Letter From Boston
Alice Munro and her short stories
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Alice MunroThis year's Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded to Alice Munro, a Canadian who writes almost exclusively short stories. Referred to as "our Chekhov" by writer Cynthia Ozick, she has 13 books of short stories to her credit, touching upon the life and cultural milieu of her native rural southwestern Ontario. I rejoiced when I heard of the award from the news radio station I listen to when I am driving to work very early in the morning, and gave out a big shout out. My excitement came about for many reasons. I was thrilled about the choice that the Nobel Committee had made, even though I was sorry that some of my other favorites in the short list did not make it, for three reasons: she is a Canadian, a woman, and a short story writer, all of which are remarkable for the outlier she is in the Pantheon of Nobel Laureates in her category. I also felt elated because soon I heard Alice Munro will write again, and temporarily put on hold her plan to retire.
I don't remember exactly when I first came across Alice Munro and her short stories; maybe in the anthology my wife was assigned when she was in college twenty years ago, maybe later when I began reading New Yorker magazine to which she is a regular contributor, or when I first started exploring this genre of writing. But I definitely knew she was one of the finest practitioners of the art of story-telling, and why the Nobel Committee considered Munro "master of the contemporary short story". I was drawn to her artistry with words, her narrative style, and deep understanding of human relationships. Of the 14 books she has written, 13 are collections of short stories, many of which are based on life in rural Canada. She paints with sensitivity and finesse the plight of women, often bumping against the confines of their life, according to Lynn Neary of National Public Radio (NPR). "In a really short space of time, she can provide a fully realized story that provides remarkable insight into human beings, their shortcomings, their complexities, their loves, their lives."
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Anton ChekhovIn "The Bear Came Over the Mountain", she paints the touching story of a man who, in spite of his wayward ways, was going to extraordinary lengths to please his wife, who is losing all her memories as she is ravaged by fast-onset dementia. Her other short stories often defy the cookie-cutter approach to short stories, where there is a well-defined punch line or "anti-climax" as my literature professor in Dhaka College used to characterize it. In her recent short story "Axis", Munro takes us through the journey of two college friends and the different paths of life they have pursued. At first there appears to be no punch line, but after you sit down to reflect on the plot and connect the dots, the "moral of the story" emerges. And sometimes there are more than one interpretations of the finale in her stories.
While it is tempting to identify one or two books that represent Alice Munro's forty-five year career as an author, this would be an exercise in futility since some of her trademark empathy for the characters, portrayal of human responses to diverse situations , and the ability to take readers by the hand, are evident in all her narratives. But for the beginner, I would recommend Who Do You Think You Are? and Runaway.
In recent years Munro has spoken of the possibility of retirement. She turned 82 this year, and in July had indicated that she would likely give up writing: "Not that I didn't love writing, but I think you do get to a stage where you sort of think about your life in a different way. And perhaps, when you're my age, you don't wish to be alone as much as a writer has to be." A Canadian Broadcasting Company reporter asked her, in an early morning interview, if her Nobel win altered that decision. "No, I don't think so," Munro said. "I am getting rather old." Later in the day, however, in an interview with NobelPrize.org's Adam Smith, Munro indicated a possible shift: "This may change my mind," she said.
Dr. Abdullah Shibli lives and works in Boston
Alice MunroThis year's Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded to Alice Munro, a Canadian who writes almost exclusively short stories. Referred to as "our Chekhov" by writer Cynthia Ozick, she has 13 books of short stories to her credit, touching upon the life and cultural milieu of her native rural southwestern Ontario. I rejoiced when I heard of the award from the news radio station I listen to when I am driving to work very early in the morning, and gave out a big shout out. My excitement came about for many reasons. I was thrilled about the choice that the Nobel Committee had made, even though I was sorry that some of my other favorites in the short list did not make it, for three reasons: she is a Canadian, a woman, and a short story writer, all of which are remarkable for the outlier she is in the Pantheon of Nobel Laureates in her category. I also felt elated because soon I heard Alice Munro will write again, and temporarily put on hold her plan to retire.
I don't remember exactly when I first came across Alice Munro and her short stories; maybe in the anthology my wife was assigned when she was in college twenty years ago, maybe later when I began reading New Yorker magazine to which she is a regular contributor, or when I first started exploring this genre of writing. But I definitely knew she was one of the finest practitioners of the art of story-telling, and why the Nobel Committee considered Munro "master of the contemporary short story". I was drawn to her artistry with words, her narrative style, and deep understanding of human relationships. Of the 14 books she has written, 13 are collections of short stories, many of which are based on life in rural Canada. She paints with sensitivity and finesse the plight of women, often bumping against the confines of their life, according to Lynn Neary of National Public Radio (NPR). "In a really short space of time, she can provide a fully realized story that provides remarkable insight into human beings, their shortcomings, their complexities, their loves, their lives."
"> Anton ChekhovIn "The Bear Came Over the Mountain", she paints the touching story of a man who, in spite of his wayward ways, was going to extraordinary lengths to please his wife, who is losing all her memories as she is ravaged by fast-onset dementia. Her other short stories often defy the cookie-cutter approach to short stories, where there is a well-defined punch line or "anti-climax" as my literature professor in Dhaka College used to characterize it. In her recent short story "Axis", Munro takes us through the journey of two college friends and the different paths of life they have pursued. At first there appears to be no punch line, but after you sit down to reflect on the plot and connect the dots, the "moral of the story" emerges. And sometimes there are more than one interpretations of the finale in her stories.
While it is tempting to identify one or two books that represent Alice Munro's forty-five year career as an author, this would be an exercise in futility since some of her trademark empathy for the characters, portrayal of human responses to diverse situations , and the ability to take readers by the hand, are evident in all her narratives. But for the beginner, I would recommend Who Do You Think You Are? and Runaway.
In recent years Munro has spoken of the possibility of retirement. She turned 82 this year, and in July had indicated that she would likely give up writing: "Not that I didn't love writing, but I think you do get to a stage where you sort of think about your life in a different way. And perhaps, when you're my age, you don't wish to be alone as much as a writer has to be." A Canadian Broadcasting Company reporter asked her, in an early morning interview, if her Nobel win altered that decision. "No, I don't think so," Munro said. "I am getting rather old." Later in the day, however, in an interview with NobelPrize.org's Adam Smith, Munro indicated a possible shift: "This may change my mind," she said.
Dr. Abdullah Shibli lives and works in Boston
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