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Reader Feedback on "Afterschool Shockfest"
sure, she's a bit artificially tough, but this is exactly what one would expect from a girl her age. i thought all things considered she was impressively well spoken in a second language, and had a few sagacious observations. one that i liked :
Maybe they're just jealous.
I could see that. I don't know, it seems so many people just don't have the tools to relate to young people, I don't know why, and that seems very scary to them. Jealousy, yes, but also incompetence.
--sam
10/04 |
Where to start?
"I consider the most scandalous thing the fact that the book is [considered] scandalous... There weren't many emotions involved in the moment [I was writing]. ...I probably would have done it had I not been exposed to any erotic literature. ...I never relied on any big swell of courage, it was a pretty normal process for me, and I didn't really anticipate the reaction, one way or the other. It was just a part of my daily life, it was pretty easy. Courage doesn't have that much to do with writing."
Judging solely by the interview and the excerpt, what a pile of shite. Nothing makes my skin crawl more than an author who purports to be free of affect and emotion, either about the work or the subject matter. And for erotica in particular, that's unforgivable. I can believe the writing came easily enough - the work I read was like a "Story of O" ripoff, nothing that made me want to read on - but whether or not this "really" happened, I find it completely unbelievable. Almost as much as this sentiment:
"I prefer to think in global terms, and in that sense, I do see myself as part of a general tendency... That's the context I see myself in, more than a national context. ...more than ever, we're totally alienated from our surroundings, or rather, there's this world we don't want to belong to, and so people are examining themselves. It's a crisis we're all living right now."
Ah, youth.
--dh
10/04 |
A work of poorly-worded sexual metaphors and alliteration is suddenly the "voice of a generation"? Just because the girl is quite young does not suddenly give her work merit nor any sort of right to a cultural impact. The very critics of this work who ignore the poor writing and the very palpable sense of ego dripping from every page and instead focus on the lascivious content are only helping this book sell. I suppose it is inevitable that this book would go somewhere, just given the author and subject material, but, I'm suprised Nerve would endorse the rise of such a sullied star.
--BD
10/04 |
gb, you wrote:
"by a beautiful, elite and articulate young woman about the dark world in which we live..."
"beatiful", ? you saw it by foto? what does it mean?
"elite", ? because she's from a rich italian family, and she will never work? you are right.
"articulate" ? in what? copying others' books? you are again right.
Of course I'm envious, but I'm more sad of how similar shitty/merdosa literature has success...
waiting for better Nerve moments... Thanks and regards
--db
10/04 |
to GB from gb - every generation needs its voice. Literature and freedom of expression is about not silencing voices. When the intellectual elite or the critics bully fresh voices from contributing to their world, we engage in effete snobbery. It is doubtful that many of today's youth would cling to Jong or Miller to learn lessons about their sexuality. I myself remember when Jong titillated my classmates in 8th grade with Fear of Flying. Face it, there is a changing of the sexual guard and the young woman who is the subject of this interview is the new guard. Based on the popular response to this publication, perhaps we will witness a coming of age in young women which addresses the horror of female sexual naivete and subsequent victimization.
--gb
10/04 |
Well, actually, as a woman the only thing this book increased is my knowledge of Melissa P's sexual habits, articulated in rather cheesy metaphors. Which I may or I may not be interested in. (Am not, actually.) Literature does not equal confessional. Erica Jong told the tale of her sexual escapades with great humour and a lot more frankness. I'll stick with her.
--GB
10/04 |
To the previous posters: are you shocked as well? Can't deal with the reality of this young author? Is that why you resort to criticizing the mechanics of her writing? This is hardly about aesthetics. A book written by a beautiful, elite and articulate young woman about the dark world in which we live, can only fuel the imagination and increase the insight of its readers.
--gb
10/04 |
... well this is an humbling moment...
I tought that you (nerve) had more experience in eroticism (i.e. literature and writers), but it seems that also you can get amazed by a very poor writer... a writer so fake, banal and 'ancient'. Melissa is a real fraud... oh yes, she is sooo young... but c'mon one like henry miller wrote the same things 50 (!!) years ago...
and the line from the interview, about global/local writers is incredible for arrogance and ignorance...
well, maybe it's just me...
thank you for everything and compliments
borgia
--db
10/04 |
Maybe you'll be interested in knowing that in Italy the book was, by and large, reviled by both critics and educated readers, all the while selling by the truckload because of the age of its author (who was fifteen at the time). For all its shock value, it is actually rather poorly written, as could be expected of a fifteen-year-old. I don't know about the translation, maybe it translates better than it reads in the original.
--GB
10/04 |
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