American Melancholy: Poems
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- Create Date：2021-02-12 04:20:34
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Joyce Carol Oates
- ISBN：9780063035263
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Summary
Notes From Your Bookseller
Joyce Carol Oates documents our precious lives with an exacting eye to detail。 She uses the tools of poetry like a master builder。 From the biography of a poem， “To Marlon Brando in Hell，” to a plaintive and loving tribute to her late husband， “Palliative，” Oates writes poetry as expertly as she does fiction。 In addition， she tips her hat to William Carlos Williams， Christopher Smart and Billy Collins。 To read American Melancholy is to get a history， literature and civic lesson all within 128 pages。 This is a solid book of poetry to be held in high esteem。
A new collection of poetry from an American literary legend， her first in twenty-five yearsJoyce Carol Oates is one of our most insightful observers of the human heart and mind， and， with her acute social consciousness， one of the most insistent and inspired witnesses of a shared American history。
Oates is perhaps best known for her prodigious output of novels and short stories， many of which have become contemporary classics。 However， Oates has also always been a faithful writer of poetry。 American Melancholy showcases some of her finest work of the last few decades。
Covering subjects big and small， and written in an immediate and engaging style， this collection touches on both the personal and political。 Loss， love， and memory are investigated， along with the upheavals of our modern age， the reality of our current predicaments， and the ravages of poverty， racism， and social unrest。 Oates skillfully writes characters ranging from a former doctor at a Chinese People’s Liberation Army hospital to Little Albert， a six-month-old infant who took part in a famous study that revealed evidence of classical conditioning in human beings。
Editor Reviews
"Joyce Carol Oates is a ventriloquist of mind。 In these startling new poems， she enters human suffering， her own and that of others， with a disarming imaginative directness。 Her empathy for others lights these scary poems from the inside out。 The mental and emotional suffering that she uncovers in people’s stories come to feel like our own， a crucial reminder that we are all here together in what seem like the last days。 Frontal in their imagining yet deeply compassionate， these are poems we need right now。"
Reviews
CRS18
，
’。。。it is a slew of words in search of a container… a cooing of vowels like doves。’ This is a memorable collection of poems by Joyce Carol Oates that is separated into four sections: THE COMING STORM THE FIRST ROOM AMERICAN MELANCHOLY And THIS IS THE TIME FOR WHICH WE HAVE BEEN WAITING The first collection， THE COMING STORM includes poems with themes based on our collective past history， but these aren’t all poems that rhyme or necessarily have a rhythm that most people associate with poetry。 Of this section， the poem that impacted me the most was OBEDIENCE: 1962 The second collection， THE FIRST ROOM starts out with a poem by the same name THE FIRST ROOM which I really loved， followed by THIS IS NOT A POEM which I also loved， and THE MERCY， whose final lines read: The stroke that wipes out memory is another word for mercy。 Some of these narrative poems read more like a very short story， a message， some more like a commentary。 The third collection， AMERICAN MELANCHOLY begins with TO MARLON BRANDO IN H*** （a word which I need to 'censor' due to B&N labeling it"profanity"， a strangely beautiful， if disturbing， take on the negative， destructive side of fame， as well as our willingness， or lack of willingness to offer forgiveness。 The fourth and final collection， THIS IS THE TIME FOR WHICH WE WERE WAITING the only poem was heartbreakingly real and my personal favourite: PALLIATIVE Some of these poems cover some of history’s psychological experiments， man’s inhumanity to man， where others are on other disturbing topics， serving as warnings from the past， as well as a somewhat broad range of other topics。 There’s a tangible sense of anger or indignation in some， and a sense of awe or love， or even reverence for the course of life， death and sorrow in others。 While this won’t appeal to everyone， and readers will love some of these poems more than others， I really appreciated all， and found many of these to be hauntingly beautiful。 Many thanks for the ARC provided by Ecco
Patricia
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I don’t ordinarily read much poetry and I really enjoyed these poems。
Brenda
，
Excellent collection of poems which live up to the title of this book。 Felt that these poems worked exactly as the author intended: to disturb， illuminate， and articulate through art some of the tragedies and atrocities of our shared past。Left me deeply affected and contemplative。 Some of these were very upsetting， but skillfully done。 My favorites from the book: Harlow's Monkeys， Doctor Help Me， American Sign Language; and Bloodline， Elegy。 I've wanted to start exploring more poetry; I've got a Excellent collection of poems which live up to the title of this book。 Felt that these poems worked exactly as the author intended: to disturb， illuminate， and articulate through art some of the tragedies and atrocities of our shared past。Left me deeply affected and contemplative。 Some of these were very upsetting， but skillfully done。 My favorites from the book: Harlow's Monkeys， Doctor Help Me， American Sign Language; and Bloodline， Elegy。 I've wanted to start exploring more poetry; I've got a long way to go。 。。。more
