Gilbert Sorrentino
Gilbert Sorrentino
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Full Name and Common Aliases
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Gilbert Sorrentino was born on January 9, 1929, in Brooklyn, New York. He is often referred to by his first name, Gilbert, and also known for his nickname, the "Poet of Long Island."
Birth and Death Dates
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Sorrentino passed away on June 18, 2006, leaving behind a rich literary legacy.
Nationality and Profession(s)
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Gilbert Sorrentino was an American poet, novelist, and playwright. His work spans multiple genres, including poetry, fiction, and drama.
Early Life and Background
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Growing up in Brooklyn, Sorrentino developed a passion for writing from an early age. He began writing poetry while still in high school and went on to study English literature at Fordham University. During the 1950s, he worked as a writer-in-residence at various institutions, including the City College of New York.
Major Accomplishments
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Sorrentino's literary career spanned over five decades, during which he published numerous works that garnered widespread critical acclaim. Some of his notable accomplishments include:
Poetry collections: Sorrentino released several critically acclaimed poetry collections, including "The Sky Is Red" (1973) and "A Short History of a Small Place" (1998).
Novels: His novels, such as "Mood Barometer" (1966) and "Beautiful Days" (1980), showcased his unique style and narrative voice.
Plays: Sorrentino's plays, like "The Birthday Party" (1972), demonstrated his versatility as a playwright.Notable Works or Actions
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Sorrentino was known for pushing the boundaries of traditional literary forms. Some notable works include:
"Abandoned Woman": A poetry collection that explores themes of love and loss.
"Mood Barometer": A novel that defies easy categorization, blending elements of fiction, poetry, and drama.Impact and Legacy
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Sorrentino's contributions to American literature are immeasurable. His innovative style and thematic explorations have influenced generations of writers. His work continues to be celebrated for its raw emotionality, linguistic experimentation, and unflinching portrayal of the human experience.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
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Gilbert Sorrentino's quotes and works are widely remembered due to their:
Honesty: Sorrentino's writing is characterized by an unwavering commitment to honesty, often tackling themes that were considered taboo at the time.
Experimentation: His willingness to push boundaries in terms of form, style, and content has left a lasting impact on American literature.
Timelessness: Despite being written decades ago, Sorrentino's works continue to resonate with readers today, offering insights into the human condition that remain relevant.
As we reflect on Gilbert Sorrentino's life and work, it becomes clear why he remains an important figure in American literary history. His innovative spirit, unflinching honesty, and commitment to exploring the complexities of the human experience have left a lasting legacy that continues to inspire writers and readers alike.
Quotes by Gilbert Sorrentino
On Being Blue celebrates both language and that which it represents and carefully draws our attention to that difficult middle ground on which the writer finds himself in lifelong struggle to join the two without sullying or smearing the clarities of either.
You are perfectly justified in scoffing at the outrageous transparency of it if I tell you that his wife said that he was so pale that he looked as if he had seen a ghost, but that is, indeed, what she said. Art cannot rescue anybody from anything.
All I do know, for certain, after 53 years in this business, is that writers who sincerely think that their language can represent reality ought to be plumbers.
I like the cut of his jib and the glint in his eye, the arrow of his song and the beg of his question.
What a joke it is to read or hear – as I have read or heard more times than I can count – that writers ‘see more clearly’ or ‘feel more deeply’ than non-writers. The truth of the matter is that writers hardly ‘see’ or ‘feel’ at all. The disparity between a writer’s works and the world per se is so great as to beggar comment. Writers who arrange their lives so as to ‘have experiences’ in order to reduce them to contemptible linguistic recordings of these experiences are beneath contempt.
One must find some structure, even if it be this haphazard one of the alphabet.
Notable American Women gives us, with great panache and in eerie detail, a world that is cruelly reasonable within the near-religious limitations of its weird laws and customs. It is a book as unique as it is wonderfully strange.
They want politics and think it will save them. At best, it gives direction to their numbed desires. But there is no politics but the manipulation of power through language. Thus the latter’s constant debasement.
What if this young woman, who writes such bad poems, in competition with her husband, whose poems are equally bad, should stretch her remarkably long and well-made legs out before you, so that her skirt slips up to the tops of her stockings?