The Last Gentleman
Encyclopedia
The Last Gentleman is a 1966 novel by Walker Percy
. The story centers on the character of Williston Bibb Barret, a man born in the Mississippi
Delta
who has since moved to New York City
. He suffers from a "nervous condition," which causes him to experience fits of déjà vu and amnesiac fugues. He works as a night janitor and lives at the YMCA
. Early in the novel he meets the Vaughts, a Southern family currently in New York City so that their son Jamie, can receive medical treatment. Mr. Vaught invites Will to return to the South with his family and serve as Jamie's caretaker. The rest of the novel focuses on the relationship between Will and the Vaughts, most especially their daughter Kitty whom he falls in love with, and Will's continual search for his identity. It is followed by The Second Coming.
Walker Percy
Walker Percy was an American Southern author whose interests included philosophy and semiotics. Percy is best known for his philosophical novels set in and around New Orleans, Louisiana, the first of which, The Moviegoer, won the National Book Award for Fiction in 1962...
. The story centers on the character of Williston Bibb Barret, a man born in the Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
Delta
Mississippi Delta
The Mississippi Delta is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi that lies between the Mississippi and Yazoo Rivers. The region has been called "The Most Southern Place on Earth" because of its unique racial, cultural, and economic history...
who has since moved to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He suffers from a "nervous condition," which causes him to experience fits of déjà vu and amnesiac fugues. He works as a night janitor and lives at the YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
. Early in the novel he meets the Vaughts, a Southern family currently in New York City so that their son Jamie, can receive medical treatment. Mr. Vaught invites Will to return to the South with his family and serve as Jamie's caretaker. The rest of the novel focuses on the relationship between Will and the Vaughts, most especially their daughter Kitty whom he falls in love with, and Will's continual search for his identity. It is followed by The Second Coming.