands that his mother’s motives are selfless, but that they will have the unintended consequence of hurting him. Again, Ignatius demonstrates his belief that medieval philosophy and spirituality are superior to modern medicine and psychiatry.
Themes
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Ignatius realizes that he must try and escape, but he doesn’t have any money. The people from the hospital may be on their way at that very moment. Ignatius dresses in a hurry and is about to leave when someone knocks on the front door. He peers out through the glass and is amazed to see Myrna on the doorstep. At first, the sight of her fills him with rage, but then he realizes that Myrna might provide him with a means of escape.
Ignatius knows that his freedom is under threat. This ties into his belief that he is destined to be persecuted by modern society. It also speaks to his feelings of kinship with the philosopher Boethius, who wrote his philosophical tract (on which Ignatius bases his worldview) while in prison. Ignatius’s furious reaction to Myrna seems excessive and suggests that his passion may be rooted in a secret attraction to her, although he hates everything she stands for and is annoyed by his feelings for her. Still, he plans to use her for his own selfish means.
Themes
Ignatius rushes to the door and acts as though he is overjoyed to see Myrna. Ignatius tells her that they must leave immediately for New York. Myrna is confused and wonders if Ignatius has had a nervous breakdown. She has been driving all night, she says, and needs a rest. Ignatius hurriedly explains that his last few letters have been the result of his broken mental state and that he must leave because Irene is engaged to be married and is trying to get rid of him.
Ignatius conceals his hatred of Myrna and plans to trick her into believing that he needs her for his own selfish ends. However, Ignatius really does need Myrna to escape in this moment and avoid incarceration, which suggests that what he views as just a façade may have some truth behind it.
Themes
Myrna agrees to take Ignatius with her, and Ignatius tries to rush out the door. Myrna suggests he might like to pack some things, so Ignatius hurriedly leads her to his room to collect his writings. He does not want Irene to get ahold of what he has written and “make a fortune” from them. While he packs, Ignatius tells Myrna that his mother has been seduced by a fascist and that they have been interrogating him about his worldview. Myrna listens, stunned, and says that this sounds awful.
Ignatius genuinely believes that his academic work—which advises modern society to adopt medieval beliefs—will one day lead humanity out of its condition of chaos and barbarism, and into a new age of enlightenment. This is ironic, as the medieval period is often considered the opposite of the historic Enlightenment, during which time many modern ideas were developed. It is ironic that Ignatius, who claims to despise other people, believes that he will one day be considered their savior: it demonstrates that he cares more about being proven right than about genuinely helping others.
Themes
Myrna says that her therapy group will be delighted to hear about Ignatius. She says that they imagine him like a medieval monk, writing in his cloister. Ignatius says that he cannot wait to be in New York and ushers Myrna towards the door. Myrna becomes emotional and says that she feels she is “saving someone.” Ignatius agrees that she is and says that he will not leave a note for Irene because it will take her weeks to read it.
Although Myrna believes she wants to help Ignatius she really only views him as an experiment and his escape from New Orleans as a personal triumph, rather than something that will help him. Like Ignatius, Myrna believes that she is superior to modern society, in her case because she is so progressive. She thinks that she is a savior who will lead Ignatius out of the medieval period, which Myrna considers a dark age, but which Ignatius considers superior to modernity. Ironically, Myrna is the same as Ignatius in many of her beliefs, except that she sees herself as superior because she is so progressive while Ignatius feels superior because he is so conservative.
Themes
Ignatius hurries Myrna out to her car and clambers into the back seat. Myrna says he can sit in the front, but Ignatius shouts that he will not sit in that “death trap” and then yells at Myrna for getting her guitar in his face. Myrna gets ready to drive and tells Ignatius that he is back to his “horrible self.” She hopes she has not made a mistake by agreeing to take him. Ignatius tells her to hurry and says that they can stop somewhere to sleep when they are out of town.
Myrna and Ignatius already begin to clash, which suggests that, although Ignatius pretends to be reformed so that Myrna will take him with her, he has not really changed at all. He appeases Myrna, who wants to believe that she has saved him from the error of his ways, but Ignatius only wants to use Myrna to escape institutionalization at the mental hospital.
Themes
Myrna’s car pulls out just as an ambulance drives past and parks nearby. Ignatius ducks down in the back and is almost insulted when he sees how small the ambulance is that they have sent to collect him. Ignatius begins to relax as the car drives off. He wonders what Fortuna has in store for him next and feels as though he is on the verge of a new life. He stares gratefully at the back of Myrna’s head, and seized by sudden affection for her, picks up her pigtail that is hanging into the back seat and presses it to his lips.
Ignatius has a grandiose impression of himself and feels that he would easily be able to fight off the hospital staff. Although Ignatius pretends to Myrna that he has changed, his beliefs remain the same underneath and he does not take any responsibility for his previous actions or feel that he has any more control over his life now than he ever did. Instead, he still believes that his fate is randomly decided and out of his control. The only slight change in Ignatius is his expression of affection towards Myrna, which he previously would have shunned as vulgar, suggesting the development of genuine affection. This small but significant shift implies that, although Ignatius has not changed his core beliefs, his move to the city may have new revelations and new twists of fate in store which may lead to an eventual transformation.
Themes
