THE AUTHENTICITY OF THOMAS WOLFE’S AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL HERO THROUGH THE LENS OF HEIDEGGERIAN ONTOLOGY

Abstract

Southern author Thomas Wolfe’s ultimate goal was to create an epic that presents his America as seen through the eyes of an autobiographical character meant to represent all Americans, their lifestyle, their struggles, their encounters with the chosen environment. The result is a lengthy 4-novel epic of two cycles and two protagonists called Wolfean characters. This article is meant to examine the existential authenticity of the aforementioned protagonists as understood in the work Being and Time (1927) by German philosopher Martin Hеidegger.