SOURCE: “My O My O Myra,” in New England Review, Vol. 14, No. 1, Fall, 1991, pp. 102-15.

In the following essay, Stimpson examines the archetypal themes and power dynamics of sexuality and gender identity in Myra Breckenridge and Myron, drawing attention to the function of these motifs in Vidal's critique of modern culture.

My o my o Myra, my o my o Myron. Myra rides and Myron clowns through Myra Breckenridge and Myron, Gore Vidal’s wild, steely, and amazing rodeos of the word.¹ Vidal has coupled Myra and Myron as tightly as Jack and Jill, then filled their names to the rim and brimmed them with meanings. Surely Myra, my “ra,” is at once a deity; the symbol of radium, a radioactive element; and a cheer, Bronx-inflected, in the sports stadium of America. “M,” inverted, is “W,” the lead letter in that group “Woman.” Surely Myron, my “ron,” invokes...