The work of Jane Bowles. An influence on Joy Williams. Characters behaving strangely. Having affairs on a whim. Purchasing a snake and later releasing it beneath the wheels of buses. Characters engaging in risky behavior. Drinking too much and attracting too much attention, falling asleep in a stranger’s bed and later not remembering how she got there.
The short stories of Flannery O’Connor. What poorly behaved characters these are! A Stroke of Good Fortune:
..."Ponce de Leon was looking for the fountain of youth," Mr. Jerger said, closing his eyes.
"Oh," Ruby muttered.
"A certain spring," Mr. Jerger went on, "whose water gave perpetual youth to those who drank it. In other words," he said, "he was trying to be young always."
"Did he find it?" Ruby asked.
Mr. Jerger paused with his eyes still closed. After a minute he said, "Do you think he found it? Do you think he found it? Do you think nobody else would have got to it if he had found it? Do you think there would be one person living on this earth who hadn’t drunk it?"
"I hadn’t thought," Ruby said.
"Nobody thinks anymore," Mr. Jerger complained.
"I got to be going."
"Yes, it’s been found," Mr. Jerger said.
"Where at?" Ruby asked.
"I have drunk of it."
"Where’d you have to go to?" she asked. She leaned a little closer and got a whiff of him that was like putting her nose under a buzzard’s wing.
"Into my heart," he said, placing his hand over it.
"Oh." Ruby moved back....
I'm no fan of unusual dialogue tags, but I just love it when a character's speech is tagged with 'he screamed.'
2009/02/04
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
A Slowly Growing List of Things to Look Forward To When You Have a Child
- Every day is either Christmas or Halloween or Birthday or Easter
- Leave those cats alone! They're going to scratch you and it will hurt
- You cannot lie under circumstances, but nor can you tell the literal truth
- Geez that kid is sharp
- Can I have cake? Can I have cake? Can I have cake? Huh? Daddy? Can I have cake?
- For the last time, stop asking me!
- Noticing the growth: taller and a bit heavier to carry
- Children's television shows
- Food. Wasted food
- Remembering that you once acted this way yourself
- Watching where the both of you are going
- The joy of hearing the word "fuck" being used experimentally, and justifying this experimentation by saying "Well they learn it eventually"
- TANTRUMS
- Sitting down together on the living room floor, a mess of blocks & cars & plush Care Bears strewn around you, discussing the complexities of each car's identity, its name, and why it is so humorous
- Having to take responsibility for someone else for a change
- More frustration than you're prepared for
- Wicked cackling
- Drawings of potato guys
- Learning about the world all over again
- Circular Logic
- Unexpected hugs and words put beautifully together out of context
- Waking up after 4 hours of sleep, and unexpectedly having to confront shit, in more than one place, including the carpet, a big toe, a butt, a bed, a toilet seat, and underpants
3 comments:
I'm reading Joy Williams right now and all I keep thinking is "Flannery O'Connor! Flannery O'Connor!" like a chant.
And my word verification was aaric. You know the person who names his/her kid Jordyn and Kristeufer, would live a kid named Aaric.
Aaric. And yet they would somehow spell it using H, X, Y, and either Z or M.
My own word verification is "tapha". This is a Chinese man telling you, "Tough" when you don't care for his attitude.
Post a Comment