“Atypical Wednesday”: The Hofmann Wobble by Ben Lerner (Essay Review)

Synopsis: In this fictionalized essay, a man creates various Wikipedia identities to edit sources and manipulate information. His goals are to contribute to the common good and promote “progressive politics,” but is that all he does? How are his abilities impactful? Read and find out. 


Categorical Rankings (/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐):


-Pacing ⭐️⭐️⭐️: At the beginning, I had to get used to the repetitive symbolism. It was an element of the story that took me a few paragraphs to understand, “slowing” down my reading in a way. 

-Theme ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️: Messages about the power of information, media literacy, and humanity as a whole.

-Overall enjoyment ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️: The overwhelming nuance of the piece made it not only memorable but a sort of wake-up call when it comes to the information we consume and, most importantly, the one we believe. 


Story Insights (moderate spoilers):

 

This piece was an essay; a story; art. I went into thinking the character’s idea of editing Wikipedia would be showcased as having unfeasible/extremist outcomes. This was not the case.


Lerner does a great job at making the character appear ingenious and delusional at the same time. He describes the journey that made his idea come to life from the ground up and then criticized, more like invalidated, his purpose. 


Now…THAT ENDING. It was so fascinatingly ironic (situational, by the way). I could not think of a better way to tie up the discourse than with an artificial bow. 


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