IT'S MORNING, TIME to get up, so get up, Arturo, and look…
““IT'S MORNING, TIME to get up, so get up, Arturo, and look for a job. Get out there and look for what you'll never find. You're a thief and you're a crab-killer and a lover of women in clothes closets. You'll never find a job! Every morning I got up feeling like that. Now I've got to find a job, damn it to hell. I ate breakfast, put a book under my arm, pencils in my pocket, and started out. Down the stairs I went, down the street, sometimes hot and sometimes cold, sometimes foggy and sometimes clear. It never mattered, with a book under my arm, looking for a job. What job, Arturo? Ho ho! A job for you? Think of what you are, my boy! A crab-killer. A thief. You look at naked women in clothes closets. And you expect to get a job! How funny! But there he goes, the idiot, with a big book. Where the devil are you going, Arturo? Why do you go up this street and not that? Why go east - why not go west? Answer me, you thief! Who'll give you a job, you swine - who? But there's a park across town, Arturo. It's called Banning Park. There are a lot of beautiful eucalyptus trees in it, and green lawns. What a place to read! Go there, Arturo. Read Nietzsche. Read Schopenhauer. Get into the company of the mighty. A job? fooey! Go sit under a eucalyptus tree reading a book looking for a job. ””
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
The protagonist, Arturo, wanders aimlessly searching for purpose, using irony and absurdity to critique societal expectations of work and identity.
In simple terms: Arturo searches for a job while mocking the idea of work and identity.
Question the meaning of work and self‑identity.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- job hunting
- urban wandering
- reading in parks
- self‑reflection
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- What does Arturo truly seek beyond a job?
- How does humor reveal deeper anxieties?
The monologue may glorify aimlessness over constructive action.