Reading Groups

In Short: Joyce Carol Oates’s “How I Contemplated the World from the Detroit House of Correction and Began My Life Over Again” with Art Taylor

$35

1 Session

In stock

Monday, 7:00 pm EDT - 8:30 pm EDT August 10, 2026

Online via Zoom

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Similar to her widely referenced 1966 story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?,” Joyce Carol Oates’s 1969 piece “How I Contemplated the World from the Detroit House of Correction and Began My Life Over Again” focuses on a teenage girl navigating the pangs of adolescence and the threat of violence. Arguably, though, the latter tale is richer thematically and more daring in style and structure. Presented as notes for a school essay, “How I Contemplated” is comprised of twelve sections that offer glimpses into the world and mind of a fifteen-year-old girl, fitfully tracing her journey from a wealthy Detroit suburb to the perils of the inner city.

We will discuss the experience of reading this story, focusing on both its style (sometimes stream-of-consciousness) and modular structure, which requires readers to piece the narrative together like a jigsaw puzzle. We’ll also consider its recurrent and contrasting images as milestones that guide our reading journey and themes of class, gender, and race; family dysfunction; teenage angst and alienation; and the double-edged concept of “home.”

Reading List:

“How I Contemplated the World from the Detroit House of Correction and Began My Life Over Again” by Joyce Carol Oates (A copy of the story will be emailed upon registration.)

What to read in advance: Please read Joyce Carol Oates’ “How I Contemplated the World from the Detroit House of Correction and Began My Life Over Again.” A copy of the story will be emailed upon registration.

We offer a limited number of need-based scholarships for our Reading Groups and Writing Workshops, covering 50% of tuition. Applicants selected for scholarships will be notified one week prior to the first meeting. To apply for a scholarship, please fill out this form.

Pricing inclusive of sales tax if applicable. Please note: All virtual classes are recorded. Please click here for information about our recording policy.

Led by

Art Taylor

Art Taylor

Art Taylor is the Edgar Award-winning author of two short story collections: The Adventure of the Castle Thief and Other Expeditions and Indiscretions and The Boy Detective and the Summer of ’74 and Other Tales of Suspense. He’s a professor of English and Creative Writing at George Mason University, where he teaches courses in “Writing Suspense” and “Crossing Genres.”

About this series

Reading Groups

Whether you’re looking to catch up on great novels or you’re interested in exploring a new writer or literary period, our reading groups offer high-level literary discussion led by experts in the field.

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