Billy Phelan's Greatest Game

Image Study

2009-12-11T16:45:00.000-05:00

Matin Daugherty, a friend of both the McCalls and Billy Phelan, is a reporter for the Times-Union in the novel. His hard work and dedication towards solving the problems put on by the kidnapping ultimately solves the case. At the same time he saves Billy's reputations an honest and morally just man through one of his columns. This image represents the influence he has on the outcome of the story and the emergence of the media in America at this time.

As described in previous blogs, the poker table or gambling scene of the late night men help characterize so much about the people AND the town. This image is a good old time image of men paying poker, something Billy and his aquaintances did quite often. "The game was now five-card stud, quarter ante, no limit, and four flush beats a pair. The deal was walking and when it came to Bump, Billy gave him the full eyeball"(118). Here Kennedy touches on the morals of cheating and characterizes Billy as someone who will not tolerate it. This will prove important as these honest morals apply later on in the novel in a real world issue. Examples like this show why the characterization at the card tables and bars are so important.

Here, a modern man and wife are getting ready for the day by eating breakfast. While the time period is different, Martin Daugherty and his wife share certain characteristics with this image. A look into Martin's life by Kennedy, the reader sees a loyal and famly side to him unlike his drinking counterparts in the novel. I chose this image because I believe it was important for Kennedy to include the family details of his life and make him a more respectable person. Without respect, Martin's thoughts that drove the plot would not be taken seriously.

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This first image is one of Albany, NY during the early 1900s. The setting of the book influences much of what goes on. From railroads and factories, seen in the photo, to downtown bars Billy Phelan's Greatest Game is affected greatly by the urban setting in which the characters live.

Sticking to Your Guns

2009-12-10T20:23:00.000-05:00

Billy Phelan's life has been filled with an abundance of mishaps and unfortunate occurrences. What is supposed to be one's most prominent person in life, his father, disappears from his life. While his troublesome past would lead him to gain something positive at first chance, this is far from the truth. He passes on an opportunity to help the political leaders of the city and is criticized for this decision. He is shunned by the majority of bars and card games he so often attended.

It'd be a game of recognition. Anybody know Billy Phelan? Throw the bum out. All his life Billy has put himself into trouble just to get himself out of it. Now, you dumb bastard, you're so independent you cant even get inside to get warm, and it's getting chilly"(241).

Here, Billy hits the lowest of lows. Kennedy further emphasizes this as he lists the names of all the bars he was no longer welcomed. The word was out. He would rather keep quiet than help out with information pertaining to the kidnapping of Charlie. All Billy would have to do is reveal some info and get his normal life back. He, however, had different ideas.

What came as a surprise to me was that Billy Phelan, a man of many late night alcohol extravaganzas, actually has a set of principles on which he lives his life. He is an honest man and ideas of spying on one of his friends, even in the case of helping a kidnapping, would not be tolerated. Pressure received from one person to the other would go in one ear and out the other. Billy even considers leaving town over his dilemma. What Billy tells us about life though is to be persistent about what you believe in. He never changes his own morals for someone else's benefit. Although it causes him much displeasure and controversy, he is a fictional motivation for sticking to your guns.

It is not all bad for Billy, though; he regains a strengthened reputation after Martin defends him in a Times-Union column:

"The day it appeared in the Times-Union, the word went out to Broadway: Billy Phelan is all right. Don't give him any more grief"(275).

And so, Billy Phelan is rewarded after all for remaining committed to his morals.

Footnote:

While this is an extremely powerful turnaround for Billy, it is necessary to mention William Kennedy's strategy in achieving such sympathy for Billy. First off, the situation lends itself to root for someone (Billy) who has no opportunity to explain himself, but still remains loyal amidst such immense pressure. Second, Kennedy employs many stylistic devices to evoke sympathy. The cold, dark image of Billy all alone quoted previously in this blog is one that makes the reader feel bad for him. Once a regular, he is now shunned from his oasis of alcohol and gaming. The description of his thoughts about leaving town further develop sympathy for Phelan. It is no accident that such affinity is felt for Billy.

