I know this is a bit of a blast from the past, but I just finished reading NOS4A2. This is my first experience with Joe Hill’s work. I didn’t realize he was Stephen King’s son! I’ve been living under a rock, I guess.
Anyway, on to the book. This was an engaging read and the references to Stephen King’s universe were exciting! My complaint is that, out of nowhere, he drops a joke that has the N-word in it. I got to that line and my heart sank. Before I realized who Joe Hill was, I remarked that the only other author I know who drops unnecessary n-bombs is Stephen King. I guess it’s one of their devices?
Getting to that line, which also has another slur, rocked me back on my heels and took me out of the story completely. Replacing it with anything else would not have detracted from the story or the intended take away.
What do you guys think about this and other authors who use this type of language, especially when it serves no greater purpose?
by Clarinet_Player_1200
1 Comment
The point is to rock you on your heels, right? We know the tropes of horror stories, and for many readers there’s no meaningful “shock.” No matter how well written the book is, there’s no visceral sense of discomfort, and so pulling out a transgressive word is a way to inject that jolt into the reader.
In general, I don’t like the idea of censoring writers. They can say what they like. We’re all adults here and we can handle adult language. Gratuitous use of racial slurs are, definitionally, gratuitous. So it’s tautological to say, “Well, do whatever you want, just try to do it well,” but it’s also an obligation of the reader: we have to get past the mere shock or surprise or even displeasure of the slur and think about the whole book holistically and how this or that word influence it.
In general, I don’t think Joe Hill or Stephen King are all that cautious with their language, and that’s part of their charm. There’s an undisciplined exuberance in their writing that gets annoying sometimes but can be incredibly fun. Their use of slurs is a reflection of that.