Blog 14

Since I was not in class on Tuesday, I cannot comment on Group 4 or 5's presentations. Instead, I will briefly comment on each of my group mates presentations and recommend specific stories or areas of research for them that I hope they will find helpful.

Kylie, I think "Let It Snow" would be a great story for you to look at, particularly page 15 with the discussion of who should have to lie in the street. There are two parts to this that speak to sibling relations and the power structure inherent among siblings. First, David thinks that if one of them dies "the rest of us would be more valuable." Children often feel their parents affection is divided among the children, which leads to sibling rivalry as a means of getting attention from their parents. Second, the way the responsibility of lying in the street is successively passed down from older to younger sibling until Tiffany, the youngest with "no concept of death," is forced to lie in the street shows the hierarchal structure the young Sedaris' created. Tiffany will "do just about anything in return for a little affection." She is the youngest and most needy for attention. I think it would be interesting to examine the ways birth order affects the roles children play and how this is represented in literature.

Evan, for a brief time I was also thinking about writing about the relationship between David and his father, particularly how David's sexuality complicates his relationship with his father. "Hejira" might be an interesting story for you to look at. Lou kicks David out for being gay but can't even bring himself to say that's the reason. All he can say is, "I think we both know why we're doing this," but, in fact, David doesn't know. Lou's inability to express his emotions complicates his communication with his son. You could look at Death of a Salesman and the relationship between Willy and Biff for another example of a father's emotional reticence preventing from communicating with his son.

Emma, both "The Ship Shape" and "Slumus Lordicus" deal with Sedaris' issues with economic status. He gets a feeling of superiority based on either owning a vacation home or owning the duplexes. This is a boost for him due to usual lack of confidence and insecurities due to his feeling he is an outsider because of his sexuality. The smug attitude with which he deals with the waitress on page 24 shows the feelings of superiority that being wealthier than someone else gives him. Also, you could look at the story "Chipped Beef" from Sedaris' earlier collection Naked. In this story a very insecure young David dreams of being rich and famous and believes when he is people will finally like him.

Jesse, have you thought about examining the way Sedaris' describes his entire family as being outsiders, and how he is an outsider even within his own family? In "Us and Them" and "Consider the Stars," Sedaris' tries to trace his social problems back to his family and how their status as Greek Orthodox Northerners in the South makes them all stand out. Also, you may want to check out a book called Out, Loud and Laughing, which is a collection of funny essays from LGBT writers.

Belated Blog 11

Blog 11, as promised.

(You'll noticed I changed my topic. I had a very hard time writing about male homosociality without making it sociological. My research led me down a different path that I think will be more literary.)

In my paper, I will examine the role of fiction in biographical writing. I will prove that the very process of memory and storytelling lead to inaccuracies in the factual data of the story, but these inaccuracies actually enhance not hinder the truth of the story when the writer uses them to explain the meaning of the story that cannot be translated across space and time.

I want to examine what I call the “you-had-to-be-there” moment.  Because the story is a recollection of the past, a mere copy of what once was, the story looses some of its meaning. The writer can skillfully uses the tools of inclusion, exclusion, exaggeration, archetypes, frames, verisimilitude and satire/irony to make the moment more real for the reader and transport them to that time. This allows the writer not to say, “You had to be there,” but rather, “You’re there.”

Thesis: Sedaris use of exaggeration, framing and archetypal characters allows a more accurate portrayal of the truth of his stories. 

Bascom, Tim. "'True' stories, and necessary lies: A memoir writer reflects on the inescapable distortions of memory in describing one's past." Writer 122.10 (2009): 38. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Web. 12 Nov. 2010

Bascom contends that both truth and lies are inherent to biographical writing. This is, in fact, part of the genre. Will be used to examine the “truthful” accounts of Sedaris’ life in a more literary way. If the reader can accept the non-fiction essays as literature a new realm of examination and criticism can be applied to Sedaris’ work. 

Chandler, Kurt. "Write for readers, not your subjects: To make it real, write initially as if the latter are 'blind or dead,' and worry later about offending people, this author advises." Writer 121.11 (2008): 32-33. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 12 Nov. 2010.

Chandler maintains that the memoirist must be ruthlessly honest about himself and others in his life. This relates to Sedaris’ often stinging accounts of his families’ foibles. Chandler sees truth as the basis for biographical writing. Will contrast with Bascom and Korda’s looser definition of truth in biography.

