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Open Access Thesis

Keywords

Dillard, Annie--Criticism and interpretation; Dillard, Annie; Criticism, interpretation, etc;

Abstract

After reviewing the criticism on Pulitzer Prize winning American author Annie Dillard's writing, I offer a close analysis of the imagery in these of Dillard's early works: Pilgrim at Tinker Creek (1974), Holy the Firm (1977), and Teaching a Stone to Talk (1982). The analysis reveals how Dillard employs oppositions to expose the contradictions inherent in nature and, therefore, in God. Each of the three chapters covers one volume. In Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, Dillard's spiritual quest manifests itself in a study of nature. For Dillard, learning to see requires being prepared for visions of violence and horror as well as of beauty and epiphany. By stalking muskrats, Dillard learns to stalk the spirit. She finds the via negativa, the ·painful process of emptying oneself in order to be filled by the spirit, to be the most effective way to receive visions of God through nature. Dillard uses the Hegelian pattern of thesis, antithesis, and synthesis in Holy the Firm. Choosing the artistic structure of assigning one chapter to each day of her life for three consecutive days, Dillard evokes images of the Garden of Eden, the fall of humankind, and redemption. She learns that wisdom begins when we understand that human beings live in constant danger; we need God, but God needs nothing. In the essays of Teaching a Stone to Talk, Dillard continues her spiritual quest, but realizes the importance of community to spiritual progress. Images of violence and splendor again serve to represent a complex world embracing science and religion. Dillard also uses imagery to explore the workings of her own mind during the writing process. The danger that was discovered in Holy the Firm continues as Dillard shows an increasing concern with death. Here she is unable to achieve synthesis in the Hegelian sense so instead achieves brief glimpses of synthesis through epiphanic moments. These three early Dillard texts show a progression from the solitary spiritual quest to the need for community. They also constitute one well defined period in Dillard's writing career. Considering the mastery of language and subject matter, these may be her most enduring works.

Year of Submission

1992

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

Department of English Language and Literature

First Advisor

Barbara Lounsberry

Second Advisor

Grace Ann Hovet

Third Advisor

Theodore Hovet

Comments

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Date Original

1992

Object Description

1 PDF file (123 leaves)

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

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