In five pages this research paper examines the first novel of Dave Barry and provides an analysis that emphasizes its departure from his traditional comedy format in an oftentimes dark exploration of the seedier side of life in Miami. Four sources are cited in the bibliography.
Name of Research Paper File: D0_khdavbar.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
is somewhat of a departure for Barry as, while the novel is frequently hilarious, it also presents a grittier, seamier side of life than is generally true of Barrys work.
But while Barry explores the darker side of Miami life, as with all of his writing, the reader sees the essential humanity of his characters whatever their socio-economic status.
Throughout the narrative, Barry offers social criticism so subtle that it is likely to go be ignored by many readers. Nevertheless, it would be difficult to read this novel and
not come away with a modicum of sympathy and tolerance toward people on the fringes of society -- the homeless and a group that is held in almost as much
negativity -- teenagers. For example, out of a plethora of characters, Barry first introduces his readers to Puggy, a homeless person whose simple take on life is as endearing
as it is entertaining. As the novel opens, Puggy has reached a high point of his life with employment at the Jolly Jackal Bar and Grill, an establishment that
did not, in fact, have a grill, for almost three weeks -- a personal record for Puggy (Barry 1). As this suggests, Puggy is a "semiprofessional vagrant," a member of
that group of people "who, merely by existing, tended to violate laws that solid citizens never even thought about, like how long you were allowed to sit in a
certain place without buying something" (Barry 1). Puggy has become so successful, in fact, that he is considering finding an indoor place to
sleep, but he is torn because he really likes his tree. Puggy has been living on a platform, part of an old treehouse, high in a tree on the property