Gidget by Frederick Kohner and Tales of the City by Armistead Maupin - Essay Example

California Culture “Gidget” by Frederick Kohner and “Tales of the City” by Armistead Maupin are dedicated to different layers of Californian sub-culture. This is a distinctive and influential part of the US cultural map, that’s why it is worth of being examined. Social and cultural trends, readers have identified in the novels, are both general and peculiar. Frances Lawrence lives at the end of impetuous 1950th and Mary Ann Singleton comes to San Francisco in the middle of 1970th. Although both heroines dwell in different parts of California, it allows following development and dynamics of local sub-culture. Surrounding of Frances (Gidget) and Mary Ann varies and it has impacted their psychology, behavioral patterns and life priorities. Gidget is a pretty sixteen-years-old girl, who has never faces serious difficulties and is absolutely inexperienced in love. Gidget is distinguished among her female friends and helpmates, who are keen on male hunting. This imaginary heroine embodied a real life prototype – Kohner’s daughter Kathy Kohner-Zuckerman. The writer described and analyzed his daughter’s summer, spent on the beach of Malibu. The Lawrences can be regarded as an example of usual middle-class American family of 1950th; they are united, happy and self-sufficient. Mary Ann is older than Francie and seems to be more experienced in life. She decided to live her native Cleveland and find a permanent job in San Francisco. On her arrival she rented an apartment at 28 Barbara Lane and suddenly came across socio-cultural diversity and dynamic urban life. Thus, two worlds of Francie and Mary Ann create a sharp contrast between Californian cultural layers. The author placed Frances in sea and sand romance and separated her from temptations and noise of Los Angeles. Major part of the plot developed on the beach in hot Californian summer. To spend summer, vacations or at least weekend in Malibu became popular and fashionable. “The story, set on the beaches of Malibu, told of the adventures of a young American girl and a group of surfers. The surf-star myth was under way, and, while late-1960s students were up in arms, a whole generation of surfing enthusiasts was crazy to brave the waves.” (Augustin 1998) Thus, story about Gidget and her adventures laid foundation of a new surfing trend in Californian sub-culture. Film with the same name with Sandra Dee made surfing and summer holidays in Malibu or any other beaches of California especially popular. In the novel Frederick Kohner had described generally accepted framework of surfers’ lifestyle and leisure time, which further spread all over the world. Readers come across so called “beachfront” lexicon, which includes Hawaiian words, original nicknames, specific words and phrases of local youth. For instance, nickname “Gidget” is a shortened version of “girl in midgets”. Young people address each other mainly by nicknames. Despite of their age and sex, everyone calls Betty Louise B.L. Sub-culture of Californian youth implies informal communication, superiority of males above females, flirting and idleness. Steady rituals and ceremonies of surfers’ clubs spread thorough California. They include specialized parties, songs, music and dress code. Surfers wear T-shirts, Levis jeans, tennis shoes. Often the wear clothes of similar color with special emblems, signs. These features appeal to me, because they are associated with aspiration for beauty, high physical and social activity, equitable communication among representatives of different social and ethnic categories. Francie’s friends Moondoggie, the Big Kahuna and other members of the surfing group spend the whole summer on the beach, bathing, listening to the music and having fun. Sea and sand romance does not promote heroes thinking about future; Moondoggie is not going to return to college and the Big Kahuna seems to be satisfied with his present employment, although once he has had bigger ambitions. They are trained surfers and, thus, feel themselves by a head taller than other youngsters. In San Francisco Mary Ann found herself in totally different environment. Here life went in accordance to urban laws. Ann’s decision to stay also was impulsive and affected by huge external pressure. She “came to the city alone for an eight day vacation. On the fifth night, she drank three Irish coffees at the Buena Vista ... and decided to phone her mother in Cleveland.” (Maupin 2001, p. 12) In 1970th California was saturated with spirit of freedom, dynamic urban life and cross-cultural influence. Armistead Maupin gets target audience acquainted with diversity of local sub-culture in dialogues and narrations of the main heroes. Mona Ramsey, DeDe, Anna Madrigal and others mention names of popular singers and groups, local places of interest (the Parrots, the Castro), various cultural events (concerts, theatrical performances). DeDe is a woman of the world, that’s why she is well-aware of Californian high life, main cultural and fashionable trends. “The Grove (a thinly disguised Bohemian Club), the exclusive retreat of white males (threatened in this volume by a counter-retreat for a wimmin's music festival), and glimpse the foibles of California's rich.” (Einstadter and Sinclair 1991) Job hunting, learning at the university, clubbing, parties, and love affairs, tangled social and family relations are an integral part of this sub-culture. The topic of sexuality and love is core in both novels. “Gidget” is primarily intended for American teenagers, school-leavers and students as the most dynamic and sensitive part of target audience. The plot is developed around relations of Moondoggie and Gidget, who has any experience in this field. At