Characters and Card Games (Character Study)

2009-12-09T21:33:00.000-05:00

The two main characters of the novel, Billy Phelan and Martin Daugherty, are part of a manly American society centered around late night bar games and discussions. From bowling games to poker duels, these interactions are used by Kennedy as the main way to characterize the focal points of his novel.

"Martin Daugherty, age fifty and now the scorekeeper, observed it all as Billy Phelan, working on a perfect game, walked with the arrogance of a young, untried eagle toward the ball return" (1).

The very first sentence of the novel gives the audience a basis for how Kennedy is going to develop the characters through their daily experiences in the town. This pattern continues the entire novel.

Billy, the title character of the novel, is a middle-aged man from the town of Albany who is characterized as unique and distant from his peers. His lack of interest in his friend's disappearance or loyalty to his closest allies show how he has become an individual person. In addition, we learn that he seems to have a lack of motivation, which again is shown by his involvement in a bowling match. "Billy might have been hot every night if he'd been as single-minded as Scotty about the game. But Martin knew Billy to be a generalist, a man in need of the sweetness of miscellany. [He] didn't think that way, didn't have the need that comes with obsessive specialization"(6). This evolves the idea of his personality being distant from the people in his town. He is not as dependent on the nightly occurrences at the bar to advance his life. He does not get caught up politics. He keeps to himself and occasionally has a word or two with various people around town. We also see Billy's seriousness later on in the novel: "Whatever it was, even though Bump lost twelve straight hands, Billy didn't trust him"(118). This quotation comes at a time when Billy thinks he has discovered a cheater, and does not let him slide. The readers see Billy's competitive, serious, and individual attitude even more through a card game at the local bar.

Martin Daugherty keeps his distance from participating in these "games" of 20th century American men. Instead, his involvement includes spectating and keeping score. An older man, Martin works for the Times-Union newspaper. Still, Kennedy uses bar life to contrast his attitudes with that of characters like Billy. After describing a recent game of pool he states, "Martin might even profit by injecting some sass into his own acquiescent life. Consider that: a sassy Martin Daugherty" (8). By contrasting Martin's attributes with someones in the game of pool, the reader learns that Martin has a boring and monotonous aspect to his life.

While card games do the main work in characterizing the townspeople, Martin is also developed as a husband in a setting outside of the busy streets of Albany: his home. This contrast allows Kennedy to establish Martin as more than a midnight bar man. The reader is able to gain respect for his unique sober, and non-gambling personality. Kennedy states, "Martin Daugherty, wearing bathrobe and slippers, sat at his kitchen table. He salted his oatmeal and spiced it with raisins"(15). The following conversation in the kitchen between him and his wife prove that Martin is a family man first, and bar hopper second or even third.

Passages for Rhetoric Study

2009-12-08T23:22:00.003-05:00

Here are my passages for reference to the Rhetoric Study of Town Descriptions:

Rhetoric Study: Town Descriptions

2009-12-08T19:34:00.000-05:00

The description of the town of Albany and its people has been constant throughout the entire novel thus far, however; as the plot thickens many of the purposes of these descriptions have begun to take hold with the reader. As Martin continues to try and pry information for the McCalls, his adventures around town are given great detail and purpose. This can be seen in the two passages I have selected.

First, the imagery that is employed in these two passages brings the reader closer to the character of the town and therefore closer to the story. As Kennedy describes each step "down Broadway to the North Albany barns," the reader can get a better sense of the setting and what Martin is experiencing. The "United Traction Company" and"Militiamen on horseback" give a perception of the hard-working, blue collar faction of Albany. Ultimately these images described by Kennedy help the reader in visualizing the town, the people, and their conflicts.

Next, the strategy of flashbacks and the past history of Billy's life is used in the second passage. The visualization of his cousin's suicide develops an already tragic past for Billy. Like Martin we see why and how his distance from his longtime friends has developed. At a time when Billy is reluctant to help the "perfect" McCalls, the combination of events like his father's disappearance and his cousin's suicide help us understand the workings of his personality.

