Bad Sex with Otorhinolaryngological Caverns
As a longtime Tom Wolfe fan, I've been disheartened by the increasingly negative notices surrounding his latest novel, "I Am Charlotte Simmons," which by most accounts sounds like it might be the sanctimonious rants of an anachronistic old man -- and I love Wolfe.
Adding insult to injurious, the British-based Literary Review now has given Tom Wolfe the dubious distinction of winning the "bad sex" award for most cringe-worthy literary depiction of boot knockin'. Judges called Wolfe's writing "ghastly" and "boring." (of course, one suspects none of these judges could write anything remotely on par with "Bonfire of the Vanities" or "A Man in Full," but whatever).
Here's part of the offending passage ...
"Slither slither slither slither went the tongue. But the hand that was what she tried to concentrate on, the hand, since it has the entire terrain of her torso to explore and not just the otorhinolaryngological caverns - oh God, it was not just at the border where the flesh of the breast joins the pectoral sheath of the chest - no, the hand was cupping her entire right - Now!"
Man, is it getting hot in here or what?
posted by Chase McInerney @ 2:26 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
Wolfe must have had his "Gray's Anatomy" out on his desk while he was writing that scene. The "pectoral sheath" -- Erotic City!
But Chase, didn't you say the reviews for "A Man in Full" were also pretty bad? And didn't you think that was a phenomenal novel?
Haven't read the book, so I don't want to pre-judge, but could it be that the MSM just doesn't like Wolfe anymore, since he's been more blunt about his views in recent years?
Although I gotta say, if the entire thing reads like THAT passage, it's going to be more the source of unintentional guffaws than anything else.
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You might be right, Red Dirt, about his politics playing a part in some of the literary reception. I hope not - I mean, Christopher Buckley gets kudos from lots of critics, despite his political leanings - but you might be right. I think you are correct that "Man in Full" did get some pretty poor reviews, and that was a tremendous book.
I do think there is a contingency of literary criticism that just gets pissy about Wolfe's almost Dickensian style. I think Updike, Joyce Carol Oates, John Irving and a battery of others have emasculated the notion of rambling, ambitious storytelling.
Love reading your blogs everyday. I am always learning new words.
And don't forget that literary critics sometimes confuse their title with the common definition of criticism. I also notice that their observations are sometimes susceptible to literary-critic-peer-pressure.
I must say, however, that he won't get any porn writing jobs with that paragraph.
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