Shorter Views: Queer Thoughts & the Politics of the Paraliterary [Paperback]

Samuel R. Delany (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 4, 2000

In Shorter Views, Hugo and Nebula award-winning author Samuel R. Delany brings his remarkable intellectual powers to bear on a wide range of topics. Whether he is exploring the deeply felt issues of identity, race, and sexuality, untangling the intricacies of literary theory, or the writing process itself, Delany is one of the most lucid and insightful writers of our time. These essays cluster around topics related to queer theory on the one hand, and on the other, questions concerning the paraliterary genres: science fiction, pornography, comics, and more. Readers new to Delany's work will find this collection of shorter pieces an especially good introduction, while those already familiar with his writing will appreciate having these essays between two covers for the first time.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Living up to essayist and science fiction author Delany's reputation for pushing literary and cultural boundaries, these 25 essays, interviews and reviews, all of which appeared between 1987 and 1998 in a variety of literary magazines and anthologies, encompass both traditional literary criticism and autobiography. From his explication of Jacques Derrida's literary theories as applied to U.S. science fiction to his analysis of the African-American s&m scene and its effect on his writing, Delany's remarkable erudition is as evident as his ability to generate controversy. In a provocative essay, "Pornography and Censorship," he discusses how critical evaluations of pornography and other sexual writings would be more valid if the critics discussed their own arousal. In "The Making of Hogg," Delany discusses the writing and the critical reception of his novel, which was considered so sexually violent that it took 22 years for it to be published. In the middle of an interview about the literary canon, he includes a 10-page riff, replete with new scholarship, on how the suppression of information about Stephen Crane's homosexuality has helped to secure Crane's place in American literature. Delany's third book this year (after Times Square Red, Times Square Blue and Bread & Wine), this important collection demonstrates his passion and intelligence, and his dedication to pursuing difficult questions about writing, theory, teaching and sexuality. (Jan.)

Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Delany's (Times Square Red) sf novels have won Hugo and Nebula awards; now, he has compiled for publication 25 of his nonfiction essays on the subjects of queerness, writing, and "paraliterature." In a piece called "Neither the First Word Nor the Last on Deconstruction, Poststructuralism, and Semiotics for SF Readers," Delany draws on both his facility with modern critical theory and his commitment to the "paraliterary" (sf, pornography, mysteries, comic books, and other creative forms). In "The Para*Doxa Interview," he ruminates brilliantly on the nature of literary canonization through a riveting investigation of how Thomas Beer's fraudulent 1923 biography of Stephen Crane lifted the author of The Red Badge of Courage to exalted heights. The last section introduces readers to a batch of his contemporaries, from sf writer Michael Perkins to A.S. Byatt. Delany's erudition and use of contemporary critical terminology can be daunting, his writing style tangled and difficult. But this book will strongly appeal to a select group of brave readers who have the patience to follow a daringly original mind at work. For academic libraries.
-Charles Crawford Nash, Cottey Coll., Nevada, MO
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 476 pages
• Publisher: Wesleyan; 1st edition (August 4, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0819563692
• ISBN-13: 978-0819563699
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #580,253 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Structure and Politics, December 28, 2001

By 

Patrick Shepherd "hyperpat" (San Jose, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Shorter Views: Queer Thoughts & the Politics of the Paraliterary (Paperback)

Over the life of his career, Delany has astounded, shocked, awed, and confounded a large and very varied audience. From his early fantasies and science fiction works, to his pornographic novels Equinox and Hogg, to his critical papers that have helped place science fiction on the radar screen of academia, to his extraordinarily structured Dhalgren, each piece of his writing displays his broad erudition, his impeccable sense of language, and a finely honed mind that is not afraid to challenge the accepted and the norm. This collection of essays, reviews, and interviews mirrors this broad range. Like most collections, the quality and style varies considerably, and the average reader may find only a few of these pieces interesting and informative, depending on the reader's own interests.

For myself, I found the second section of the book, "The Politics of the Paraliterary" to be the most interesting, with an incisive look at literary criticism as applied to science fiction, and excellent overview of the writings of Zelazny, Varley, and Gibson and what distinguishes their work as 'quality', and some revealing insights about his own works: Hogg, Trouble on Triton, Mad Man, and the Neveryon series. At places the language used is very abstract, and it helps if the reader is least somewhat familiar with the history and terms of formal literary criticism. At other places, especially in the 'Appendix' to this work, Delany, by providing some very concrete examples and clear explanations, gives the reader a great look at just what it is that 'great' writing is and how it is done.

The other two major sections of this work, "Some Queer Thoughts" and "Some Writing/Some Writers" did not interest me as much, at least partially due to the feeling that, in several of the essays within these sections, Delany was writing with an axe to grind (or a compliment to pay to a fellow writer).

Those who are interested in understanding both Delany and the world of literary criticism should read this work. Everyone who does read it will come away with a larger understanding of not just writing but politics, life, love, and the world around them.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blew the top of my head off. Repeatedly, July 16, 2006

By 

Sebbo "cardinal_sebbo" (Somerville, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shorter Views: Queer Thoughts & the Politics of the Paraliterary (Paperback)

Over and over, Shorter Views violently expanded the way I think about sex, about language, about literature, about science fiction, and even about thinking. Reading it was bracing, challenging, frustrating, and thrilling. Parts of it are thick with critical jargon, parts of it are shockingly obscene, and a few bits manage to be both. The powerful, lucid intelligence that shines through makes all the difficulties worthwhile.

3 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars long and boring book about nothing, September 12, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Shorter Views: Queer Thoughts & the Politics of the Paraliterary (Paperback)

Delany is a brilliant man and his work speaks to a number of audiences. Here's a black gay man who has a large science fiction following. I have read his autobiography and it is a really challenging book on race and sexuality in the 1950s and 1960s. Academics love Delany too. But this book was a sleeper. It's hundreds of pages of nothing. It drones and doesn't say much. Only his most hardcore fans could enjoy this rambling book. I don't even know where my copy is and don't care either.