Author Spotlight
Dennis Cooper’s ‘Graduate Seminar’
One of the many great talents of Dennis Cooper is his knack for making the ‘profane’ or arcane seem not simply a specialized, ritual act, but a bevel in the everyday, of people. Among such commonly taboo subjects as rape, murder, S&M, you name it, Cooper’s work manages to funnel these acts not into the hands of the typically insane or ‘specialized’ bodies, but kids that lives in homes with parents, everyday kids, school kids, and people. I’ve several times been eerily moved by Cooper’s work in finding how close it felt to certain people I went to middle school with: the kid with the rat tail and cut off pants singing Cramps songs in the gym while everyone else tried to cooperate with the bowling unit, and he’s there kicking pins over, laughing. Several times that year he’d get his ass kicked, and others would be similarly embedded on my brain: the kid who brought in brass knuckles to fight behind the lunch room, the kids doing pink pills in the back of Ms. Storey’s English class and choking each other out to get off, etc. These elements are the everyday lining in those everydays, the bits that ride with me more than any of it, and so strangely, I’ve often found that read Cooper somehow taps into that mode, bringing it out not as a circus act, but as the thread in the simultaneously under-the-soil and always-right-there rhizome that it is.
This kind of everday accounting of the ritualization of the profane takes another interesting level to it in Cooper’s ‘Graduate Seminar,’ a short piece from his very recently released collection Ugly Man that was also featured on our regularly visited HP electronic journal Fifty-Two Stories. Here, Cooper frames the framing of the framing of a murder made ritual by presenting it in the form of a Q&A from a lecture by an artist to a group of art students.
The piece manages to deliver, in an economy of words, a whole aesthetic entourage of surfaces and strange holes: the artist documents the ritualized act of a truck driver murdering a young man, which he then goes to prison for and in the process becomes a famous artist, herein, post-sentencing, given terrain to show and explain his act to a host of student artists. Rather than aiming the piece, though, at the nature of the artwork (it is described only in passing, and to the artist’s great boredom) and the ritual of the act, ‘Graduate Seminar’ works off the method of potential energy rather than riding the ‘shock rock’ at its core. For such a potential disturbing act, the glassy poise of the artist in his description, the off-handed and even bored way with which he recounts his method to the student for whom it “changed my life,” the trajectory of the piece then becomes not about the ‘profane act’ itself (though that too is contained in the cold, disinterested manner of the artist) but about its dissemination into further flesh.
It is rather disconcerting, actually, how much information is indeed passed on here without much interest in explicating at all. The ground we cover in small strokes of dialogue is massive, each themselves capable, in lesser hands, of being exploited for its meat, pulled into the light, explained. Cooper, though, with the at once maximalist (in concept) and minimalist (in actual economy of text) capabilites for which he has become such a well known force, makes the nature of the ‘tell, don’t show’ work for him in a way that distances the tone of what is described to such an extent that in effect it becomes even more close.
The effect reminds me quite a bit of Brian Evenson’s ‘The Installation,’ (a chilling freak of a story from his The Wavering Knife) where again the grappling of a profane act is removed from emotional means by contextualizing it in a removed manner of telling: a man recounting for a panel who will judge him what exactly happened in the ritual murder and turning-into-art-object of his wife, who may or may not have been complicit. Both pieces use the ‘tell don’t show’ manner in this way to further extend their reach, and yet in ‘Graduate Seminar,’ the matter is even more implicitly diminutized, delivered in a tone meant, on its face, to seem that much more passe and everyday and accepted (if compartmentalized as art), and fledged with the kind of light that can truly enter a memory in the way that rides a body longer than simple shock tactics: like something we live with, and in, and around, even if we never lived through it really, not quite.
That Cooper can do so much, on so many levels, and contain so much breadth in what equates to hardly several hundred words, speaks not only to the greatness of abilities, but to the vital need and value for such kind of well-honed and to-the-throat-without-realizing-you-are-at-the-throat prose in a market where too often every inch of every line is declawed.
I’m never having kids, by the way.
Hail the DC.
** You can read ‘Graduate Seminar,’ as well as new weekly fiction from Cal Morgan’s Fifty-Two Stories, here and buy Ugly Man here.
