Writing of the Machine

Though James Thurber’s article “Sex Ex Machina” is problematic in some areas of its discourse, several elements of literary journalism and nonfiction are used. In particular, Thurber is quite concerned with providing anecdotal evidence for his readers, employing the use of several narratives to entice the reader rather than simply list off dry facts and statistics.

Thurber also uses these anecdotes to take a seemingly complex topic and distill it into an easily understood narrative format. Citing Dr. Louis Edward Bisch, Thurber takes a case study and presents it in a more digestible format than the traditional scientific report. Furthermore, he goes on to complicate that study, introducing other reporting and research to respond to the findings of the research.

Thurber is also adept at managing the pacing of his article, allowing it to ebb and flow naturally while retaining the necessary pace to keep the interest of the reader. Most paragraphs tend to begin with a callback to the previous one, allowing the reader to sequentially follow Thurber’s argument as it heads toward his eventual conclusion.

Furthermore, the article title is quite eye-catching, and it provides a sense of the piece while not revealing too much. The reader is drawn into Thurber’s piece thinking of it in terms of the one-dimension provided by the title, but they are quickly exposed to the complex, multi-faceted thesis Thurber is attempting to develop.

One final element to consider in Thurber’s piece is his use of dialogue. Through the article, it is clear that a great deal of the dialogue is constructed rather than quoted, used as a literary element as opposed to one of journalism. The reader should not consider the quotes to be verbatim or factual, instead using them as a way to more thoroughly engage with the topic about which Thurber is writing.