Hitchhikers
The author addresses bullshit fiction as an effort to transform the simple real life experiences into something unusual and extraordinary in order to impress others or feel good about one’s self or just for the sake of fun without considering its truth or falsehood. These kinds of tales are usually developed by hitchhikers. By interviewing several hitchhikers, the author found out that bullshitting is an outcome of road talk in which different hitchhikers exchange and share their so called ‘dramatic experiences’ and adventurous stories. The hitchhikers also modify their own versions of stories through interacting with other hitchhikers. It also takes place through ‘mapping’ i.e. providing information and guidance to other travelers about places they haven’t seen. Furthermore, these tales are not only meant to entertain others, they also tend to be autobiographical and serve as a means of socializing by presenting a positive self-image. It also performs the function of forming identity which helps hitchhikers to relate to their travel experiences. Thus, hitchhikers engage in bullshitting in order to transform their lives into something exciting and interesting which in turn makes them feel accomplished and courageous.
In my opinion, the author provides an interesting and realistic explanation of bullshit tales and how they are developed and spread. He gives meaningful insight on how and why people involve in bullshitting and highlights different social and psychological factors that contribute towards it. Moreover, he also focuses on the underlying factors that lead to the formation and sharing of these travel tales and conforms to Goffman’s notion of the presentation of self i.e. how in the simple act of story telling people try to present themselves as heroic and adventurous. Hence, as the author says: “They use bad stories to display heroism and good stories to show that they have culled good times from their independent lives. Bad stories predominate because the teller can show the greatest social sophistication by analyzing and managing unpleasant incidents” (Mukerji, 245).
