/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.5064210]

Hunter Stockton Thompson, overrated?

[Anonymous No.5064225]

Fuck no.
He was the last great journalist.

[Anonymous No.5064249]

>>5064210
He and Bukowski share the same (unfortunately) magnetic traits that pull in adamant freshman fanboys. You can't pick your fanbase. Read Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail '72 and see if you think he's overrated.

[Anonymous No.5064338]

HST SUCKS HES LIKE...NOOB LITERATURE FOR FUCKIN STONERS!!!

[Anonymous No.5064363]

>>5064210

I'm reading Fear and Loathing right now. They're on acid and he's seeing giant lizards and blood and monsters flying around in the sky. What in holy fuck? Is this bullshit? What type of acid lets you see this shit. Please tell me it exists.

[Anonymous No.5064373]

>>5064363
Sure, LSD will do that if you take enough. A light dose has the wall breathing and a shimmer on everything, a heavier dose has the walls warping and twisting, the curtains flapping, and strange lights flashing, but a huge dose will have the ceiling split open to reveal a galaxy of alien warfare.

[Anonymous No.5064381]

>>5064363
He's being metaphorical bro. The lizards are people as disgusting as lizards, emanating that kind of disgusting vibe. You can get on this level with regular weed but you need strength and pay attention to what's happening.

Reading people's character on drugs in a bucket of fun. Thompson is one of the greats, he broke to the other side and was describing the scenery. Don't judge him for his, heavy, use of drugs. He was a real fucker. I wish I could say the same thing about more people on /lit/. At least if they were aiming at it, instead we get retards like butterfly.

[Anonymous No.5064401]

>>5064363
the only time i've truly hallucinated on acid/mushrooms was during bad trips where i lost touch with reality

[Anonymous No.5064413]

A minute of your attention anons and sorry for the hijack

Masterchan is coming back in just a few hours, and will LITERALLY change how the internet works.

Help spread this image if you are an old masterchanfag, or just willing to see a shitstorm happen. RIP 4chan

Fun is coming to the internet once more

[Anonymous No.5064420]

>>5064401

What'd you see? There was a bad trip where the FEELING of demons were outside the room, but didn't actually witness them first hand.

[Anonymous No.5064452]

>>5064363
You might get the idea that those things are going on. Maybe he was looking at the clouds and seeing them as monsters or something.
It's not like he was ever rigid about the truth.

[Anonymous No.5064472]

>>5064413
You are spamming your shit on irrelevant threads, that's against the rules. Maybe masterchan would allow it nut thankfully 4chan removes off-topic commercial spam. You made a thread about it on /b/ and that was annoying nut acceptable; spamming on /lit/ is not.

[Anonymous No.5064482]

>>5064472

I agree with you, but on the other hand moot betrayed all of us who made this place known and popular to begin with

people should know of masterchan, a place with no power tripping mods

[Anonymous No.5064492]

>>5064482
Enjoy your inevitable spam, userbase compsed entirely of autistic pedos and eventual arrest.

[Anonymous No.5064514]

His philosophical works are pretty overrated.

[Anonymous No.5064532]

>>5064225
What made Thompson such a great journalist?
I know some of his works and his writing style is fine, but sometimes pretty exaggerated.

[WARREN BEES by Leon Toystory No.5064538]

>>5064210
>overrated?
As a man who should be the model of how all of us should hope to live, Yeah probably, but I still really love all of his works that I've read. I mean he was basically a drug addict who managed to be the voice for all the other freaky people while getting paid to do it. I should hope to do something like that with my shitty little life, we should all have the hopes to become the voice of something disenfranchised in our shitty little lives, but the horror of it is, there isn't really any group that needs a voice anymore, and the only one that a subhuman freak that visits 4chan could speak for is /MLP/ and let's be honest, no one wants to be that voice. I mean really, they call it "clopping" when they jerk off to drawings of horses. Is that really the generation you want to be the voice of? I certainly don't. Basically.