Last, the use of rhetorical questions and direct commentation by the narrator is used towards the end of the second passage. The rhetorical questions about Martin facilitate thought on the part of the reader about his actions. It gets the attention of the reader and forces them to think of Martin from a different, more logical perspective than the storyline might give. At the end of Kennedy's deliberation he states, "Oh yes, Martin Daugherty, you are one duplicitous son of a bitch"(107). To that point, the reader is led to believe that Martin is an innocent bystander to the town conflicts, but these rhetorical strategies provoke a much different opinion.

In all, Kennedy's complete inclusion of details and description achieve one sole purpose: connecting the readers to the story of Albany. To better understand the complexities of his characters, these strategies are necessary. The decisions made towards the resolution of the novel can now be better understood.

Dialogue

2009-12-07T21:06:00.002-05:00

As I continue to read William Kennedy's middle work of his Albany Cycle, the use of dialogue has become more prevalent between the characters of the town. In Chapters six and seven Martin's conversations will Billy and Jake Berman, Morrie's father, reveal certain town rivalries and further develops their personalities.

First, the fact that Billy Phelan is on the McCall's suspect list for the disappearance of Charlie is revealed to him by Martin. Billy states, "I heard a goddamn rumor, that's all. I paid no attention, nothing ever happened. Now, because I heard a rumor last August, I'm on the McCall' shit list?" (101). When it first appears that Billy is being defensive of this situation, Martin further reveals that he is just a decoy to get to a person they think has valuable information. He later reveals, "I'm not one of the McCalls' political whores" (105) and of Martin states "I don't get it, a man like you running errands for the McCalls. I don't figure you for that" (106). These quotes emphasize Billy's growing distance from his closest childhood families. In addition, Billy is seen as an angry bystander to the whole situation. I believe Kennedy could possibly be foreshadowing Billy's involvement in the kidnapping. The back and forth conversation of Martin and Billy was one of passion and heated arguments while still getting their points heard. While it might seem like the opposite, the dialogue here reveals a deep and long-standing relationship between the two citizens of Albany.

As Martin continues in trying to help the McCall family find information about their son, he seeks out Jake Berman, a relative of Morrie. Jake's words reveal much about the perception of the McCalls and what some people in the town think of them. "May the McCalls be boiled in dead men's piss" (111). His later comparison of the McCalls to fascism and that they "own the courts" develop his argument against them. This is one of the first times the reader is offered a different and more critical perspective of the McCalls. The deep negative sentiment expressed by Berman also develops his character and the Berman name as one who despises the McCalls. This will be important to the plot as I continue reading.

As I predicted in one of my future blogs, the emphasis on politics in the town of Albany is quite high. The town riots, expressed dissent, and controversial topics presented by Kennedy are realistic and imaginable. The dialogue helps him achieve this purpose of the realistic encounters of Albany, NY. The authenticism of conversation is reaching a peak in the book, along with its plot.

Themes from American Lit: The American Dream

2009-11-24T17:35:00.002-05:00

Through five chapters of Billy Phelan's Greatest Game William Kennedy displays one of the most popular themes of American literature and life of the growing nation. This theme has grown into an abstract idea that so many across the United States have identified with, even today. As an audience to Kennedy's novel, we see many examples of this through immigration and living the "American Dream" in Albany.

My first example is one that fits the definition of the American dream perfectly: "Spanish George." Kennedy states, "George, notorious in the city's South End, ran a bar and flophouse in Shank's old three-story livery stable. He had come to America from Spain to build the Barge Canal and stayed on to an empire in the dregs" (35). This fictional character created by Kennedy is a "real-life" example of the many ideals that enveloped the American dream. First, he immigrated to the US to provide himself a better opportunity for labor. In addition, he built himself up to a successful business owner. This man had lived the dream that so many like him would attempt from immigrating from countries such as Ireland and German. The melting pot we live in today had begun and is shown even clearer by the other character descriptions of immigrants.

