Keeping Up with the Joneses

One of the most talented writers of short fiction working today, George Saunders published “The Semplica Girl Diaries” in The New Yorker in 2012. The story appeared in slightly longer form a few months later in his 2013 collection Tenth of December. Saunders’ fiction blends realism with surrealist touches to comment on contemporary life.

Reading:
George Saunders, “The Semplica Girl Diaries” (Blackboard)

Writing: Respond to ONE of the following prompts. Keep your response short, posting as a reply under the appropriate heading in the comments section:

1. Saunders’ narrator has a peculiar voice and perspective in this story. Quote a line and use it to comment on what makes the narrator unusual.
2. Should Saunders’ story be classed as Surrealist? Explain your answer briefly by reference to specific details from the story—and perhaps from the Surrealist Movement.