[Anonymous No.5064630]

>>5064514
I keked
That guy hardly gets mentioned here

[Anonymous No.5064635]

>>5064538
This. We live in absolute boring times.

[Anonymous No.5064641]

>>5064635
L-0-l
every loser ever says this
Life hasn't stopped son, reality is a moving target
There's plenty of shit if you know where to look

Thing you'd dismiss it if it was brought right in front you

[Anonymous No.5064656]

>>5064641
You could be right. I have no idea where to look for the shit. Probably I have to go deeper.

[Anonymous No.5064678]

He went to Zaire to cover the Ali-Foreman fight, The Battle of Zaire
Anyone ever remember reading this?
No I didn't think so
By this time, in the wake of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Campaign Trail and his celebrity status he had bought into his own celebrity and was heavily doing booze and drugs
So he never left the hotel, stayed by the pool zonked out, missed the fight, never wrote anything
And from the late 70s til the end he just retreated to the Owl Farm, he no longer went out looking for stories he expect them to come to him, and he stayed stuck and alone wallowing in drugs and passed glories and writing subpar works and putting together cutups of past material in order to fulfill publishers contracts

[Anonymous No.5064684]

>>5064210
I don't understand what made him so 'great' - then again I firmly believe you have to from US and from HST's time to value him.

All I read from him was shit prose, boring stories and nothing - literally nothing that I couldn't get from other newspaper sites.

>>5064249
and fuck Bukowski and fuck Kerouac.

[Anonymous No.5064687]

>>5064225
his legit journalism, from the early mid 1960s was slice of life travelogues about south america and shit like that

real journalism exists today in people like amy goodman, jeremy scahill, glen greenwald

[Anonymous No.5064692]

>>5064363
its not a literal transcript of what they experienced

in fact they went to Vegas not once but twice

[Anonymous No.5064879]

>>5064684
Partial credit, like anything else HST is off his time and you can't say b-but a lot of people write like him today - yes, they do, thanks to him for one. Vice magazine is entirely indebted to HST.

[Anonymous No.5064902]

>>5064879
So are you saying HST revolutionized the entire western critical media/press?

[Anonymous No.5065096]

>>5064879
Vice magazine is just a pitfully try-hard-copy of Thompson's writing. I think he would despise it...

[Anonymous No.5065219]

>>5064381
I agree with this.
I was watching the food network with friends while tripping, and I remember saying, "what are these truly grotesque beings on the television?". I could see behind the production of the tv shows and into the people's real lives. And to add on to that, their faces were moving and morfing.

[Anonymous No.5065358]

I have to say though, and I'm sure I'm not the only one, that HST was the writer who got me back into reading.

[Anonymous No.5065373]

>>5065358
This. HST is like Chuck Palahniuk or Bukowski in that he serves as a gateway back into reading for a lot of people who were turned off it from having crappy books like To Kill A Mockingbird shoved down their throats in school. This is why their work is assoicated with edginess, simply because those who are rebellious or feel marginalized can really get into it without feeling like they are betraying their independent streak. It is childish but it leads to bigger things. Beware the HST or Bukowski fan that is still rabid about their author past age 30 though.

[Anonymous No.5066070]

>>5065358
hahaha best pic of him. Imho my opinion HST is one of underestimated writers in whole literature-history.

[Anonymous No.5066087]

>>5066070
That is so edgy

[Anonymous No.5066088]

>>5066070
He's anthologized these days, and likely a topic of scholarly discussion. Meaning, he's not that underestimated.

[Anonymous No.5066243]

>>5064363
I had similar experiences with psychedelic drugs. A dragonfly which turned into an impossibly sophisticated baroque flying machine piloted by a crew of gnomes, each of whom had elaborate backstories that subtly informed the dynamic of how they interacted with one another.

[Anonymous No.5066247]

>>5064420
>>5064452
Having done my fair share of hallucinogens, I would say it's vastly more common to have "the sense of" eg lizards or demons than to actually witness a total visual transformation like what is portrayed in the book/film, BUT occasionally with the right dosage experiences like that do occur. It's not necessarily an exaggeration.