the beginning of the novel Francis Lawrence encountered with an insuperable problem, because she was not keen on male hunting. That was a popular type of activity on bathing places and resorts California. On the contrary from Francie, BL and Mary Lou felt themselves comfortable with young men; they were easy-going and flirting. “I’m writing this down because I once heard that when you’re getting older you’re liable to forget things and I’d sure be the most miserable woman in this world if I ever forgot what happened this summer.” (Maupin 2001, p. 22) This recognition of Gidget proves that author uses an artistic device of heroine’s self-immersion into the world of free love, romance, and sexual relations. On the example of Gidget Kohner demonstrates successive development of the teenage girl within Californian sub-culture. “Shifts in the texture of youth culture are impossible to pinpoint with temporal precision, but by the beginning of the 1960s a recognizable surfing subculture existed among (mainly middle-class) Southern Californian youngsters.” (Osgerby 2001, p. 104) Such places as Trestles, Paradise Cove, Mile Zero, Zuma Beach became pilgrimage shrines for local surfers. Many surfers clubs were created in California and throughout the United States. “Gidget” turned into a universal hymn for all of them, in spite of cross-cultural differences. Surfer infrastructure also broadened, because potential customers required new boards and other sports equipment. The novel promoted emergency of popular songs, films, stories, related to surfing. On the one hand, Gidget mingles with surfers and strives for active development and outdoor sports. This is a natural need of any teenager. On the other hand, her friends and surrounding impact and promote her spiritual evolution, i.e. sexuality, passion, sympathy towards young people, psychological instability. The Big Kahuna is an informal leader and embodies general manhood. Moondoggie is full of contradictions, because he resists his own sympathy to Gidget. She tries to be independent from her parents, makes serious decisions and freely communicates with male friends, although she persuades herself she is not able to fall in love. At the same time rituals and rules of surfer’s sub-culture just quicken this process. “All things considered – maybe I was just a woman in love with a surfboard.” (Maupin 2001, p. 82) In “Tales of the City” represents readers a picture of human relations from adultery point of view. Moral map of San Francisco is freer than morality of “Gidget”. All tenants of Anna Madrigal are independent personalities, employed and unemployed, of different social, ethnic origin and sexual orientation. Large variety of heroes allows demonstrating variety of Californian sub-culture. Beauchamp Day is an unfaithful husband and philander, Brian Hawkins is busy with clubbing and women clubbing. Ann Madrigal opens the world before the main heroine, using her life experience and contacts. “In fact, while both gay and nongay characters have numerous sexual exploits, once in a permanent relationship, the gay characters are monogamous, the others are not. The most giving and caring character of an, the catalyst figure in the series, Mrs. Madrigal, is a transsexual.” (Einstadter and Sinclair 1991) Close friendly relations of Mona Ramsey and Mouse approve how non-traditional sexual orientation harmonically interweaves with local sub-culture. Describing festival females’ festival “Wimmihood” in the fifth part “Significant Others”, Maupin pays attention to absurdity and disorder in lesbian relations. Another breakthrough was inclusion of such forbidden innovative topics as AIDS and transsexual relations. Thus, he emphasizes the fact that these issues can not be ignored and denied in local sub-culture. For instance, from Michael Mouse’s experience readers get to know that in 1970th bath houses have been places of sex patent hunting for gay men. Above novels represent two layers of Californian sub-culture. Frederick Kohner depicts surfers’ sub-culture and its influence on development of US youth, local infrastructure, popular culture and social life. Gidget exemplifies psychological difficulties and opportunities of American teenage girls in 1950th. Armistead Maupin represents second layer of sub-culture, which has prevailed in 1970th. Urban world of San Francisco sharply differs from beach romance of Malibu. Problems of heroes are related with love making, employment, family life, employee-employer relations, job hunting etc. They are older and more experienced than Gidget and members of her surfing group, that’s why they have larger opportunities and decision-making capabilities. They exist in highly active and diverse sub-culture. In 1970th it is characterized with larger freedom of sexual relations, higher dynamics of urban life, lower morality. Local culture is tightly connected with local infrastructure and personal needs of potential customers. Bibliography 1. Augustin, Jean-Pierre. “Emergence of Surfing Resorts on the Aquitaine Littoral.” The Geographical Review 88. 4 (1998): 587 - 590. 2. Einstadter, J. Werner and Sinclair, P. Karen. “Review Essay Lives on the Boundary: Armistead Maupin's Complete Tales of the City.” Journal of the History of Sexuality 1.4 (1991): 682 - 687. 3. Giltz, Michael. “Tales of the Tales.” The Advocate 22 May 2001: 54 - 57. 4. Link, Matthew. “The City and the Writer.” The Advocate 29 Jan. 2008: 30 - 34. 5. Kilmer-Purcell, Josh. “The Stealth Warrior.” Out 15.12 (2007): 52 - 58. 6. Kohner, Frederick. Gidget. New York: Pocket Book, 1995. 7. Maupin, Armistead. Tales of the City. New York: Penguin Books, 2001. 8. Osgerby, Bill. Playboys in Paradise: Masculinity, Youth and Leisure-Style in Modern America. New York: Berg, 2001. Read More