The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao - A Review
Discussing the Masterful Work of Junot Diaz
Jun 7, 2009
In The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, Junot Diaz has provided an immense contribution to contemporary American literature. He, somewhat perplexingly, incorporates Dominican folklore, American culture, and comic-book fantasy into one seamless, powerful work of fiction.
Groundbeaking Narration
The narrator is a simultaneous throwback to the historic story-telling cultures (Latin, Native American, Greek, Irish, etc.) but is also a nod to the American pop-culture narration of comic books and graphic novels.
An explainer of mysteries, an omnipotent and omniscient master of the histories of each character, minor or major, this "Watcher" also plays a role in the story itself, which might seem strange in more traditional story-telling models (the Greek Chorus) but is in keeping perfectly with some of the more popular American versions, such as this narrator’s namesake, "Watcher," from the Fantastic 4 storyline.
The Many Inspirations
Interestingly, one need not be a lover of comic books, or even familiar with them, to appreciate the deep, rich, and painful history of the Dominican Republic being presented in this book. A new understanding of the Domincan Republic’s long, painful history is inescapable after reading Oscar Wao.
Diaz rails on about kleptocracies, corruption, Trujillo, Hitler, Castro, et al. He portrays America, not as a savior, but as an escape place. It is somewhere "less bad" but which is not invulnerable to the assaults of the Domincan gangsters.
This depiction of the U.S. is relatively new and refreshing - a loss for the Utopian hopefuls (previously placed under attack by the likes of Fitzgerald, Barth, and Vonnegut) but a valid and honest gain for the literary canon.
The annotations are both brilliant and hilarious; the story is engaging, fast-paced, and vastly encompassing. Perhaps the most interesting and appreciated nuance of this novel is that the title character, Oscar Wao, is borderline minor in the grand scheme of the story. He is not even likeable, only a bit pitiable.
Character and Story
The main character is the "fuku" - an idea. A curse. And there is no happy ending, really - just a hope for one, without expectation.
The true story is about the people of the Domincan Republic, about diaspora (which Diaz apostrophes as a character, "Diaspora," to demonstrate the sad importance of the phenomena, especially for the people of the ever-dominated latin islands).
The book was a page-tuner, impossible to put down. Impressive, masterful, and truly important, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao is on par with Eugenides as far as contemporary weight and influence on a relatively immoble literary canon.