[Anonymous No.5066258]

No love for Hell's Anglels?

[Anonymous No.5066321]

>>5066258
Great book. A lot of his earlier, pre-Raoul Duke era articles are pretty solid too.

[Anonymous No.5066413]

>>5066247
it really depends on what you're on too

[Anonymous No.5066422]

>>5064210
Yes, but only because people have the misconception that he's a journalist, or a serious writer, because they miss a lot of the irony and hyperbole and take him at his word. He's a great satirist, up there with Twain, but only if you realize that he's satirizing "Hunter S. Thompson" too.

[Anonymous No.5066429]

I personally think HST is kinda misunderstood by many of his fans. I think he exaggerated his persona, and totally meant it to be satirical which alot of people didn't get. Sure he did drugs and acted crazy a bit, but in his work he really uses that stuff accentuate the disillusionment with American society and capitalism and conservatism. He was intentionally making a clown out of himself, and lot of people dont understand that. I think he was saying "Look at me; If I'm a madmen, what are they?" Pretty run-of-the-mill 60's social commentary critic with a brilliant execution that went over many people's heads.

[Anonymous No.5066438]

>>5066422
Wow, you wrote almost the exact same thing as me, and at the same time.>>5066429

[Anonymous No.5066482]

Yeah, a little. He's one of those guys who might be both overrated and underrated, though.

In any case, I like him. I once read Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas while on mescaline the whole time. I understood that book much better.

[Anonymous No.5066590]

>>5064630

Alain is great.

[Anonymous No.5066598]

>>5064684
>fuck Kerouac.

edgelord9000

[Anonymous No.5066613]

>>5066429

Plebs get hung up on the drug taking, but the writing is actually good.

[Anonymous No.5066614]

>>5064630
Isn't he a degenerate libertarian?

[Anonymous No.5066618]

>>5066614

no not at all

[Anonymous No.5066619]

>>5066429
>think he exaggerated his persona, and totally meant it to be satirical


That could be believable, if there weren't so many books about him written by people who knew him that back up his "persona"

[Anonymous No.5066643]

>>5064363
You've clearly never taken acid, and if you have not nearly that much

[Anonymous No.5066648]

>>5066429
>totally meant it to be satirical
Yeah, nah. Watch a documentary about him, or watch interviews with Cusack and Johnny Depp telling stories about him. He was the real deal.

That doesn't mean he wasn't actively trying to cultivate a persona (aren't we all?), but it was definitely not satire, and it's definitely not ironic.

[Anonymous No.5066657]

>>5064210

He was an interesting guy with point of view and got stuck into some shit with true passion, which is more than can be said of 99% of people.

[Anonymous No.5066660]

>>5066648
>>5066619
What if they are wrong and you are right?

[Anonymous No.5066671]

>>5066429
>>5066422
This is only true if the only thing written by HST that you've ever read is Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Read his other books, read all the articles he wrote, read the books written about him.

[Anonymous No.5066678]

>>5066660
Cusack and Depp and Jack Nicholson and Bill Murray and Douglas Brinkley all actually knew Hunter S. Thompson. Retard on /lit/ pulling baseless pretentious contrarian analysis out of his asshole did not.

[Anonymous No.5066708]

>>5066618
My libertarian friend (see also: geographical acquaintance) said I should read him, so I was skeptical. I'll start to read his bibliography.

[Anonymous No.5066730]

>>5066614
Socialist, but he was in the NRA and loved guns

Definitely hated capitalism though, he was really upfront about that

[Anonymous No.5066744]

>>5066730
I should have clarified that I was asking about Alain de Botton, but thanks anon.

[Anonymous No.5066783]

>>5066730
>hating capitalists
Alright, everyone does.
>hating capitalism
Full fucking retard.

[Anonymous No.5066804]

>>5066783
I want to give you a chance to elaborate and explain before I call you a moron.

What is a capitalist?

[Anonymous No.5066805]

As I read through this thread it's becoming painfully obvious, that with a few exceptions, the majority of posters haven't read anything except Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and or only watched the movie

[Anonymous No.5066819]

>>5066804
>What is a capitalist?