Tags: Dennis Cooper, Fifty-two stories, ugly man
Dennis Cooper (born 1953) is an American novelist, poet, critic, editor and performance artist.
Dennis Cooper (born 1953) is an American novelist, poet, critic, editor and performance artist.
There’s a baseball blog I go to whose comments are frequently hijacked by guys doing “bits”. There’s the Warf guy, the redtube guy, the Aryan pride guy (he’s the worst of the guys)… regular commenters frequently have their personalities “hijacked” and mocked by anonymous commenters who share the same sense of humour as high school jocks (there is “JP”, “fake JP”, “real fake JP”, “fake fake JP”, etc). It’s a cesspool, and on most days I avoid it. Still better than this wikipedia thing, though. What’s the point? Feels like you’re making yourself into the human carpet, or the naked cowboy or something, except context makes me think you believe what you’re doing is “more clever” than what those guys are doing? Whatever.
There’s a baseball blog I go to whose comments are frequently hijacked by guys doing “bits”. There’s the Warf guy, the redtube guy, the Aryan pride guy (he’s the worst of the guys)… regular commenters frequently have their personalities “hijacked” and mocked by anonymous commenters who share the same sense of humour as high school jocks (there is “JP”, “fake JP”, “real fake JP”, “fake fake JP”, etc). It’s a cesspool, and on most days I avoid it. Still better than this wikipedia thing, though. What’s the point? Feels like you’re making yourself into the human carpet, or the naked cowboy or something, except context makes me think you believe what you’re doing is “more clever” than what those guys are doing? Whatever.
Andre, there’s no accounting for Ryan Manning. He’s like a weird and not entirely unpleasant system error that prayed so hard to become a real boy God decided to grant it to him, but then God got bored like halfway through the project and never finished the job.
Blake, this is awesome. I really dig this story of DC’s–unsurprisingly, since I dig everything he does, but still, I think this one is a star among stars. Some other favorite pieces in Ugly Man so far are “The Brainiacs” and “The Anal Retentive Line Editor” (this is intentionally not counting the two I published–the title story, and “Ash Gray Proclamation”–to which I’m obviously extra partial).
Andre, there’s no accounting for Ryan Manning. He’s like a weird and not entirely unpleasant system error that prayed so hard to become a real boy God decided to grant it to him, but then God got bored like halfway through the project and never finished the job.
Blake, this is awesome. I really dig this story of DC’s–unsurprisingly, since I dig everything he does, but still, I think this one is a star among stars. Some other favorite pieces in Ugly Man so far are “The Brainiacs” and “The Anal Retentive Line Editor” (this is intentionally not counting the two I published–the title story, and “Ash Gray Proclamation”–to which I’m obviously extra partial).
Accountancy or accounting is the art of communicating financial information about a business entity to users such as shareholders and managers.
Accountancy or accounting is the art of communicating financial information about a business entity to users such as shareholders and managers.
A boy is a young male human (usually child or adolescent), as contrasted to its female counterpart, girl, or an adult male, a man.
A boy is a young male human (usually child or adolescent), as contrasted to its female counterpart, girl, or an adult male, a man.
A job is a regular activity performed in exchange for payment, especially as one’s occupation.
haha, alright.
In contract law a mistake is an erroneous belief, at contracting, that certain facts are true.
A job is a regular activity performed in exchange for payment, especially as one’s occupation.
haha, alright.
In contract law a mistake is an erroneous belief, at contracting, that certain facts are true.
“Pronunciation” refers to the way a word or a language is usually spoken, or the manner in which someone utters a word.
“Pronunciation” refers to the way a word or a language is usually spoken, or the manner in which someone utters a word.
In linguistics and grammar, a pronoun is a pro-form that substitutes for a noun (or noun phrase) with or without a determiner, such as you and they in English.
In linguistics, grammar refers to the logical and structural rules that govern the composition of sentences, phrases, and words in any given natural language.
In linguistics and grammar, a pronoun is a pro-form that substitutes for a noun (or noun phrase) with or without a determiner, such as you and they in English.
