The Allusive Art of Cormac McCarthy's The Orchard Keeper

Abstract

Abstract:Replete with echoes of poetry, drama, scripture, and the language of powerful novelistic forebears, Cormac McCarthy's first long fiction unfolds in prose that breathes literary tradition. Richly suggestive yet never pretentious, the author's allusions, whether direct or implied, frame and lend meaning to the rural comings and goings, the occasional violence, and the characteristic speech of The Orchard Keeper's East Tennessee milieu. As an important part of the sumptuous idiom in which McCarthy writes, allusion confers distinction on the story's unsophisticated characters and thereby delivers them from sociological, political, and even literary prejudice, not to mention the contumely of popular culture and urban manners. Attention to the allusive weave facilitates a comprehensive reading of McCarthy's novel, incidentally offering help with textual enigmas left unaddressed or unresolved or unnoticed in prior criticism.