A 2020 Pulitzer Prize winner by Benjamin Moser with HarperCollins Publishers
Sontag: Her Life and Work by Benjamin Moser is a definite portrait of an emblematic genius.
The biography came out in 2019 and is published by Ecco/ HarperCollins Publishers.
In short, it tells the story of one of America’s greatest 20th Century writers: a girl from the suburbs who grew up to be an intellectual and cosmopolitan force.
Indeed Moser was well-placed to tackle this towering life story as the author of Why This World: A Biography of Clarice Lispector.
Furthermore, he has worked as a books columnist for Harper’s Magazine and The New York Times Book Review.
Certainly the 832-page work has been hailed a “landmark biography” and picked up a slew of awards including being named the 2020 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Biography.
Keep reading to find out more about Sontag, what makes it interesting reading plus tips it offers us as life-story writers …
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What’s Sontag about?
Sontag starts with details about Susan’s American parents who spent considerable time living in China.
Unfortunately her father died young from tuberculosis and Susan, and her sister, were raised by their mother who hid an alcohol addiction.
Certainly this impacted young Susan who was a prolific reader and out-read her teachers and professors.
Indeed she left home for university at age 16 and quickly found her independence and romantic freedom.
However, at age 17 she married fellow academic Philip Reiff and the pair soon welcomed son David.
But Susan grappled with pressure to be a traditional 1950s wife and eventually split from her husband.
Next she settled with her son in New York City to live a life of writing and activism that was punctuated with fame, lovers and health scares.
“With the mind of a European philosopher and the looks of a musketeer, she combined qualities that had been combined in men. What was new was that they were combined in a woman – and for generations of artistic and intellectual women, that combination provided a model more potent than any they knew.”
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Interesting elements of Sontag
One of the most interesting things in Sontag is how Susan wrote the bulk of Freud: The Mind of the Moralist.
Certainly, it was a sore point her husband was credited as the book’s sole author.
A second interesting element of Sontag is how she produced a play in the middle of war-torn Sarajevo.
Indeed Susan put her life on the line to give the local population a much-needed dose of art and humanity.
But perhaps the most interesting part of this biography is Susan’s formidable intellect.
This she clearly displayed via her many essays, books, reviews, movies, speeches and more that challenged and reshaped long-held conventions.
“She impressed generations of women as a thinker unafraid of men, and unaware she ought to be.”
Tips for new writers
One of the most obvious lessons we learn from Sontag is the value of journals.
Indeed Susan reportedly had 100!
Moser had unrestrictive access to Susan’s archives and used them to clearly detail her genius, private thoughts and struggles.
A second thing Moser teaches us is how to convey a holistic character, flaws and all.
For example, he shows how compassionate Susan was to strangers in a crisis (like a war zone) but, in normal day-to-day life, was unaware she could be extremely insensitive to those who loved her.
But the most powerful lesson of this book comes from Susan herself: she doubted her abilities and writing.
Certainly we learn this thinking is natural and afflicts even the best of the best!
“Q: Do you succeed always?
A: Yes, I succeed thirty percent of the time.
Q: Then you don’t succeed always.
A: Yes I do. To succeed 30% of the time is always.”
– From the journals of Susan Sontag, November 1, 1964
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Final say: Sontag
Sontag: Her Life and Work by Benjamin Moser is an award-winning biography about one of America’s most famous writers, thinkers and activists.
However, it is also the story of a complex individual whose private character struggled to reconcile with her public identity.
Indeed this life story is for readers interested in writing, the power of art and key events that shaped society today.
Certainly it is a stellar example of a well-written biography about an important and influential character.
But it also highlights how the world needs quality ideas and perspectives, perhaps now more than ever.
Happy writing and reading!
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