77. Is Ocean Vuong Right About AI’s Standardization of Literature?

This podcast is a presentation of The Meow Library. Recently, novelist and NYU professor Ocean Vuong sat down with book commentator David Perell to discuss a number of stifling trends in contemporary literature, namely the “taming of the sentence,” which has become increasingly evident as writers begin using AI tools to check their work for clarity. Vuong argues that this enervation of literary style began with the newspaper, eventually finding its way into universities and literary workshops. AI merely reveals the pervasiveness of today’s “merely communicative” approach. Better writing comes, he explains, when authors value intuition over precision. This podcast demolishes Vuong’s position by presenting an excerpt from the internationally bestselling Meow: A Novel. Or maybe it proves his point. We don’t know. It’s all a vibe, man. This podcast is sustained by sales of the internationally bestselling Meow: A Novel. Ocean Vuong’s work can be read and purchased here.