Benjamin Kunkel (born December 14, 1972 in
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
) is an American novelist and political economist. He co-founded and is a co-editor of the journal ''
n+1.'' His novel, ''Indecision'', was published in 2005.
Background and education
Kunkel grew up in
Eagle, Colorado
The Town of Eagle is the Statutory Town that is the county seat of Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 7,511 at the 2020 United States Census, a +15.41% increase since the 2010 United States Census. Eagle is the part o ...
, and was educated at
St. Paul's School in
Concord, New Hampshire
Concord () is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Hampshire and the seat of Merrimack County. As of the 2020 census the population was 43,976, making it the third largest city in New Hampshire behind Manchester and Nashua.
The village of ...
; Kunkel studied at
Deep Springs College
Deep Springs College (known simply as Deep Springs or DS) is a private, selective two-year college in Deep Springs, California. With the number of undergraduates restricted to 26, the college is one of the smallest institutions of higher educat ...
in
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, graduated with an A.B. from
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
, and received his
MFA in Creative Writing at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
.
Career
In addition to regularly writing for ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', Kunkel has written for the magazines ''
Dissent
Dissent is an opinion, philosophy or sentiment of non-agreement or opposition to a prevailing idea or policy enforced under the authority of a government, political party or other entity or individual. A dissenting person may be referred to as ...
'', ''
The Nation
''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper tha ...
'', ''
The New York Review of Books
''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of i ...
'', ''
The London Review of Books
The ''London Review of Books'' (''LRB'') is a British literary magazine published twice monthly that features articles and essays on fiction and non-fiction subjects, which are usually structured as book reviews.
History
The ''London Review of ...
'', ''
The Believer'', and ''
The New Yorker
''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
''. Kunkel has written multiple short stories and book reviews for the print journal he started with friends from college and graduate school,
n+1. In the Fall 2004 issue, he published the short story "Horse Mountain," about an aging man. In the Spring 2005 issue, he published a review of
J.M. Coetzee's works, imitating Coetzee's recent novel ''
Elizabeth Costello
'' Elizabeth Costello'' is a 2003 novel by South African-born Nobel Laureate J. M. Coetzee.
In this novel, Elizabeth Costello, a celebrated aging Australian writer, travels around the world and gives lectures on topics including the lives of ...
''. In the Fall 2005 issue, he published a short story "Or Things I Did Not Do or Say," about a man determined to kill another man.
Much of Kunkel's work exhibits a preoccupation with global social justice and leftist politics, including the Marxist overview ''Utopia or Bust: A Guide to the Present Crisis'', the
Kirchner essay ''Argentinidad'', and the anti-capitalist book ''The Commonist Manifesto''. Kunkel is a member of the editorial committee of
New Left Review
The ''New Left Review'' is a British bimonthly journal covering world politics, economy, and culture, which was established in 1960.
History Background
As part of the British "New Left" a number of new journals emerged to carry commentary on m ...
.
''Indecision''
''Indecision'' was published by
Random House
Random House is an American book publisher and the largest general-interest paperback publisher in the world. The company has several independently managed subsidiaries around the world. It is part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by Germ ...
in 2005. ''Indecision'' begins with the acknowledgment, "For ''n+1.''" Kunkel has described the critically acclaimed novel as "overpraised."
References
Further reading
* Kelly, Adam. "From Syndrome to Sincerity: Benjamin Kunkel's ''Indecision''." ''Diseases and Disorders in Contemporary Fiction: The Syndrome Syndrome''. Ed. Timothy Lustig and James Peacock. London: Routledge, 2013. 53-66.
* Sauri, Emilio. "Cognitive Mapping, Then and Now: Postmodernism, ''Indecision'', and American Literary Globalism." ''Twentieth-Century Literature'' 57.3 (Fall/Winter 2011): 472-91.
External links
Metacritic Reviews– A compendium of reviews on ''Indecision'' available through the internet on metacritic.com.
November 2006 NY Magazine article*
n+1' website
Writings and interviews
''Archives of his articles for other magazines''
Archiveof Kunkel's writings for ''
The Nation
''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper tha ...
'' (1999–2005).
Archiveof Kunkel's writings for ''
The Believer'' (2003).
''Reviews''
"The Ideal Husband"– A review of
D. H. Lawrence
David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English writer, novelist, poet and essayist. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, vitality, spontaneity and instinct. His best-k ...
's ''
The Lost Girl''. Published in the ''
New York Review of Books
New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created.
New or NEW may refer to:
Music
* New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz
Albums and EPs
* ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013
* ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...
'' (February 24, 2005).
"The Unreal World"– A review of
Don DeLillo
Donald Richard DeLillo (born November 20, 1936) is an American novelist, short story writer, playwright, screenwriter and essayist. His works have covered subjects as diverse as television, nuclear war, sports, the complexities of language, per ...
's ''
The Body Artist'', ''
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
'' (February 14–20, 2001).
"The Sea of Love"– A review of ''Lighthousekeeping'' by
Jeanette Winterson
Jeanette Winterson (born 27 August 1959) is an English writer. Her first book, '' Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit'', was a semi-autobiographical novel about a sensitive teenage girl rebelling against convention. Other novels explore gender pola ...
, in ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' (May 1, 2005)
''Interviews and reading''
"Benjamin Kunkel's Tale of Indecision"– Kunkel reads from his novel on
NPR
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
, (September 17, 2005).
"Welcome to the political world"– Interview with Benjamin Kunkel in
The Observer
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
, (November 20, 2005).
"Attack of the listless lads"– Half-flippant, half-serious conversation with Kunkel about dating, relationships, and more theoretical gender relations in
Salon
Salon may refer to:
Common meanings
* Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments
* French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home
* Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment
Arts and entertainment
* Salon (P ...
, (September 20, 2005).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kunkel, Benjamin
1972 births
Living people
St. Paul's School (New Hampshire) alumni
Deep Springs College alumni
Harvard Advocate alumni
Novelists from Colorado
American male novelists
Columbia University School of the Arts alumni