Jennifer Egan’s “Safari”
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12 January 2009
I found Jennifer Egan‘s story “Safari,” from last week’s New Yorker, so very good. Both skillful and affecting. Those are the two punches we’re always going for, yes? I’d add a third: bold (i.e. risky), in both form and content.
Without over-analyzing too much… something about the story’s cerebral voice, coupled with child characters/perspectives, really works. ”Safari” is also I think a triumph of old-fashioned narrative omniscience, layered with contemporary characters and experience.
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whoa- great story. The crystal ball element was jarring
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So what was the point of the last line? The two old ladies were in fact watching everyone instead of birds? They were lesbians and Lou knew it, and that’s why he was so indulgent? Mysterious.
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Something about being watched the whole time… the human drama as a kind of spectacle, and also as a kind of animal sport. Perhaps.