[Anonymous No.5066823]

>>5066819
I want to know how he (you) defines 'capitalism' and 'capitalist' such that it's perfectly sensible to hate capitalists, but retarded to hate capitalism.

[Anonymous No.5066826]

>>5066804
>A person subsisting on capital gains
or
>someone subscribing to the political ideology of capitalism, a sane person.

[Anonymous No.5066832]

>>5066805
I'm one of the exceptions! I've read all his books and articles. And the majority of books written about him. I'll push it one step further I spent a week in woody creek and, visited Owl Ranch

[Anonymous No.5066866]

>>5066619
>>5066648
>>5066671
I mean I think he was definitely eccentric but he was no where near the actual crazyness he proported. 90% of the guys legend is based on, weird clothes, talking funny, and publicity stunts .

My point is twofold: 1) his writing is actually very nuanced and layer social commentary. 2) If he was actually such a drug addled, unpredictable lunatic he would have a serious record. He would have been incarcerated, he would ODed or gone to rehab, he would not have had relatively successful relationships with his two wives and kids (curious how his family is NEVER mentioned in his writing or by anyone else.)

Just cus the man takes recreational drugs, shot guns in his back yard, rode motorcycles, and acted weird around johnny depp and jack nicholson doesn't make a legendary beast.

Norman Mailer was far more wild and unpredictable than HST.

[Anonymous No.5066871]

>>5066832
Fuck me that's the cutest post I've seen this week. You really got across how much you like the man, and talking of him.

[Anonymous No.5066882]

>>5066866
>He would have been incarcerated
He was.

your argument boils down to
>he does not fit into my own conception of what a real Raoul Duke and drug-crazed loon is like, so he's full of it

[Anonymous No.5066906]

>>5066866
Mate, I think you've a bit too narrow a conception of a drug abuser. Here's a character for you.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Erd%C5%91s

[Anonymous No.5066931]

>>5066866
Anon I will upload a clip of thompson on late night with Conan to a filedump if you want. In the scene he hands off a whiskey to a stage hand for a coffee mug, which he sips while grimacing. They then run a clip of him shooting guns with Conan and thompson fires a round, lets out a primal shriek and demands a beer. He was definitely at least 60 in this clip. Actually, let me see if it's on youtube...

Have you ever read Kingdom of Fear? It includes his bid for sheriff and his war with his neighbor. He was definitely a card.

[Anonymous No.5066934]

>>5066931
Found it

http://youtube.com/watch?v=wKq5wmCz0wM

[Anonymous No.5066953]

>>5066619
You have to understand that he made a sort of "ego" sacrifice, pretty much in the same way Artaud did.

At some point, none of them could see where the person ended and the character begin IN THEIR DAY TO DAY LIVES, but still had the capacity to think about this mixture of personalities upon reflecting on their lives and those around them.

[Anonymous No.5066954]

>>5066934
>Fuck you, bear!

[Anonymous No.5066968]

>>5066931
Kingdom of Fear is one of the funniest books I've ever read, it's so hard to believe HST did shit like completely surrounding his ranch with ex-athletes and pimps armed to their teeth, then you go ahead to try to confirm it and it's true.

I guess he did turn into a character of his own at some point in the 70s

[Anonymous No.5066974]

>>5064635
Its not...boring per se its just that there is absolutely no mystery anymore because anything I don't know I Wikipedia anything I want to see I go on Liveleak anytime I get bored, pirate movies or play another of the 250 hour video games they make every year or read a eBook.

Doing things is only for those people who get paid for it or for some wanker ulterior social media motive. People don't just ride a motorcycle to biker bars in California just to write a book about it, now they have film cameras covering it all with live tweeting and everything has to be filtered through a 'how will the feminists take this strip club experience, better say how awful it is to get a lap dance!'

I don't think the USA has ever felt this inconsequentially consequential, so super serious, so self-involved so... gawd... uncool?

