Ottessa Moshfegh
Biography
Ottessa Moshfegh is an American author known for her distinctive, often dark, and darkly humorous literary fiction. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1981, to a Croatian mother and an Iranian father, she earned an M.F.A. from Brown University. Her work frequently explores themes of alienation, self-loathing, and the bizarre aspects of human behavior, often through the lens of unreliable, disaffected narrators. Moshfegh achieved widespread critical acclaim with her 2018 novel, "My Year of Rest and Relaxation," which became a commercial success and cemented her reputation for crafting unsettling yet compelling narratives. Before that, her debut novel "Eileen" (2015) was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize and won the PEN/Hemingway Award. Her writing is characterized by its unflinching examination of uncomfortable truths and a sardonic wit that often subverts traditional narrative expectations, offering readers a unique and provocative literary experience.
Selected Thoughts
«My whole life, I’d been following the rules, doing what I was told, and it had gotten me nowhere.»
«I was going to optimize my body and my mind, purge all the toxins, and emerge clean and new.»
«I felt that being a human was a great burden. This body, this mind, this life – it was too much.»
Writing Style
Her writing style is characterized by its stark, unsparing prose, often employing a detached, cynical, and darkly humorous tone. Moshfegh uses irony and a morbid wit to explore the psychological depths of her often-unlikable and alienated protagonists. Her narratives are deeply introspective, frequently delving into the mundane, the grotesque, and the uncomfortable aspects of human existence with a compelling, almost hypnotic rhythm. She excels at crafting vivid internal monologues and creating a strong sense of atmosphere, often leaving readers with a feeling of unease and profound introspection.