This was a really interesting take. I recently read Like Life for the first time and “You’re Ugly, Too” was my favorite story in the collection, precisely because of the use of humor in Zoe’s perspective (“a bonehead one does not forget”).

I appreciate the multiple lenses through which you examined story and it seems like that’s just as important in considering as the craft elements the story contains —your acknowledgement of the presentation of unconsidered privilege and excess irony in the context of the time period have added to my understanding of the piece, so thank you for that!