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Short Story "A Tale Told by an Idiot"
Dublin Core
Title
Short Story "A Tale Told by an Idiot"
Description
In this short story, a law student named Winston Kingstone Manners the Fourth does cocaine and finds a book that contains his life story. Moments in his past are described as, "The beaten black boy, the date-raped freshman, and the threatened homosexual," illustrating him to be a violent homophobe, misogynist, and racist character. The book finally informs him that his girlfriend, Lori, cheated on him with her friend Pete, who is interested in Shakespeare and drama. While he has cheated on Lori all semester, he is infuriated that she does the same and calls her to insult her body and sexuality, mocking her as his "virginal mistress" and a "slut." Winston continuously uses homophobic slurs to address Pete as he sees an image of him dressed as a harlequin, which ultimately leads him to his death.
Creator
Source
Schwartz, Mark Ian. "A Tale Told by an Idiot." The Messenger (Spring 1990): 22-28. Available online via the UR Scholarship Repository.
Publisher
The Messenger, University of Richmond
Date
1990
Language
English
Type
Identifier
Messenger1990.1.22-1990.pdf
Coverage
Richmond (Va.)
Text Item Type Metadata
Metadata Creator
Files
Citation
Schwartz, Mark Ian, “Short Story "A Tale Told by an Idiot",” University of Richmond Race & Racism Project, accessed February 14, 2025, https://memory.richmond.edu/items/show/3283.