I don't know what marriages are like in general, but there are many things which I don't talk about with my husband. We discuss practical problems, but I wouldn't sit down with him and talk about the distant past. It's somewhat in contrast to other Americans, who feel that they have to confess things, but I'm really not like that.
Joyce Carol OatesThe punishment ā to the body, the brain, the spirit ā a man must endure to become even a moderately good boxer is inconceivable to most of us whose idea of personal risk is largely ego-related or emotional.
Joyce Carol OatesAnd Iām drawn to failure. I often write about it, and Iām sympathetic with it, I think, because I feel Iām contending with it constantly in my own life.
Joyce Carol Oates