''Man Crazy'' is a novel by

Joyce Carol Oates Joyce Carol Oates (born June 16, 1938) is an American writer. Oates published her first book in 1963, and has since published 58 novels, a number of plays and novellas, and many volumes of short stories, poetry, and non-fiction. Her novels '' Bla ...

, published in 1997, that tells the story of a young girl's descent into

self-harm Self-harm is intentional behavior that is considered harmful to oneself. This is most commonly regarded as direct injury of one's own skin tissues usually without a suicidal intention. Other terms such as cutting, self-injury and self-mutilatio ...

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse, also referred to as molestation, is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using force or by taking advantage of another. Molestation often refers to an instance of sexual assa ...

, cult

brainwashing Brainwashing (also known as mind control, menticide, coercive persuasion, thought control, thought reform, and forced re-education) is the concept that the human mind can be altered or controlled by certain psychological techniques. Brainwash ...

, and subsequent rescue.

Plot summary

Man Crazy is told from the point of view of a young woman, Ingrid Boone, writing to her

therapist Therapist is a person who offers any kinds of therapy. Therapists are trained professionals in the field of any types of services like psychologists, social workers, counsellors, life coachers and others. They are helpful in counselling individuals ...

about her life. At the beginning of the novel Ingrid's father, Luke Boone, a hot tempered

Vietnam veteran A Vietnam veteran is a person who served in the armed forces of participating countries during the Vietnam War. The term has been used to describe veterans who served in the armed forces of South Vietnam, the United States Armed Forces, and oth ...

, is absent and on the run after killing a man over a drug deal. Ingrid and her beautiful mother, Chloe Boone, drift from place to place as Chloe carries out a series of relationships with different men. Chloe's attention is directed to her lovers and to alcohol more than to her daughter. In adolescence, Ingrid begins to

, compulsively scratching her face and body to the point of inflicting sores. She also turns to

promiscuity Promiscuity is the practice of engaging in sexual activity frequently with different Sexual partner, partners or being indiscriminate in the choice of sexual partners. The term can carry a moral judgment. A common example of behavior viewed as pro ...

and

drug abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

. She doesn't have any real friends and is known as "Doll Girl" as she openly gives herself to much of the school's male population. Despite her troubles, Ingrid is a good student and wins a prize for a poem, which she is asked to read at a school assembly. Her anxiety and low self-esteem cause her to appear in front of the school with her face bloody from scratching and reading, not her own, but another poet's work. After leaving home, Ingrid gets involved with Enoch Skaggs, a brutal, charismatic leader of the

motorcycle gang An outlaw motorcycle club is a motorcycle subculture generally centered on the use of cruiser motorcycles, particularly Harley-Davidsons and choppers, and a set of ideals that purport to celebrate freedom, nonconformity to mainstream culture, a ...

/cult, Satan's Children. Her nickname becomes "Dog Girl" because of her blind devotion to the cruel Skaggs. She undergoes one dehumanizing act after another: gang rape, physical mutilation, being locked in a cellar for days, and watching a sacrificial killing. In a last-minute escape, Ingrid is rescued when there is a showdown between the biker gang and the police. Ingrid undergoes counseling, including the telling of her story, and a suggestion is given of a relationship with her doctor.

Literary criticism

Brigitte Frase of the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...

'' called the novel well-constructed but seemingly constructed from psychological profiles of dysfunctional families, traumatized war veterans, and cult leaders and followers. A. O. Scott of 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, ...

'' felt that the violence seemed gratuitous because of the "absence of a persuasive context" and that Skaggs's hold over Ingrid was insufficiently explained. Scott called the prose "fluid but impersonally competent".

References

{{Joyce Carol Oates 1997 American novels Novels by Joyce Carol Oates Dutton Penguin books Gang rape in fiction