In a description about Martin's father, Kennedy affirms "His father was possessed rather by concrete visions of the Irish in the New World, struggling to throw off the filth of poverty, oppression, and degradation, and rising to a higher plane of life"(24). This sums up clearly the thoughts of the American dream and relates it to an example in Martin's Irish father. One thing that Kennedy certainly implies is that these thoughts were present with many immigrants of the entire United States, not just in Albany, or Martin Daugherty's father alone.

The reader can see clearly the influence of the many immigrant and life stories Kennedy tells in his stories. These not only characterize the people of the town, but exemplify a powerful idea of the 19th and 20th centuries: the American dream.

Martin Daugherty

2009-11-23T20:39:00.002-05:00

Two things so far about the character of Martin has spiked my interest: a) his seemingly similar life story and commitment to that of author William Kennedy's and b) his outside, but still involved character traits in relation to his fellow characters of Albany. Now that the main conflict of the story has become clearer, so has Martin's character.

William Kennedy's life story includes a stint of disconnection from the city of Albany in Puerto Rico among other cities. His inspiration for the start and majority of his literary works was Albany, though. He returned and began to publish works in newspapers and novels about Albany before beginning his famous "Albany cycle" referenced in one of my earlier blogs. Martin, like Kennedy, came "back to Albany forever" (31) and continued to work on his pieces for the Times-Union. It was common for Martin to write about his Albany counterparts, which is why he chose not to syndicate his work nationally.

Like stated above the second, and most likely more important, thing that spikes my interest about Martin is his original involvement with the people of Albany. Within a matter of seconds he calls one of the most influential families in the town and receives an invite as if he was family. Minutes later he is being yelled at like an inferior to the McCalls. His unique life experiences and absence from the town scene for quite some time in England could have contributed to this character trait. It also states about him that he "had once lived in Arbor Hill, where the McCalls and the Phelans lived" (27). Him and his wife were kept in shouting distance of the grapevine but not right next to it by Kennedy for a reason I believe. Although all of the characters are not developed fully yet by the author, Daugherty provides a unique point of view for the reader. He remains informed and involved but not influenced by the people of his town. I believe this will be an important perspective to the conflicts of the book.

I will leave you with a quote about Martin that I believe demonstrates what I have talked about above.

"Martin's personal view was this: that I do not fear the McCalls; that this is my town as much as theirs and I won't [change] for any of them" (31).

Tragedy

2009-11-23T17:56:00.004-05:00

As I continued to read Billy Phelan's Greatest Game, the first two chapters surprised me with a somber start to the plot. The actions alone may not have been as powerful, though, had William Kennedy not structured his dialogue and actions the way he did.

The imagery and interaction between the bowling alley attendees the night of Billy's shocking upset seemed normal, humorous, and uneventful. Scotty's loss was disappointing for sure, but his promise as an excellent bowler and family man still enveloped his character. This was the emphasis Kennedy wanted to make before the shocking death occurred. He states, "Martin knew Scotty Streck and admired his talent without liking him. Scotty worked in the West Albany railroad shops, a short, muscular, brush-cut native of the West End German neighborhood of Cabbagetown" (4). By making his life seem normal and innocent, the death of Scotty results in much more tragedy. All of the sudden Scotty "doubled up, gasping, burping. He rolled onto his side arms still acultch, eyes squeezing out the agony in his chest" (12). The contrast of these two descriptions coupled in a space of eight pages put emphasis on the unexpected occurrence of Scotty's death. In addition, the description of the "gawking" crowd and shocked faces create an image the reader is most likely all too familiar with: tragic situations.

Less than twenty pages later in Kennedy's novel, Martin unexpectedly learns that Charlie McCall, a powerful young figure of Albany, has been kidnapped. Again, Kennedy provides great surprise as the details are unraveled. Martin and his wife are going through their normal morning activities of breakfast and conversation when the phone rings. "Martin, they took Charlie..the car door wide open and nobody inside"(21). The great imagery of this situation by Kennedy leaves the reader with a shocked attitude towards the news. I personally can relate to the frantic manner in which Martin gets dressed to rush to the McCall family's assistance. The calmness of the morning was tragically interrupted by a simple phone call.

