ern American society is too far past the threshold of redemption which Travis believes in his mind still exists. Everything is black and white to Travis, just like his moral convictions which see people as either scum or angels. The reality of New York escapes Travis, because he believes it is a Sodom and Gomorrah that can still be washed clean by the floods of Noah. He keeps a diary, a literal “diary of a madman,” in which he yearns for heavenly waters that will cleanse modern society of the filth all about him. As he writes “Thank god for the rain which has helped wash away the garbage and trash off the sidewalk. Some day, a real rain will come and wash all this scum off the streets” (Stephens 3).
Nonetheless, Travis’ obsession with cleaning up the scum of modern America continues
...