Joyce Carol Oates

[Liam]

Shockingly, we don't have a thread on this very famous and VERY prolific (hehe) American writer. I must say, I am not a huge fan of JCO myself, but I've always enjoyed listening to her talks (she is far more intelligent than she lets on). This video distills her views on the art of the short story and I agree with every single one of her points. The Margaret Atwood class would be another one I'd be interested in "taking." They are both a pleasure to listen to (I haven't yet checked out any other writers who are doing this Master Class project yet).

 

[Bartleby]

I have mixed feelings about her. I find Her writing often very beautiful, with long, flowing winding sentences. She has a great talent for rhythm. But she tends to be quite silly in the stuff she writes. I believe were she more critical of her writing she’d be It.
Nevertheless I find myself often pulled towards her works, and see myself wondering about reading her entire output. It’s strange, this influence she exerts over me.

 

[Liam]

She just seems like someone it would be a lot more fun to TALK to, and discuss literature with, than actually read, ?

 

[Liam]

I "gave up" on her after I read Rape: A Love Story, which I found thoroughly ridiculous.

 

[Verkhovensky]

I "gave up" on her after I read Rape: A Love Story, which I found thoroughly ridiculous.

Interesting. For some reason this is her only book translated in Croatia, so I was considering to buy it. Is it really that bad?

 

[Liam]

It's not "bad", per se, I just found it formulaic. I finished it thinking, So what? There was SO much she could have done with the theme of post-rape trauma, etc, but she chose the easy way out. I can spoil the ending for you, if you want, but I found it SO cliche. Although I guess I could see its "point," too, a little bit. In the end, the book would have worked much, much better as a short story.

 

[Stiffelio]

I agree with Liam: JCO is much brighter than she appears to be from what she writes. She's very entertaining in interviews. I must have read 3 or 4 of her novels ages ago; can't even remember which (one was about the Chappaquiddick tragedy). I recall they were ok books, with a good yarn but rather repetitive, as if she had set forth to prove a certain hypothesis and then built the story around it. I've always questioned myself: when does she find the time to write so much, and hold interviews and teach?!

 

[Verkhovensky]

It's not "bad", per se, I just found it formulaic. I finished it thinking, So what? There was SO much she could have done with the theme of post-rape trauma, etc, but she chose the easy way out. I can spoil the ending for you, if you want, but I found it SO cliche. Although I guess I could see its "point," too, a little bit. In the end, the book would have worked much, much better as a short story.

I just read it. Yeah, pretty formulaic. It had potential, but felt too rushed out. Hmm, like for some reason she was writing five other books that same year so she had no time to spend on this one? Nice idea of using 2nd person narrative. Well, at least it is easy to read.

 

[jam]

I'm glad there's finally a thread dedicated to Oates. I wish there were one for Tessa Hadley, too. Both of them have read short stories for The New Yorker's fiction podcast, and I love their inflection(s). They also discuss the stories with Deborah Treismann, and those are some of the deepest, most sparkling conversational lit crit I've ever heard. Hadley's reading of Updike's "New York Girl" is simply marvelous.

 

[tiganeasca]

Yes, it's unkind, but anyone who has ever been to a bookstore carrying English-language fiction and gotten as far as "O" will agree!

 

[Liam]

Not unkind, because I don't think it is meant maliciously, just in good fun, LOL.

But yes, JCO is an industry at this point, I have a feeling she'll outstrip Barbara Cartland soon in terms of "literary" output.

 

[Liam]

^OK, maybe not.

Oates has written 56 novels as opposed to Cartland's 723! ?

 

[Morbid Swither]

For me, Oates is just super inconsistent, which isn’t intrinsically bad as I believe there is bound to be a work or few among her many for everyone. Overall, she’s not a writer that interests me much, but I am impressed by her.
To an extent, I defend her and her artistry because I have had some really mind-blowing moments with her. The frequently anthologized “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”, surely must be one of the prime examples of American short story writing. Otherwise, I have really enjoyed Childwold, Because It Is Bitter And Because It Is My Heart, them, and the parts of Bellefleur I’ve read.

 

[Liam]

^Have you seen Smooth Talk (1985) with the absolutely breathtaking Laura Dern in the main role? It's based on the JCO short story you mentioned, very good indie film.

 

[Morbid Swither]

^Have you seen Smooth Talk (1985) with the absolutely breathtaking Laura Dern in the main role? It's based on the JCO short story you mentioned, very good indie film.

Yes, I have. Laura Dern (!!!). Regretfully, I’ve also seen the film of her novel: Foxfire/Confessions of a Girl Gang.

 

[Martino]

We are now waiting for Blonde (2022)

 

[Liam]

I love Ana de Armas, but she looks NOTHING like Monroe, I wonder how they'll "tweak" her looks to look the part. The novel was already adapted for the screen in 2001 (TV movie, I think) with Poppy Montgomery in the lead, and she was REALLY good. I might give this a look when it comes out--

 

[Martino]

More than the physical appearance and wonder about the accent...I saw Ana de Armas performing. But...can she really pass for an American girl? I cannot tell, my ear is no that sensitive.

 

[Liam]

^Wiki says she's been working with a dialect coach for nearly a YEAR! so who knows, actors are such strange chameleons!

 

[Martino]

True! About Joyce Carol Oates: the first book I read by her was Black Water many years ago. At that time, I did not know English (I am from Italy) so it was a translation. The cover of the book showed an image of Ophelia in the water. I was very impressed by that book. Even more impressed when I discovered the quantity of books Oates had already written in the '90. Since then, I read several short stories by her. She seems to me the quintessential literature enthusiast. I am constantly curious about what she is going to do next. I seldom read her newest works but I am so much intrigued by her imagination. A lovely and inspiring personality.