Monday, January 4, 2010

Short Story Mondays: Brokeback Mountain

Source: Close Range: Wyoming Stories (Annie Proulx,1999)
Date read: 1/3/10 (#6)
Briefly: Two cowboys, the open range, and nobody around but their horses and a bunch of sheep. That one summer on Brokeback Mountain shapes the rest of their lives.
First Sentence: Ennis del Mar wakes before five, wind rocking the trailer, hissing in around the aluminum door and window frames.

Afterthoughts: The movie got so much press, yet I didn't realize it was based on a short story until I saw it listed on C.B. James' Read the Book, See the Movie challenge . Proulx effectively distills two complicated lives into thirty pages. It's been years since I saw the movie but if anything was added to flesh it out, I couldn't name it.

I was hoping the short story would offer a deeper understanding of Jack's or Ennis' thoughts. What I got instead was a clearer sense that these characters aren't especially introspective people. The tragedy isn't so much the circumstances that keep two people apart, as it is their inability to come to terms with those circumstances openly, with each other.

This was my first time reading a Proulx story and I skipped to the back of the book to read this one first. I'm looking forward to starting back at the beginning now.

11 comments:

  1. I always thought it was a novella. I knew it was short, just not how short I suppose. I wasn't a fan of The Shipping News, so I'm in no rush to read her again.

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  2. I think I quit The Shipping News after the first chapter, John. This story was much more my style. I'm looking forward to seeing how the rest of the collection compares.

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  3. This book has been on my tbr pile for far too long. I know I'd have approached the story with the same expectations, so thanks for the heads up. I'm sure I'll still enjoy it, but it's good to know what to expect.

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  4. I didn't realize this was a short story either. Interesting.

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  5. Huh. I quite enjoyed The Shipping News. But I haven't read anything else by Proulx. Somewhat strangely, I just picked up Close Range from the library this morning. I'm kind of in the mood for some short stories.

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  6. I've been meaning to read this for such a long time! One of the women in my writing group is a HUGE Proulx fan!

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  7. I thought this was a novella, too. Like John, I wasn't a big fan of The Shipping News... but I am curious about this story.

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  8. Ahh, I want to go back and re-read the short story now. You really hit the nail on the head with the source of the tragedy in this one. It really came across nicely in the story, I thought. Like you, I started at the end, but the rest of the collection was quite stunning as well.

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  9. I only recently found out this wasn't just a movie, but until this review I t hought it came from a book instead of a short story. Interesting. I might read it for my short story challenge this year.

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  10. The movie was heartbreakenly sad so I can imagine the story would be the same. I haven't read it yet, but I plan on it someday. Thanks for the review.

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  11. i know this was a short story. been meaning to read it, so I should do so. I loved the movie though. It really is sad that they aren't open about their feelings more than anything.

    -Lauren

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