Sarah Marie
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4。5 stars。 I love Oates's poetry collection。 First time reading her poems and I really enjoyed them。 Review to come。 4。5 stars。 I love Oates's poetry collection。 First time reading her poems and I really enjoyed them。 Review to come。 。。。more
Michelle Kidwell
，
American MelancholyPoemsby Joyce Carol OatesEcco Poetry Pub Date 09 Feb 2021 I am reviewing a copy of American Melancholy through Ecco and Netgalley:Joyce Carol Oates is a powerful observer of the human heart， mind and soul with her profound social consciousness and is one of the insistent and inspired witnesses of a shared American history。Oates is best known for her novels and short stories， many of these have become contemporary classics。 But Oates has always written poetry faithfully。 And t American MelancholyPoemsby Joyce Carol OatesEcco Poetry Pub Date 09 Feb 2021 I am reviewing a copy of American Melancholy through Ecco and Netgalley:Joyce Carol Oates is a powerful observer of the human heart， mind and soul with her profound social consciousness and is one of the insistent and inspired witnesses of a shared American history。Oates is best known for her novels and short stories， many of these have become contemporary classics。 But Oates has always written poetry faithfully。 And this collection of American Melancholy showcases some of her finest work of the last few decades。American Melancholy covers subjects that are both big and small。 Joyce Carol Oates had written this collection in an immediate and engaging style， and touch both the personal as well as the political。 The subjects of loss， love as well as memory are investigated， along with the upheavals of our modern age， the reality of our current predicaments， and the ravages of poverty， racism， and social unrest。 In this collection Oates masterfully writes characters ranging from a former doctor at a Chinese People’s Liberation Army hospital to Little Albert， a six-month-old infant who took part in a famous study that revealed evidence of classical conditioning in human beings。I give American Melancholy five out of five stars！Happy Reading！ 。。。more
Mary
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I hadn't read any poetry by Joyce Carol Oates--in fact I didn't even realize that poetry was part of her wide ranging oeuvre--so "American Melancholy" was a revelation to me: powerful， disturbing， thought-provoking。 As its title implies， this is a dark collection， with subjects ranging from medical experimentation （"Little Albert， 1920" was particularly wrenching） to suicide and mortal illness， but the power of these poems lies not in lyricism （they are not particularly lyrical at all， in fact） I hadn't read any poetry by Joyce Carol Oates--in fact I didn't even realize that poetry was part of her wide ranging oeuvre--so "American Melancholy" was a revelation to me: powerful， disturbing， thought-provoking。 As its title implies， this is a dark collection， with subjects ranging from medical experimentation （"Little Albert， 1920" was particularly wrenching） to suicide and mortal illness， but the power of these poems lies not in lyricism （they are not particularly lyrical at all， in fact） but in the straightforward， almost clinical way Oates confronts these difficult topics。 "Too Young to Marry But Not Too Young to Die，" "Doctor Help Me，" "Old America Has Come Home to Die，" "American Sign Language，" and， particularly， "Palliative" were the standouts for me， but the collection as a whole is strong。Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers for providing me with an ARC of this title in return for my honest review。 。。。more
Kate
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Incredible。 Full review to follow
Amie
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Joyce Carol Oates is a standout in the literary community for good reason。 Her writing is filled with depth and feeling that is tied to her strong imagery。 This collection of poetry is no different， but it is not for the faint of heart。 American MELANCHOLY， indeed。 I kept waiting for there to be some lightness in this collection， but it was heaviness multiplied。 With topics including psychological experiments， animal abuse， suicide， and even the terrible person that was Marlon Brando， the collec Joyce Carol Oates is a standout in the literary community for good reason。 Her writing is filled with depth and feeling that is tied to her strong imagery。 This collection of poetry is no different， but it is not for the faint of heart。 American MELANCHOLY， indeed。 I kept waiting for there to be some lightness in this collection， but it was heaviness multiplied。 With topics including psychological experiments， animal abuse， suicide， and even the terrible person that was Marlon Brando， the collection leaves plenty to think about， but no one should revel in that depth of darkness。 Recommended with reservations。Advanced copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Mallory
