Mr. Difficult

"Mr. Difficult", subtitled "William Gaddis and the problem of hard-to-read books", is a 2002 essay by Jonathan Franzen that appeared in the 9/30/2002 issue of The New Yorker.[1] It was reprinted in the paperback edition of How to Be Alone without the subtitle.

The essay describes the experience of being thought of as difficult by his readers and his own experience at reading difficult books. Franzen then provides an extended commentary on most of Gaddis's novels.

The essay has attracted strong reactions. Novelist Ben Marcus had a negative opinion.[2] Novelist Cynthia Ozick mentioned the Franzen/Marcus disagreement as part of a larger picture on the nature of reviewing.[3] Author and publisher Phil Jourdan also had a negative opinion.[4] A 2013 review of Gaddis's letters described the literary significance of Gaddis by summarizing Franzen's essay.[5]

  1. ^ Franzen, Jonathan (2002). "Mr. Difficult". The New Yorker.
  2. ^ Marcus, Ben (2005). "Why experimental fiction threatens to destroy publishing, Jonathan Franzen, and life as we know it: A correction". Harper's.
  3. ^ Ozick, Cynthia (2007). "Literary entrails: The boys in the alley, the disappearing readers, and the novel's ghostly twin". Harper's.
  4. ^ Jourdan, Phil (2012-03-14). "No Thanks, Mr Franzen, I Like My Novels Difficult". LitReactor.
  5. ^ Taylor, Justin (2013-02-26). "It Ain't Easy: William Gaddis's Life in Letters". The New York Observer. Retrieved 2013-10-14.