Heard, A. "THIS AMERICAN LIE: How could so many funny things have happened to David Sedaris? Our intrepid reporter sifts fact from fiction." NEW REPUBLIC 236.4809 (2007): 35-40. British Library Document Supply Centre Inside Serials & Conference Proceedings. EBSCO. Web. 10 Nov. 2010.

This article is an account of inaccuracies, exaggerations or factual errors in Sedaris’ supposedly non-fiction essays. Also, it presents the opinions of Sedaris’ father and sister about the way they are represented in his stories. I will use this article to examine the nature of exaggeration in biographical writing and how it is deemed more acceptable when the stories are funny, as is the case with Sedaris.

Korda, Michael. "imagining nonfiction." Forbes 166.9 (2000): 107-121. Business Source Premier. EBSCO. Web. 12 Nov. 2010.

Korda explains the connection between the “Non-Fiction” label and the way a reader responds to the work of art because of that label. It is his opinion that biographical works, despite the “Non-Fiction” label, should not be taken as the truth. I will expand on Korda’s argument to state that even if all the elements in a autobiographical work are indeed true, the exclusion of other events from the life of the writer makes the work an inherently untrue version of the writer’s life.

Reginato, James. "Butt Out." W Magazine 37.6 (2008): 96. Biography Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 10 Nov. 2010.

This article is somewhat of a rebuttal to Heard’s. Sedaris is allowed to state his own opinion on the matter of factual errors in his work. He says, “I think a memoir is pretty much the last place an intelligent person would look for the truth.”  Sedaris’ opinion is more in line with Bascom’s than Heard’s. I will use this article to explain Sedaris method of writing and his use of exaggeration for comedic effect.

Sedaris, David. Barrel Fever: Stories and Essays. Boston: Little Brown, 1994. Print.

This is Sedaris’ first book. It contains 12 fiction stories and 4 non-fiction essays and will be used to compare and contrast Sedaris’ storytelling techniques in the fiction and non-fiction genres. Also, I will highlight the overlap of characters between his short stories and later essays and examine the effect of reality on the reader’s perception of humor and tragedy.

Sedaris, David. Me Talk Pretty One Day. Boston: Little, Brown, & Co, 2000. Print.

This Sedaris’ fourth book, released prior to Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. It is a collection of essays that focuses on Sedaris’ childhood and adjusting to a new culture when he moves to France. I will discuss the essays about his childhood because of how they overlap with the stories about Sedaris’ family in Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim. I will also examine the essay “Giant Dreams, Midget Abilities” and its overlap in characters and content to the earlier fiction story “My Manuscript” from Barrel Fever.

Blogs 11 + 13

Blog 11:

Ok, so I haven't checked my blog since before Thanksgiving. I signed on today, and it turns out Blog 11 was never published. I don't know why. I'd like to blame it on some computer malfunction, but that may not be the case. Fortunately, I write all my posts in Word (because I don't always trust these blogging websites). When I get home tomorrow and have access to the computer I saved it on, I will upload Blog 11.

Blog 13:
I was intrigued by Joanne's presentation on formula writing and its connection to what sells in the marketplace. I think there is a popular misconception that bestselling author is not as talented as the "literary" writer. I did some research on James Patterson and found this very interesting interview on Charlie Rose.

http://www.charlierose.com/view/interview/5105

It seems that Patterson does just work on crafting his plot lines as a writer maybe more in the mold of Jonathan Franzen or Dom DeLillo does in crafting their dialogue, descriptions or literary style. Plot based writing, even when working within a formula, requires just as much creativity and insight as prose writing that has perhaps more of an poetic quality. Patterson himself says that his goal with "Cat & Mouse" was to write a page-turning thriller. Though I haven't read "The Post Card Killers" based on what I heard in Group 2's discussion, it seems he had the same goal with this book. It would be very interesting to read a book from an popular author like Dean Koontz, John Grisham or Patterson in a college level English class. I think professors fear the conversation would dry up and there would be nothing to discuss. I don't think this would be the case. Books of this nature perhaps have to be examined in a slightly different light, but the same skills of literary analysis can still be applied to popular works of fiction.

If you do not have time to watch the whole interview with Patterson, jump ahead to about the 12:30 mark. This is in reference to Joanne's discussion of formula writing. Patterson says one of the things he likes most about his books are unique. He says, "For better or for worse James Patterson's books...are not like somebody elses' books." Perhaps he does write within a formula, but that formula is his own. He also discusses the work involved in developing his style. This time and effort should be appreciated and respected in the same we admire the styles of more "literary" writers like Franzen and DeLillo.