Too ignorant to compete
The top member of the Nobel Prize jury said that American writers are too ignorant to compete with the rest of the world.
I think he’s exactly right.
Sure, there are notable exceptions, and some of my most favoritest authors are American. However, within the last 40 years, truly notable works have vanished. There are a number of reasons why, and some of my difficulties with writing reflect a larger problem with American authors.
FIrst of all, we’re too damned comfortable. I don’t know how better to put that, but I think it’s a serious reason. Look at the best works, from Grendel to the Bible to Atlas Shrugged. All of those authors were dealing with world-changing events; whether personally or literally. Something was happening, and those authors struggled to convey their feelings. It’s certainly true that modern America is facing an incredible shift in national consciousness, but our lives remain incredibly comfortable.
It’s akin to a chubby kid with a few Pringles at the bottom of the can. Content until we are unable to reach in and take the prize, we will eventually become hungry and desperate. After a certain point, I think America will realize a massive burst in creativity, because at the moment our energies are certainly going to scraping greasy crumbs. I don’t really know when that time might be, but I do know one thing – the idea of our economy failing and 350 million people facing poverty for the first time in 80 years excites me (I know this is strange, but follow me) because I think there is a lot of good in this country, but our couches are too comfy to try and give a damn.
The Nobel Prize douchebag put another thing into perspective for me – we’re too sensitive to our own cultural swings. Great writing conveys great truths, and anyone, regardless of time or place, understands them. That’s what makes For Whom the Bell Tolls so timeless. *if you read that and disagree with my choice, I’m sorry for wasting your time. Feel free to comment and call me a turd, cause it ain’t going to get better here*
I read a lauded author like Junot Diaz and wonder how in Odin’s Beard he has become so popular. Sure he’s young and I’m jealous of his success, but his writing, while creative and structually beautiful, falls short of literature. He’s too prone to America’s own success – while his writing eclipses most, he’s too mired in the right now to comprehend the universal. For you booky types – yes, Diaz is ethnically Dominican, but he’s been in America since forever, so there.
All of this way the scenic route to me saying – I can’t write because I’m middle-class, white, boring and American! What do I have to teach anyone? What truths do I understand?
Feel free to comment and give me one thing American authors can teach the world.