In linguistics, grammar refers to the logical and structural rules that govern the composition of sentences, phrases, and words in any given natural language.
Pride is, depending upon context, either a high sense of the worth of one’s self or one’s own or a pleasure taken in the contemplation of these things.
Pride is, depending upon context, either a high sense of the worth of one’s self or one’s own or a pleasure taken in the contemplation of these things.
Amnesia (from Greek Ἀμνησία) is a memory condition in which memory is disturbed.
Amnesia (from Greek Ἀμνησία) is a memory condition in which memory is disturbed.
In law, defamation (also called calumny, libel (for written words), slander (for spoken words), and vilification) is the communication of a statement that makes a claim, expressly stated or implied to be factual, that may give an individual, business, product, group, government or nation a negative image.
In law, defamation (also called calumny, libel (for written words), slander (for spoken words), and vilification) is the communication of a statement that makes a claim, expressly stated or implied to be factual, that may give an individual, business, product, group, government or nation a negative image.
In rhetoric, where the role of the interpreter is taken into consideration as a non-negligible factor, negation bears a much wider range of functions and meanings than it does in logic, where the interpretation of signs for negation is constrained by axioms to a few standard options, typically just the classical definition and a few schemes of intuitionism.
In rhetoric, where the role of the interpreter is taken into consideration as a non-negligible factor, negation bears a much wider range of functions and meanings than it does in logic, where the interpretation of signs for negation is constrained by axioms to a few standard options, typically just the classical definition and a few schemes of intuitionism.
Empathy is the capability to share your feelings and understand another’s emotion and feelings.
I was impressed by 28 comments until I saw almost all were from douche Ryan Manning. Ryan, please hilariously/ironically tell us what douche means.
VIVA MEXICO!
It is NOT alright.
Empathy is the capability to share your feelings and understand another’s emotion and feelings.
I was impressed by 28 comments until I saw almost all were from douche Ryan Manning. Ryan, please hilariously/ironically tell us what douche means.
VIVA MEXICO!
It is NOT alright.
Andre, my conquistadorian friend, you sum up Ryan Manning’s lot in life quite well.
Andre, my conquistadorian friend, you sum up Ryan Manning’s lot in life quite well.
QUIETE, BOBO!
QUIETE, BOBO!
gotta figure out this ‘how to ban an IP’ thing soon
gotta figure out this ‘how to ban an IP’ thing soon
for Ryan or myself? I pray to Montezuma that it’s for the former. If not…you know about Montezuma’s revenge, eh?
for Ryan or myself? I pray to Montezuma that it’s for the former. If not…you know about Montezuma’s revenge, eh?
If it’s for me, bear in mind that I loved kicking over bowling balls as a young lad in Mexico City.
If it’s for me, bear in mind that I loved kicking over bowling balls as a young lad in Mexico City.
Maybe this is ryan manning’s place in society. Maybe this is “all that he can be”.
Maybe this is ryan manning’s place in society. Maybe this is “all that he can be”.
Back to Cooper, has anybody read the Ugly Man yet?
Back to Cooper, has anybody read the Ugly Man yet?
Whatever, Blake, I’m done with this site, as is my “brother” (this site is racist). Later haters.
Whatever, Blake, I’m done with this site, as is my “brother” (this site is racist). Later haters.
Please don’t go, CCC.
Please don’t go, CCC.
RT: Back to Cooper, has anybody read the Ugly Man yet?
RT: Back to Cooper, has anybody read the Ugly Man yet?
I have never read a Dennis Cooper book. Where should I start?
I have never read a Dennis Cooper book. Where should I start?
And that book cover makes me want to design more book covers.
And that book cover makes me want to design more book covers.
