72 Contemporary Literature, 1970 to Present
lighting questions about the relationship between fiction and reality. Metafic-
tion stretches back through the history of the novel, including appearances
in Miguel de Cervantes’s Don Quixote (1605, 1615) and Laurence Sterne’s
The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman (1760–1767), but it has
become a prominent aspect of much Postmodern writing. Contemporary
examples include most of the work of John Barth and Kurt Vonnegut and
Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried (1990).
Midrash An early form of Jewish commentary on or interpretation of a biblical
text that explains or clarifies a moral principle or point of law; contemporary
forms include new versions or retellings of stories from the Torah. Midrash
plays an important role in the poetry of Louise Glück.
Minimalism A style of writing featuring spare prose that focuses on surface
details and in which the author refuses to signal to readers how they should
feel about characters. The characters are typically of the working class, and
the surface details include many popular-culture references. Raymond Carver,
Ann Beattie, Bobbie Ann Mason, Grace Paley, and Frederick Barthelme are
often classified as minimalists, although Carver disliked the term.
New Journalism A form of nonfiction that arose in the 1960s and 1970s, com-
bining literary techniques and, often, a subjective viewpoint with investiga-
tive reporting. Truman Capote, Tom Wolfe, Norman Mailer, Joan Didion,
and Hunter S. Thompson are considered practitioners of New Journalism;
Thompson called his style “Gonzo Journalism.”
Noble Savage A stereotype that sees Native Americans as inherently pure and
good but also as simple and primitive. Both the positive and the negative
poles of the stereotype fail to recognize American Indians as complex human
beings.
Nuyorican A term that blends New York and Puerto Rican to refer to the culture
or people of the Puerto Rican diaspora who have settled in New York City.
Esmeralda Santiago and Tato Laviera are Nuyorican writers.
Parody As a noun: an imitation of a preexisting work that ridicules the conven-
tions used in the original. As a verb: to create such a work.
Pastiche A literary or artistic work that imitates the style of an earlier work
without intent to ridicule (in contrast to parody, above) or that is made up
of selections from several other works (also called a patchwork).
Pastoral Literary works that depict rural life, often romanticizing it or at least
carrying a strong sense of nostalgia. Contemporary environmental literature
attempts to revive the pastoral without idealizing it.
Poetry slam A competition in which poets perform their works before an audi-
ence, with judges scoring them.
Prolepsis The announcement or revelation, without explanation, of a key event
in a narrative before the event actually occurs. The story will often go on for
a good while before the circumstances of the event are described, thereby
building the context for understanding the event. In Beloved (1987) Toni
Morrison makes use of prolepsis in her handling of the central event of the
novel: Sethe’s murder of her child.