The Image of the Intellectual in the Short Stories of Joyce Carol Oates

This study analyzes the portrait of the intellectual in Joyce Carol Oates’s academic short stories and her novel Unholy Loves; it discusses both the thematic and stylistic development of these tales and Oates’s critical view of the academic world. Furthermore, this close reading argues that many of the stories contain metaphorical qualities unacknowledged thus far; it therefore concludes that most are accomplished, sometimes excellent examples of Oates’s craftsmanship and exceptional narrative talent.