Adam- My Loose Thread is (provisionally) my favorite Dennis Cooper book. Try and Guide are both also amazing. They’re part of this five-book project called The George Miles Cycle, which you don’t by any means “need” to read sequentially, but if you wanted to do the whole arc in order, it would go: Closer, Frisk, Try, Guide, Period. I think the only one you don’t want to read first is Period, because it’s probably the least “accessible.” It makes more sense once you understand Dennis better. The so-called PG-13 book is God Jr., though honestly if that’s a major issue for you you’re better off just steering clear. The main thing about God Jr. is that it’s tiny– most of his books are slender, but that one is a real flash. Your best bet is to read 2 or 3 and get a sense of his whole cosmos or whatever, and actually if you do go that way with it, then you could do a lot worse than picking up Ugly Man, the new collection that Blake’s talking about here today. A lot of the pieces are short-shorts (that’s not a criticism) but the two texts that sort of “anchor” the book are “Jerk,” which was previously published as a stand-alone illustrated book, and “The Ash Gray Proclamation,” a novella which first appeared in the liner notes to a limited-edition CD and then later in the anthology I edited (The Apocalypse Reader). It is my personal opinion that “Ash Gray” is a big-i Important piece of writing, and its presence alone makes the book worth the price of admission. Hope this is helpful.
Adam- My Loose Thread is (provisionally) my favorite Dennis Cooper book. Try and Guide are both also amazing. They’re part of this five-book project called The George Miles Cycle, which you don’t by any means “need” to read sequentially, but if you wanted to do the whole arc in order, it would go: Closer, Frisk, Try, Guide, Period. I think the only one you don’t want to read first is Period, because it’s probably the least “accessible.” It makes more sense once you understand Dennis better. The so-called PG-13 book is God Jr., though honestly if that’s a major issue for you you’re better off just steering clear. The main thing about God Jr. is that it’s tiny– most of his books are slender, but that one is a real flash. Your best bet is to read 2 or 3 and get a sense of his whole cosmos or whatever, and actually if you do go that way with it, then you could do a lot worse than picking up Ugly Man, the new collection that Blake’s talking about here today. A lot of the pieces are short-shorts (that’s not a criticism) but the two texts that sort of “anchor” the book are “Jerk,” which was previously published as a stand-alone illustrated book, and “The Ash Gray Proclamation,” a novella which first appeared in the liner notes to a limited-edition CD and then later in the anthology I edited (The Apocalypse Reader). It is my personal opinion that “Ash Gray” is a big-i Important piece of writing, and its presence alone makes the book worth the price of admission. Hope this is helpful.
Yes. Read it in a couple of nights. I now cherish the signed copy, and the conversation with Dennis about it over coffee.
The book is beautiful. Yeah, the economy of language DC manages is pretty astonishing. He’s a master revealer.
Yes. Read it in a couple of nights. I now cherish the signed copy, and the conversation with Dennis about it over coffee.
The book is beautiful. Yeah, the economy of language DC manages is pretty astonishing. He’s a master revealer.
i just saw some promo material about Ugly Man. have not read any Cooper, either.
i just saw some promo material about Ugly Man. have not read any Cooper, either.
Adam: What Justin said. I started with God Jr, and that’s still my favorite thing of his, even if it is the shortest/least transgressive work, although it could be argued as his most brutally emotive and desperate. (?) Regardless, like Justin, I’m a fan of all of his stories and his poetry too.
Adam: What Justin said. I started with God Jr, and that’s still my favorite thing of his, even if it is the shortest/least transgressive work, although it could be argued as his most brutally emotive and desperate. (?) Regardless, like Justin, I’m a fan of all of his stories and his poetry too.
I’m about to embark on Cooper as well. Going to start with Closer.
Justin, can you elaborate a bit on why “Ash Gray” is important with a big-i? I’m really curious. Cooper’s name was been popping up more and more as I’ve been exploring the internet. What sort of contribution is he making to literature as a whole?
I’m about to embark on Cooper as well. Going to start with Closer.
Justin, can you elaborate a bit on why “Ash Gray” is important with a big-i? I’m really curious. Cooper’s name was been popping up more and more as I’ve been exploring the internet. What sort of contribution is he making to literature as a whole?
oh, and: your stephen king essay in the appetites issue of tin house was killer.
oh, and: your stephen king essay in the appetites issue of tin house was killer.
Yes. Gotta go with “The Brainiacs” as my favorite.
“I don’t mean lowercase us. I mean uppercase us.”
Yes. Gotta go with “The Brainiacs” as my favorite.
“I don’t mean lowercase us. I mean uppercase us.”
Thanks all. Very helpful. I’m going to start with My Loose Thread.
