Metcalf on Atwood
New literary press Biblioasis has posted an excerpt on its blog from editor John Metcalf’s upcoming memoir, a kind of mauvaises-lettres work entitled Shut Up He Explained. (The title is a lift from Ring Lardner, and, in the case of this book, probably an excellent example of truth-in-advertising.)
In the excerpt, Metcalf gives his thoughts on the oeuvre of one Margaret Atwood – no points for guessing he’s unimpressed. He is especially incensed at Atwood’s apparent belief in a dichotomy of “craft” and “message” in literary fiction, with greater importance residing in the latter, which is like waving a red flag in front of someone like Metcalf, who tends to almost fetishize craft in his voluminous critical writings.
Plus, you know, Atwood’s a dame:
All too often [Atwood’s] messages seem to me to urge a raucous and almost hysterical feminism. Bill Hoffer used to grump that Atwood’s work was most appreciated “by girls of the most unpromising kind”. Doubtless less perceptive criticism than irritated misogyny. Yet the work does have designs on us. She does indeed want to send us messages. And like telemarketing, they’re messages I’m not interested in listening to. It comes down to a question of artistry. I would stand, rather, with William Faulkner who is supposed to have said to a lady who asked him what message he had wished his book to send that had he wanted to send messages he would have used Western Union.
Erm…isn’t the “Western Union” mot usually attributed to Sam Goldwyn? But then he couldn’t have possibly said everything attributed to him — perhaps he lifted it from W.F. during the latter’s unhappy Hollywood sojourn. Maybe the main point in the context is that Faulkner supposedly said it to “a lady.” Because surely no true gent would ever pronounce the word “message”!