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
At Levy Pants, Ignatius spends his morning making a sign for his desk, which showcases his name and position at the company. Miss Trixie steps on it and leaves a shoeprint in the paint, which Ignatius irritably covers up. When it is finished, Ignatius shows the sign to Miss Trixie and Mr. Gonzalez. Miss Trixie demands to know who Ignatius is; she thought Gloria worked there.
Miss Trixie’s shoe print emphasizes the idea that, although Ignatius always wants total freedom to do what he wants, he cannot always have it. Other people’s desires and freedoms will inevitably encroach upon his own carefully crafted worldview.
Themes
Mr. Gonzalez admires the sign and politely asks Ignatius to get started on the filing, which has piled up. Ignatius says that the height of the filing cabinet has badly affected his valve, so Mr. Gonzalez brings him a wheeled stool to sit on. The stool is very small and Ignatius squats uncomfortably on it. Ignatius tentatively tries to wheel it to one side and falls dramatically on his back.
Mr. Gonzalez is a timid boss and it is easy for Ignatius to take advantage of him and to do no work while at the factory. However, despite his ability to manipulate others, Ignatius still does not fit in comfortably with his surroundings because of his physical size. Although Ignatius is overdramatic about his fall, this passage has wider implications about how Ignatius feels he was simply not made for the world around him—even when he is able to gain leverage, he still struggles to fit in.
Themes
Mr. Gonzalez is horrified and offers to help Ignatius up. Ignatius fends him off and screams that his back may be broken. Miss Trixie tries to help but topples over onto Ignatius. Her visor strikes him in the neck and Ignatius makes a choking noise. Mr. Gonzalez struggles to help Ignatius up and falls over too. Mr. Levy enters the office behind them and asks what is going on.
Ignatius reduces the office to chaos. This suggests that he is a disruptive force in society because he does not fit in. This is both something that Ignatius does on purpose and something that, in some ways, he cannot help. This suggests that society is often hostile to people and things which cannot easily assimilate or which go against conformity and convention.
Themes
Mr. Gonzalez jumps up, and Ignatius struggles to his feet and tries to introduce himself to Mr. Levy. Mr. Levy eyes Ignatius coolly and says that he has come to collect his mail. Ignatius explains that he has taken a special liking to Levy Pants and wants to make some changes. Mr. Levy notices the sign and seems unsure. Mr. Gonzalez fetches Mr. Levy’s mail and says that they have had a problem with a client, Mr. Abelman, who claims that he was sent pants that were only two feet long.
Mr. Levy seems unsure of Ignatius, presumably because of Ignatius’s unusual appearance. Levy Pants is obviously a highly unproductive place, even without Ignatius.
Themes
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Mr. Levy seems unconcerned, tells Mr. Gonzalez to sign his mail as usual, and rushes off. After Mr. Levy has gone, Ignatius watches Mr. Gonzalez forge Mr. Levy’s signature on a letter. Mr. Gonzalez then says that he must visit the factory and Ignatius says he will start his filing. As soon as Mr. Gonzalez has gone, however, Ignatius sits down to write to Mr. Abelman because he thinks that Levy Pants must take a firmer line with clients. Ignatius writes a vicious letter to Mr. Abelman and signs it with Mr. Levy’s name. He then picks up the heap of papers to be filed and throws them in the bin.
Mr. Levy is reluctant to engage with the factory in any way and seems desperate to be free from it. Mr. Levy is hypocritical, however, since he is willing to benefit from the money that the factory makes but will not take responsibility for what goes on there. Ignatius does not care about the potential consequences of his actions since he believes that everything in life comes down to fate and that humans cannot cause or control their own destiny.
Themes