Thanks all. Very helpful. I’m going to start with My Loose Thread.
david, thanks man. That King piece was a lot of fun to write. re Coop and “Ash Gray”– there’s a whole essay to be written, I think, but suffice to say for right now that I think it’s just a marvel in terms of how much it packs into such a small place. It’s a vicious black comedy, and you’d be hard-pressed to find anything blacker *or* funnier. But the piece’s real success, in my view, is that it’s an essential piece of post-9/11 literature. The premise is that there’s this gay cannibal psychic Al Qaeda operative who is living in rural Arkansas… And there’s these kids who are trying to score heroin, and one of them has this uncle who he’s sort of dating… Basically, I think the story fully absorbs the dark dark atmosphere of the post-9/11 USA, just concentrates all the hatred and loathing and hurt, and then somehow turns it bitter and strange and hilarious, and in the end produces this massively ingenius FUCK YOU. It’s a massive rejection of a cultural moment, achieved not by countering or protesting that moment, but by giving full credence to the moment’s ugliest and craziest emotions and energies, then pushing them to/past their logical extreme.
david, thanks man. That King piece was a lot of fun to write. re Coop and “Ash Gray”– there’s a whole essay to be written, I think, but suffice to say for right now that I think it’s just a marvel in terms of how much it packs into such a small place. It’s a vicious black comedy, and you’d be hard-pressed to find anything blacker *or* funnier. But the piece’s real success, in my view, is that it’s an essential piece of post-9/11 literature. The premise is that there’s this gay cannibal psychic Al Qaeda operative who is living in rural Arkansas… And there’s these kids who are trying to score heroin, and one of them has this uncle who he’s sort of dating… Basically, I think the story fully absorbs the dark dark atmosphere of the post-9/11 USA, just concentrates all the hatred and loathing and hurt, and then somehow turns it bitter and strange and hilarious, and in the end produces this massively ingenius FUCK YOU. It’s a massive rejection of a cultural moment, achieved not by countering or protesting that moment, but by giving full credence to the moment’s ugliest and craziest emotions and energies, then pushing them to/past their logical extreme.
Yep. Lots of very funny stuff. I mean, there’s often a certain sense of humor in his work, but this actually had a number of laugh-out-loud moments — my personal favorite story is “The Fifteen Worst Russian Gay Porn Web Sites.” Also a really weird and beautiful semi-autobiographical one called “The Worst.”
Had the same thought about the Evenson story. Actually, not the same thought, since I hadn’t really worked it out that far, but, yeah, when I read The Wavering Knife I totally thought of the Cooper story, which Cooper had posted on his blog with photos a couple years back — the photos change things somewhat; kind of intriguing to see that version:
http://denniscooper-theweaklings.blogspot.com/2007_03_05_archive.html
In terms of the where-to-start question below, I recommend Closer or The Sluts. Both relatively accessible.
Yep. Lots of very funny stuff. I mean, there’s often a certain sense of humor in his work, but this actually had a number of laugh-out-loud moments — my personal favorite story is “The Fifteen Worst Russian Gay Porn Web Sites.” Also a really weird and beautiful semi-autobiographical one called “The Worst.”
Had the same thought about the Evenson story. Actually, not the same thought, since I hadn’t really worked it out that far, but, yeah, when I read The Wavering Knife I totally thought of the Cooper story, which Cooper had posted on his blog with photos a couple years back — the photos change things somewhat; kind of intriguing to see that version:
http://denniscooper-theweaklings.blogspot.com/2007_03_05_archive.html
In terms of the where-to-start question below, I recommend Closer or The Sluts. Both relatively accessible.
Cooper started out as a poet and it shows. His prose, though always filtered through a contemporary narrative voice, has the concision and intensity of a lyric poem. Structurally, too, while there’s always a story to follow, his fiction is as formally intricate as a sonnet. I think people tend to get distracted by the intrinsic interest of the highly charged material he works with (not to say that that isn’t important) and miss out on the beauty of his treatment.