If HST actually existed he would have been crucified in the media as a man who was glorifying drug use, spun by republicans and stormfront as a "hack reporter" and probably loathed by Tumblr.

I just think we're one step from being ectoplasm that powers The Matrix.

[Anonymous No.5066988]

Why do all liberal reading types ALWAYS romanticize shitty behavior? The guy is literally just that drug attention party fag.

Drugs are for plebs

[Anonymous No.5066991]

>>5066934
That's funny, but it's also sad to see how he was in his late days, no shame he an heroed, it must have been horrible for him to be so impaired.

Still a personal hero, not only because of his works, but his wilderness as well

>>5066988
I'm sure you're more important for journalism than HST with your straight edge life, son

[Anonymous No.5066995]

>>5066991
I may not be more important but mainstream acceptance doesn't mean he isn't a man with questionable morals who people shouldn't romanticize

[Anonymous No.5067005]

>>5064902
Where exactly did I say that? HST is hugely influential in 'alternative' media, that's about all I'd say.

>>5065096
Yes, that's what I meant by 'entirely indebted'. Quality of writings varies like in any other magazine, they put themselves in 'edgy' situations but the writing more often than not is not that try-hard. I think the editing team is aware enough not to fall for what would be their #1 trap. So Vice magazine still has a 'realness' to me in portraying what they do, which is the heart of HST's writings.

>>5065219
Yup that's it. It can practiced and honed, try doing it at a local bar or something - you'll see plenty of lizards. Trick is to keep stay aware and keep moving if your attention slackens.

[Anonymous No.5067008]

>>5066243
That sounds like some of the most awesome of my dreams. I should try psychedelic drugs once. I really fear the landing and the long-terms effect, though. My brain is rather sensitive.

Anyones has something on how HST became fed up with gonzo journalism at some point ? I heard he was pretty embarassed when interviewing war reporters, for instance, and that he felt the character he created was eating him up.

[Anonymous No.5067011]

>>5066988
I'm sure several people you admire do/did drugs

[Anonymous No.5067063]

>>5066934
>you will never spend time with him

[Anonymous No.5067071]

>>5064210
Overrated by shitty kids, underrated by litty kids.

[Anonymous No.5067098]

>>5065219
This has happened to me several times. I don't like it. It also affected the way I perceived myself.

[Anonymous No.5067121]

>>5066643
here comes the cool drug kid

[Anonymous No.5067189]

>>5066832
How much was Anita a qt?

[Anonymous No.5067544]

>>5067071

sums it up perfectly

[Anonymous No.5067660]

>>5066660
aces

[Anonymous No.5068535]

His exwife Anita said in some documentary that HST never wanted to become that crazy Raoul Duke guy. So there must be a turning point in his life. When? Where? Why?

[Anonymous No.5068570]

>>5066988
>>5066995
>2014
>Being a puritan

[Anonymous No.5068575]

Misrated.

[Anonymous No.5068594]

>>5068535
>His exwife Anita
You mean his widow right? The woman who met and married him long after he was famous, and worshiped him for the fact that he was a "crazy Raoul Duke guy"

[Anonymous No.5068606]

>>5068535
Gotta love how /lit/ has gone to shit. People just claim random things as fact with no proof, let alone knowledge of the subject being discussed to back it up.

[Anonymous No.5068626]

>>5068606
you'd think they could at least read a fucking wikipedia bio

[Anonymous No.5068636]

>>5066934
that was underwhelming

[Anonymous No.5068726]

>>5068535
'The Edge... there is no honest way to explain it because the only people who really know where it is are the ones who have gone over. The others-the living-are those who pushed their control as far as they felt they could handle it, and then pulled back, or slowed down, or did whatever they had to when it came time to choose between Now and Later.'

[Anonymous No.5068733]

>>5068606

He's telling the truth. Watch the documentary about him on netflix, Hunter felt caught inbetween being himself naturally or acting as one of his characters to please everyone.

[Anonymous No.5068759]

Interview from the magnificent 60s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccyu44rsaZo

[Anonymous No.5068864]

>>5064635
>>5066974