Az Eszterházy Károly Tanárképző Főiskola Tudományos Közleményei. 2002. Vol. 8. Eger Journal of American Studies.(Acta Academiae Paedagogicae Agriensis : Nova series ; Tom. 28)

Studies - Judit Ágnes Kádár: 'Kleenex-View' and Cultural Devaluation: Merchandise as Ontology in Don DeLillo's White Noise (1985)

SOCIAL (CONTEXTUAL) DIMENSION (TEXTUAL) DIMENSION ideological-political powers (e.g. media gurus) ARTISTIC 1 social & psychological pressure = conformism & popular myths 1 escapes *shopping (die away) *watching TV("Merchandise as Ontology') *hiding away on campus as a student/ teacher *taking drugs, approaching death ('narrative animal') plotting lack of real action 1 escapes (irresponsibility) 1 'we fict' (make up stories that hold reality together) ^everyday tales *literary tales (e.g. metanarratives) The selected chapters include such locations as the school, the supermarket, College-on-the-Hill, the family home (especially the kitchen), the bank and Murray's place. These intentionally generic locations, together with characters of similarly generic nature, point out an interesting feature of DeLillo's writing and approach to literature. His ethical preoccupation attacking the American lifestyle is embedded in a text. The main point is to make people recognize: 'you 189