October 1, 2014

Which way of life does Chinaski fit into (using Kierkegaards three ways of
living ones life)?
In the movie Barfly, Henry Charles Chinaski, who in the literary alter ego of the
American writer Charles Bukowski, lives his life in the aesthetic stage. His main goal in
life is to bring pleasure or happiness to himself.
On the surface, his character appears to be a lower aesthete. He pursues pleasures
that are easy to get, without thinking of the long term effects of his decisions. He
spends most of his time drinking and engaging in fist fights with other characters in the
movie. He doesnt appear to have any long term goals. Any money he earns is spent in
a short amount of time. He is also seen stealing from others for sustenance, without
any regard for the law or the well-being of the victims.
However, once you analyze his character deeper, you realize that his character may be
a reflective aesthete. This is made apparently when he refuses a life of leisure and ease
to continue to be a poor bum because he does not agree with that lifestyle. He has the
opportunity to be a popular writer. However, he realizes that if he pursues that goal, he
will lose the ability to write well in the area he writes well at while living a poor life. He
sees through the self-deception of living a pleasurable life and uses people that do as a
source of amusement. He also considers their life similar to being trapped in a prison
due to the limitations and responsibilities they have.
In conclusion, Chinaski, although given the opportunity to live a pleasurable life with an
apparent purpose, chooses to live a life that that appears difficult and with no purpose
for the sole reason of fulfilling his inner desires and principles. Because doing otherwise
would make his existence trapped in gold prison cell, causing his discomfort, his life
falls under the first stage according to Kierkegaard, which is the aesthetic stage.