，
thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with an ARC through NetGalley！ unfortunately this was not for me。 i can’t bring myself to give it 1 star because i liked a few lines but it really meant nothing to me。 the repetition of lines like “because。。。” in several poems felt meaningless and i think it could have done without them。 subject matter felt confused and disorienting without any really message behind it。 i’d still be interested in reading some of her novels but this form of poet thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with an ARC through NetGalley！ unfortunately this was not for me。 i can’t bring myself to give it 1 star because i liked a few lines but it really meant nothing to me。 the repetition of lines like “because。。。” in several poems felt meaningless and i think it could have done without them。 subject matter felt confused and disorienting without any really message behind it。 i’d still be interested in reading some of her novels but this form of poetry didn’t work for me at all。 let’s say 1。5 stars for this one。 。。。more
J。 A。 Wooton
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Great poems！ They were compelling and most of them read just like stories。
J。D。 DeHart
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Whether writing prose or poetry， long or short form， Joyce Carol Oates consistently offers perspective and experience。 Some titles in this collection are brief， captures in a few lines， while others bask across the space of pages。Oates is an expert wordsmith， and this collection is recommended for poetry lovers。
Beth
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Not for me - not very creative or thought-provoking， and I really could've done without the fat-shaming in the Brando poem。 Not for me - not very creative or thought-provoking， and I really could've done without the fat-shaming in the Brando poem。 。。。more
Hesper
，
American Melancholy is an informative and driven compilation of experiences， thoughts， and insights of the author。 Accurate and genuine， all the sensations that come with the little moments and the major events are brought to life through some of these poems。
Shannon A
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An insightful and inspired collection of observations。 True and honest， these poems bring to light all emotions that come with the small moments and the big events。
Cheri
，
’。。。it is a slew of words in search of a container… a cooing of vowels like doves。’This is a memorable collection of poems by Joyce Carol Oates that is separated into four sections:THE COMING STORM THE FIRST ROOMAMERICAN MELANCHOLYAnd THIS IS THE TIME FOR WHICH WE HAVE BEEN WAITINGThe first collection， THE COMING STORM includes poems with themes based on our collective past history， but these aren’t all poems that rhyme or necessarily have a rhythm that most people associate with poetry。 Of ’。。。it is a slew of words in search of a container… a cooing of vowels like doves。’This is a memorable collection of poems by Joyce Carol Oates that is separated into four sections:THE COMING STORM THE FIRST ROOMAMERICAN MELANCHOLYAnd THIS IS THE TIME FOR WHICH WE HAVE BEEN WAITINGThe first collection， THE COMING STORM includes poems with themes based on our collective past history， but these aren’t all poems that rhyme or necessarily have a rhythm that most people associate with poetry。 Of this section， the poem that impacted me the most was OBEDIENCE: 1962The second collection， THE FIRST ROOM starts out with a poem by the same name THE FIRST ROOM which I really loved， followed by THIS IS NOT A POEM which I also loved， and THE MERCY， whose final lines read:The strokethat wipes out memory is another word for mercy。Some of these narrative poems read more like a very short story， a message， some more like a commentary。 The third collection， AMERICAN MELANCHOLY begins with TOMARLON BRANDO IN HELL， a strangely beautiful， if disturbing， take on the negative， destructive side of fame， as well as our willingness， or lack of willingness to offer forgiveness。 The fourth and final collection， THIS IS THE TIME FOR WHICH WE WERE WAITING the only poem was heartbreakingly real and my personal favourite: PALLIATIVESome of these poems cover some of history’s psychological experiments， man’s inhumanity to man， where others are on other disturbing topics， serving as warnings from the past， as well as a somewhat broad range of other topics。 There’s a tangible sense of anger or indignation in some， and a sense of awe or love， or even reverence for the course of life， death and sorrow in others。 While this won’t appeal to everyone， and readers will love some of these poems more than others， I really appreciated all， and found many of these to be hauntingly beautiful。 Published: 09 Feb 2021Many thanks for the ARC provided by Ecco 。。。more
