William Deresiewicz

William Deresiewicz is the author of The Death of the Artist: How Creators Are Struggling to Survive in the Age of Billionaires and Big Tech, coming out July 28.

The

The Coronavirus Means Curtains for Artists The Coronavirus Means Curtains for Artists

The loss of revenue from live events is only the start of this particular disaster.

May 7, 2020 / no-paywall / William Deresiewicz

Naples, Italy.

Conditions of Emergence: On Elena Ferrante Conditions of Emergence: On Elena Ferrante

In the pseudonymous author’s Neapolitan Novels, the price of leaving Naples is that you can never be at home again.

Sep 24, 2015 / Books & the Arts / William Deresiewicz

UCLA

Why Philanthropy Won’t Solve the Higher-Ed Crisis Why Philanthropy Won’t Solve the Higher-Ed Crisis

Relying on the rich to make college affordable for poor students reinforces the system that created those inequalities in the first place.

Jul 2, 2015 / Feature / William Deresiewicz

Diminishing Returns

Diminishing Returns Diminishing Returns

The writings of Tom McCarthy are a case study in the application of theory to fiction.

May 12, 2015 / Books & the Arts / William Deresiewicz

Why Has ‘My Struggle’ Been Anointed a Literary Masterpiece?

Why Has ‘My Struggle’ Been Anointed a Literary Masterpiece? Why Has ‘My Struggle’ Been Anointed a Literary Masterpiece?

With its lack of art and absence of thought, the blockbuster Norwegian novel disappoints.

May 13, 2014 / Books & the Arts / William Deresiewicz

Dread and Wonder

Dread and Wonder Dread and Wonder

The unflinching fiction of Ludmilla Petrushevskaya.

Mar 5, 2014 / Books & the Arts / William Deresiewicz

Passing the Signal Along Passing the Signal Along

The task of a critic has to do with the nature of the knowledge we call art.

Feb 28, 2013 / Books & the Arts / William Deresiewicz

‘I Was There’: On Kurt Vonnegut

‘I Was There’: On Kurt Vonnegut ‘I Was There’: On Kurt Vonnegut

Kurt Vonnegut sought to fool us with his eyes wide open.

May 16, 2012 / Books & the Arts / William Deresiewicz

Beattitudes: On Ann Beattie

Beattitudes: On Ann Beattie Beattitudes: On Ann Beattie

Ann Beattie is an artist of the things we don’t say, or can’t, and that find expression anyway.

Nov 22, 2011 / Books & the Arts / William Deresiewicz

The Children’s Hospital: On David Foster Wallace

The Children’s Hospital: On David Foster Wallace The Children’s Hospital: On David Foster Wallace

Vulnerability was what made David Foster Wallace so beloved, but it often led him to surrender too much in his fiction.

Jun 15, 2011 / Books & the Arts / William Deresiewicz

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