The Literary Mary Book Club December 2005 Discussion: Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx

Dear Literary Mary Book Club,

Our first assignment, with discussion commencing today, December 1st, 2005 is:

Brokeback Mountain
Annie Proulx
Scribner (November 1, 2005), 64 pages
ISBN: 0743271327

Ennis del Mar and Jack Twist, two ranch hands, come together when they're working as sheepherder and camp tender one summer on a range above the tree line. At first, sharing an isolated tent, the attraction is casual, inevitable, but something deeper catches them that summer. Both men work hard, marry, and have kids because that's what cowboys do. But over the course of many years and frequent separations this relationship becomes the most important thing in their lives, and they do anything they can to preserve it.

(Soon to come out as a major motion picture.)
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Literary Mary writes:

While the concept for this short story (it is, honestly, more a short story than the "novella" that Scribner claims) suggests cheesy pornography, Proulx tackles it with the emotional honesty and harsh light of reality that to me are her trademarks. What ends up being more titillating than the sex in the book (though it has its surprising moments), are the questions this brief little tome raises about sexuality.

It seems on the surface, to be more specific, like a story about two gay cowboys (or, to be exact, sheepboys). But I got to thinking: what in the world are the chances that these two young guys, the two randomly stuck together for a lonely job up on a mountainside, both happen to be gay? It is of course possible, no question. But the reading becomes a lot more interesting to me when I consider that perhaps sexuality can be more flexible than most people tend to believe, and that perhaps what happened to these guys was in part circumstantial. It seems to me that Jack is a true gay man. But Ennis seems to be caught up in the moment, pulled toward Jack but ultimately content to live his life with his wife and let Jack go. Throughout the story Jack is pursuing Ennis, making most of the effort, always more eager to continue their affair. "I wish I knew how to quit you," Jack says to Ennis. Ennis seems almost ambivalent, though he does get involved enough to let the affair ruin his marriage. Perhaps Jack is a gay man and Ennis is a man whose mind is captured by a long-ago moment of passion, like a sleeve caught on a nail. If this is the case, the scenario raises questions about sexuality: for example, can sexuality be context-specific? Can our experiences influence our sexual orientation? Can sexual orientation change over time? Can the passion of one person influence the sexual propensities of another? Can sexuality be focused more on specific people in one's life than on gender as a whole?

I found that the story was captivating from start to finish, but had a hard time imagining how they are going to turn something so short and ultimately sketchy (as short stories by nature are) into a feature-length movie. Also, the guys Proulx describes in this book are not nearly as good-looking as the likes of the actors portraying them, but isn't that always the way. I am certainly going to see the movie, as it comes from Academy-award winning filmmaker Ang Lee, and it will be fascinating to see how the movie treats the sensitive and confusing topics the story addresses.

Comments anyone?