In 1989 (the year of Abbey's death) Hayduke Lives! was released. George Washington Hayduke's first set of adventures are outlined in 1975's The Monkey Wrench Gang. Hayduke is Abbey's codification of the wants, longings, and desires of the average male environmentalist awash in the frustrations of corporate greed and corruption where the voice of the little people remain unheard – until the little people rise up and take direct action because, as Abbey's Monkey Wrench Gang puts it, "somebody has to do it." He is most likely named after the Haiduks, rebels in the Ottoman Empire, and one of Eric Hobsbawm's archetypal bandits. The character of Hayduke was based on his friend and author, Doug Peacock, a Vietnam vet that Abbey befriended and traveled with in the Southwest United States. The specific cultural use of the term Hayduke is derived from this character. Hayduke is an ex- Green Beret, one-time explosives expert and medic in the Vietnam War and an American environmentalist hero. He is at first skeptical of working with the rest of the monkey wrench gang early in the first book, but soon collaborates with them. George Washington Hayduke is a fictional character in Edward Abbey's novels The Monkey Wrench Gang and Hayduke Lives! Hayduke is portrayed as a rugged individualist in the books by Abbey, and has a predilection for working independently when protecting the environment. Environmentalist character in Edward Abbey's novels
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