Point of View

In Factotum, Charles Bukowski tells a vaguely autobiographical story in the first person past tense through narrator Henry Chinaski. Henry knows that little of what he does is considered noble by society and makes no excuses for his actions. He drinks because it relieves the pain of consciousness. He avoids people because he dislikes if not hates them. Henry talks matter-of-factly about masturbating in his parents' house and accepts whatever heterosexual activity he can find. When seducing a girlfriend's two female companions, he finds plays on words that allow him to have his cake and eat it too.

When he wants to move on to another city, Henry packs his cardboard suitcase with his few possessions and enough whiskey to enable him to endure chatty companions. Traveling leaves him sleep-deprived and constipated, but he travels when he must. When he settles, Henry knows his way around...