A Confederacy of Dunces

A Confederacy of Dunces

by

John Kennedy Toole

Dorian Greene Character Analysis

Dorian Greene is a young, gay man whom Ignatius and Irene meet in the Night of Joy bar, and whom Ignatius encounters again while he is working as a hot dog vendor in the French Quarter, where Dorian lives. Dorian runs a vintage clothing business and buys Irene’s hat, which is extremely old, when he meets her in the Night of Joy. Dorian is a fashionable socialite and throws notoriously wild parties in his lovely New Orleans apartment. Due to his association with the French Quarter (an area of New Orleans which was considered disreputable), he, too, is considered to be of low morals by society. As homosexuality was illegal and considered socially deviant in the 1960s, when the novel is set, Dorian’s association with the French Quarter suggests that this is a place where social outcasts and unconventional people live. Dorian is associated with beauty, youth, and disguise throughout the novel—in this way, his name and character likely allude to the literary character Dorian Gray from Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray. Wilde himself was persecuted for being gay, and Dorian Gray’s character is obsessed with maintaining his youthful beauty. Ignatius befriends Dorian and decides to mingle with Dorian and his friends—he convinces them to throw a party so that he can start a political movement based entirely around gay men. Ignatius believes that if gay men infiltrate and take over politics, it will bring about world peace because they will all be too busy having sex and doing stereotypically “gay” things, such as sewing and drinking cocktails, to go to war. Dorian is amused by Ignatius’s provincial and stereotypical ideas and gay people and agrees to throw a party. However, although Ignatius does not realize this, Dorian, obviously does not take Ignatius’s political ideas seriously and thinks that he is joking. Although Dorian himself is amicable and seems to want everyone to have a good time, the behavior at Dorian’s party—which is attended almost entirely by gay men—suggests that Ignatius is wrong and that, of course, all gay people are not alike and that they are just as liable to enter conflicts and to have complex relationships as straight people. In the end, the guests at the party ostracize Ignatius, whose political speech causes a scene.

Dorian Greene Quotes in A Confederacy of Dunces

The A Confederacy of Dunces quotes below are all either spoken by Dorian Greene or refer to Dorian Greene. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Medievalism, Modernity, and Fate Theme Icon
).
Chapter 10, Part 3 Quotes

“That’s what’s so wonderful about New Orleans. You can masquerade and Mardi Gras all year round if you want to. Really, sometimes the Quarter is like one big costume ball. Sometimes I can’t tell friend from foe.”

Related Characters: Dorian Greene (speaker), Ignatius J. Reilly, Patrolman Mancuso
Page Number: 256
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 11, Part 2 Quotes

When we have at last overthrown all existing governments, the world will enjoy not war, but global orgies conducted with the utmost protocol and the most truly international spirit, for these people do transcend simple national differences. Their minds are on one goal; they are truly united; they think as one.

Related Characters: Ignatius J. Reilly (speaker), Dorian Greene
Page Number: 269
Explanation and Analysis:
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Dorian Greene Quotes in A Confederacy of Dunces

The A Confederacy of Dunces quotes below are all either spoken by Dorian Greene or refer to Dorian Greene. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Medievalism, Modernity, and Fate Theme Icon
).
Chapter 10, Part 3 Quotes

“That’s what’s so wonderful about New Orleans. You can masquerade and Mardi Gras all year round if you want to. Really, sometimes the Quarter is like one big costume ball. Sometimes I can’t tell friend from foe.”

Related Characters: Dorian Greene (speaker), Ignatius J. Reilly, Patrolman Mancuso
Page Number: 256
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 11, Part 2 Quotes

When we have at last overthrown all existing governments, the world will enjoy not war, but global orgies conducted with the utmost protocol and the most truly international spirit, for these people do transcend simple national differences. Their minds are on one goal; they are truly united; they think as one.

Related Characters: Ignatius J. Reilly (speaker), Dorian Greene
Page Number: 269
Explanation and Analysis: