“The bildungsroman as living historical document.”
“FOR decades, books like The Bell Jar, The Outsiders, and The Color Purple have helped readers make sense of the unsteady lurch into adulthood from their comfortable place in the canon.”
“But what does it mean to come of age in modern dystopia, alongside the contemporary parallel forces of the Internet and globalization?”
“Three books released in 2016, Joni Murphy’s Double Teenage, Natasha Stagg’s Surveys and Tommy Pico’s IRL, are contemporary takes on the traditional bildungsroman.”
“The coming-of-age novel of this generation is an experimentation of form and a blending of modern themes of growing access to information and audience with the perennial questions of personal development and self-discovery.”
“Murphy’s contextualization of Celine and Julie’s vulnerability against the backdrop of Tiqqun’s Theory of a Young-Girl reinforces the power and precariousness of the young hetero woman post sexual revolution.”
“relating to the world as if it is a soft, sexist thing.” The vapid engagement with new media from a vaguely feminist standpoint feels very familiar and is part of what disenchants Colleen with this sort of celebrity. The era of the celebrity as spokesperson for social issues is upon us, and it’s necessary to ask ourselves if we’re listening for the right reasons.”
“The tension felt in all three books, between frustration over the difficulties of adulthood and a desire to find joy in life, is ever-present.”
“The bildungsroman doesn’t seem to be going anywhere, with contemporary writers still eager to probe that delicate space between childhood and adulthood.”
“The process of coming of age hasn’t changed all that much as we continue to grapple with questions of love, knowledge, and identity.”
“Indeed, the scope has widened, with protagonists facing new challenges with communication and sharing information, but also an increasing cast of storytellers are finding an audience for their words.”
“In a recent New York Times essay, Tony Tulathimutte argues against an idea that any one novel can be considered “a voice of a generation.” As identities are complex, non-monolithic things, there can be no one generational voice as “the desire to universalize… feeling, and declare that any book speaks for everyone, ends up shortchanging both the novel and the generation.” Contemporary authors are experimenting with theme, form, and language to place the universality of the aging process against the ever-pressing need for explorations into the individualities of our experiences, and the bildungsroman is stronger for it.”
“These stories are a testament to our times, and as the realms of fiction and nonfiction blur–as genre itself collapses–we can see these as not just stories, but historical documents mapping out contemporary existence.”