Nathaniel Darkish
，
A well-written collection of poetry that pays tribute to some of my favorite poets， such as Billy Collins and William Carlos Williams。 Oates is a master of language， so it should be no surprise that her poetry is tight and compelling。 I particularly thought the poem about Marlon Brando （now in hell） was powerful。
Joseph
，
Joyce Carol Oates in the first few poems of her new collection， "American Melancholy，" tackles a trio 0f historical psychological experiments that involved how fear can be conditioned in children （Little Albert experiment）， the impact of maternal separation on monkey's cognitive and emotional development （Harlow's Monkey experiment） and how individuals are willing to inflict pain on others under the auspices of authority figures （Milligram experiment） that culminates in this third poem with Oate Joyce Carol Oates in the first few poems of her new collection， "American Melancholy，" tackles a trio 0f historical psychological experiments that involved how fear can be conditioned in children （Little Albert experiment）， the impact of maternal separation on monkey's cognitive and emotional development （Harlow's Monkey experiment） and how individuals are willing to inflict pain on others under the auspices of authority figures （Milligram experiment） that culminates in this third poem with Oates addressing "you"， and forces us to confront the following， ""Because the Holocaust was not possible without/following orders。 Because the Holocaust was not/possible without continuing to the end。/ Because the Holocaust was not possible without you。" At the end of the poem she concludes， "Not your fault。 Following orders。 Continue to the end。 You will not be blamed。" What makes the impact of these poems so powerful is that Oates uses very simple diction and a very linear thought process like rudimentary philosophy， "If A=B， B=C， then A=C" And yet the message here is that this is faulty logic。 Because what seems simple and direct can have profound ramifications if we just blindly follow this simplistic reasoning--because someone with a white coat in a position of authority told me I had to administer shocks to subjects I was just doing what I was told （Milligram experiment）。 I think these 3 poems should have started the collection rather than a brief poem about a man reading "The Nation，" which doesn't pack the emotional wallop that these 3 poems do early in the collection。Oates' strength in these poems can be attributed to her expertise as one of our most prolific fiction writers。 She creates vivid scenes with brief descriptions that capture salient insights of the characters that populate her poems （"First job was file clerk at Trinity Trust。 Wasted three/years of her young life waiting/for R。B。 to leave his wife and wouldn't you think a / smart girl like her would know better？" （Edward Hooper's "Eleven A。M。，" 1926）。 Although effective in inviting the reader to follow the poem's narrative， there are very few lines/stanzas that are memorable poetic diction。 Although vivid， the long narrative lines don't dazzle in the way some of our most talented poets almost beg us to remember a brilliant line or stanza。 It's not that all of these poems are several page narratives。 In fact， the second section of her book has many short poems that attempt to do what I mentioned above。 The best one （in my opinion） is a William Carlos Williams derivative of "The Red Wheelbarrow，" where she writes in "The Mercy，" "So much depends upon/forgetting much/for our/earliest/yearnings never abandon us。/ The stroke/that wipes out memory/is another word for mercy。"Overall this collection is memorable for its voice rather than necessarily its technique and I appreciated Oates' direct， non-pandering style that calls out how we contribute as a society to our "American Melancholy。" 。。。more
Kasa Cotugno
，
This is the fourth publication this year alone that I've reviewed of the work of Joyce Carol Oates， but the very first book of her poetry I've read。 Each of the other books was different in style from the others （a short story collection， a 4-part novella compilation， an 800-page masterwork novel）。 And these poems could only have been written by her。 Almost all have been previously published in journals and respected periodicals， and her choice of material reflects her intrigue of and rage again This is the fourth publication this year alone that I've reviewed of the work of Joyce Carol Oates， but the very first book of her poetry I've read。 Each of the other books was different in style from the others （a short story collection， a 4-part novella compilation， an 800-page masterwork novel）。 And these poems could only have been written by her。 Almost all have been previously published in journals and respected periodicals， and her choice of material reflects her intrigue of and rage against what she perceives as injustice and what damage can be wielded from one human being to another， sometimes under the cloak of "doing good" through scientific experiment。 I was particularly wowed by her insight into the life and experience of Marlon Brando and his wasting of his gifts。 Again， I wonder， does she ever sleep？ 。。。more
Ida Maria
，