By structuring the plot in this way, Kennedy is able to startle the reader. It also crates intrigue as to how the town and close families will deal/resolve the first big conflict of the story. The story is quickly beginning to pick up.

Setting/Towns People

2009-11-22T17:00:00.001-05:00

As Chapter 1 portrays a typical 1930s setting in the town of Albany, so too do the characters of the town match. The book opens as Billy Phelan is competing against the "best bowler in town" Scotty Streck. Throughout the matchup of these two classic characters, so much is identified about the setting of the story. From the time period, and town characteristics to the unique bar junky mindsets of the characters, William Kennedy proves why his book is important to American Literature.

The men of the bars quickly surround the allies as word of the epic battle between Billy and Scotty is received. These men, while described briefly by Kennedy, as well as the general setting of the book can be characterized by his description of the town bar: "The game abided in such windowless, smoky lofts as this one, which smelled of beer, cigar smoke and alley wax, an unhealthy ambience which nevertheless nourished exquisite nighttime skills"(5). The dirty but still honorable establishments of their town exemplify the working class and "manly" attitudes of their time. Nights spent until 3 A.M. gambling and drinking were not uncommon to the characters that were so far seen in Chapter 1. While seemingly uneventful their lives can be, the reader is also introduced to several conflicts which suggest the contrary.

Billy Phelan is described as a man of many talents by the narrator. These excellent skills in the many bar games of Albany could have been even more impressive and dominating with simply a greater desire on the part of Mr. Phelan. His distant mindset to something his life is so enthralled in seems to be a byproduct of his childhood, as referenced by Kennedy. In an introduction to the relationship between Martin (the scorekeeper) and Billy, something is revealed about Billy's past. Martin states about his interest in Billy, "Why, I knew him when he had a father, knew his father too, knew him when that father abdicated, and I ached for the boy then and have ever since, for I know how it is to live in the inescapable presence of the absence of the father"(7). Here, a deep meaning to the life of Billy is exposed. His lonely bar life and spontaneous weeknight bets are given deeper sympathy when hearing about the troubles of his past.

Among these two examples, there are many more qualities of the town and people in it that I look forward to being informed on. The interaction of "hot-shot" Charlie and his inferiors and more knowledge of the daily occurrences of Billy's "street corner" life I feel will be most relevant to the rest of the story. The smoky bars and eventful pasts of Albany will represent greatly the common themes of American working class people still to be uncovered in Billy Phelan's Greatest Game.

Background Information

2009-11-19T22:00:00.000-05:00

Before I start to blog about Billy Phelan's Greatest Game by William Kennedy, I decided to research Albany, NY and the time period in which the book was set. While much description was given in the first chapter, I felt that more information about its surroundings would be beneficial to understanding the characters and their actions.

First, Billy Phelan's Greatest Game is the second in William Kennedy's trilogy of books called the "Albany Cycle." The book is set in 1938, a time of much needed growth following on of the most shocking depressions in history. Characters that appear in this book may also appear in his others, Legs and Ironweed. His use of Albany has helped him create 7 books. His background of dissent towards his hometown of Albany and its people can also be seen in his novels.

At a time when money was hard to come by, people sought after other forms of entertainment such as theater and games were extremely popular. This is depicted greatly as the men in Albany are constantly entertained by their late night bowling and pool matches. It is also seen as Charlie, an important heir to his family's legacy in Albany, is admired for his mediocre wealth status. Transportation was also an important influence of this time period as just over 100 years prior the Erie Canal was built and later railroads. This helped trade with the west in Albany.

As Albany is the capital of New York, I look forward to seeing how politics and the recent depression play into the storyline. The interaction of characters could be influenced dramatically by the stresses of their lives and/or political involvement in the capital. For now, though, bar games, drinking, and death have dominated the plot.