Everyone seems to have their own favorite starting point. Personally I started with “Guide” and went on to “Try,” and those are the two, along with “The Sluts,” that I like to recommend. I think the voices in those three novels are the warmest and most accessible. But the other suggestions here are fine too, you really can’t go wrong. The pieces collected in “Ugly Man” display something of Cooper’s variety (including some fresh developments in an openly comic direction), so that might make a good taster’s platter for the curious.
Cooper started out as a poet and it shows. His prose, though always filtered through a contemporary narrative voice, has the concision and intensity of a lyric poem. Structurally, too, while there’s always a story to follow, his fiction is as formally intricate as a sonnet. I think people tend to get distracted by the intrinsic interest of the highly charged material he works with (not to say that that isn’t important) and miss out on the beauty of his treatment.
Everyone seems to have their own favorite starting point. Personally I started with “Guide” and went on to “Try,” and those are the two, along with “The Sluts,” that I like to recommend. I think the voices in those three novels are the warmest and most accessible. But the other suggestions here are fine too, you really can’t go wrong. The pieces collected in “Ugly Man” display something of Cooper’s variety (including some fresh developments in an openly comic direction), so that might make a good taster’s platter for the curious.
Blake, This is an inspiring write-up. Thanks. I’ve read UM, and I’m fond of all the stories, The Brainiacs and The Anal Retentive Line Editor in particular. I love the latter’s absence of true porn author. What’s the metaphor there? the editor is like the plaster mold surrounding a form that is in constant flux, and responding to the form that is being imposed on it (plus it’s hilarious). and for a laf I still love the slack charisma of the glam piece too).
Re diving into DC’s work: Just my two cents: I think that readers can start anywhere, but if you feel disturbed, enter knowing that he caresses as much as he kicks. Well, I’ll backtrack a bit–be disturbed!–it’s best to leave all your assumptions at the door as you step through. But I will say that I read Closer first, loved the voices from the get-go, and yet truly became a DC fan when I got to the final passages about George, who all horrifyingly, physically fucked up calls hesitantly out to his dad toward the end (if I remember this correctly). I had a similar (yet in some ways totally different) experience, and Closer had a response that I had never, ever, encountered, one that I found deeply troubling and complicatedly liberating. It’s not wimpy, by any means; take the last line, which, if f I remember right, is “It’s dark in here” (inspired on a number of levels). But that’s it–emotional and disturbing and true. Fuck anyone who says that the books are redundant (they’re all great) or purely exploitative. I don’t mean to make this too personal. You need not have a terrible experience to enjoy DC. I’m just saying that the terrible experiences related in his work are both fascinating and examined. And there’s a million other things to say about him. Read!
p.s. I do have kids.
Blake, This is an inspiring write-up. Thanks. I’ve read UM, and I’m fond of all the stories, The Brainiacs and The Anal Retentive Line Editor in particular. I love the latter’s absence of true porn author. What’s the metaphor there? the editor is like the plaster mold surrounding a form that is in constant flux, and responding to the form that is being imposed on it (plus it’s hilarious). and for a laf I still love the slack charisma of the glam piece too).
Re diving into DC’s work: Just my two cents: I think that readers can start anywhere, but if you feel disturbed, enter knowing that he caresses as much as he kicks. Well, I’ll backtrack a bit–be disturbed!–it’s best to leave all your assumptions at the door as you step through. But I will say that I read Closer first, loved the voices from the get-go, and yet truly became a DC fan when I got to the final passages about George, who all horrifyingly, physically fucked up calls hesitantly out to his dad toward the end (if I remember this correctly). I had a similar (yet in some ways totally different) experience, and Closer had a response that I had never, ever, encountered, one that I found deeply troubling and complicatedly liberating. It’s not wimpy, by any means; take the last line, which, if f I remember right, is “It’s dark in here” (inspired on a number of levels). But that’s it–emotional and disturbing and true. Fuck anyone who says that the books are redundant (they’re all great) or purely exploitative. I don’t mean to make this too personal. You need not have a terrible experience to enjoy DC. I’m just saying that the terrible experiences related in his work are both fascinating and examined. And there’s a million other things to say about him. Read!
p.s. I do have kids.
[…] an interesting companion piece to Brian Evenson’s story “The Installation,” as noted in this post from the great […]