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The Mythos of Cormac McCarthy: A String in the Maze
For over 40 years, Cormac McCarthy's novels have presented an intriguing puzzle for readers and critics alike. Often described as plotless and impenetrable, devoid of ethics and morality, or simply as nihilistic, his tales have confounded interpretation through their dizzying array of ambiguities and contradictions even as they tantalize the reader with consistent hints of philosophical coherence. Offering what one of McCarthy's most enigmatic characters terms "a string in the maze," this study applies the traditional tools of close reading and thematic analysis to elucidate that coherence in the first eight novels. Following McCarthys methods from the Orchard Keeper of 1965 through the completion of the Border Trilogy in 1998, chapters on each novel identify narrative techniques and technical innovations. Intended for scholars and general readers alike, the essays show how McCarthy uses characters drawn from Appalachian regional folklore and the history of the American West as archetypes and Everymen, exploring the parallel lives of his paired protagonists--one invariably an ambivalent wanderer, the other a man committed to a quest.
176 pages, Paperback
First published July 28, 2008
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November 9, 2013
This is the best criticism of McCarthy's works that I have read. First and foremost, Andersen uses the right tools for the job - a close new criticism examination across McCarthy's considerable body of work, through the Border Trilogy. This is important given that McCarthy's books speak to one another.
Her insights into Blood Meridian are wonderful. She sees McCarthy's gravitational pull toward outlying characters on a quest for self determination and no characters better illustrate the point other than Glanton's band of filibusters.
A benefit of Andersen's methodology is that it allows for interpretations other than the conclusions she reaches. For instance, she understands that the judge's defining characteristic is that he "knows" to the point of appearing omniscient, and that he lives outside of Time. Where she concludes he is a god, her approach leaves room to see the judge as ego in the eastern sense (the self as an illusory projection of the five skandas).
Where Andersen sees God, I see the projection of the filibusters after their encounter with the Comanches.
It's a scholarly work, so the writing is tortured from the perspective of a general reader. But the rewards of reading Andersen's take make it more than worth the while in slogging through the text.
Elisabeth Andersen
Her insights into Blood Meridian are wonderful. She sees McCarthy's gravitational pull toward outlying characters on a quest for self determination and no characters better illustrate the point other than Glanton's band of filibusters.
A benefit of Andersen's methodology is that it allows for interpretations other than the conclusions she reaches. For instance, she understands that the judge's defining characteristic is that he "knows" to the point of appearing omniscient, and that he lives outside of Time. Where she concludes he is a god, her approach leaves room to see the judge as ego in the eastern sense (the self as an illusory projection of the five skandas).
Where Andersen sees God, I see the projection of the filibusters after their encounter with the Comanches.
It's a scholarly work, so the writing is tortured from the perspective of a general reader. But the rewards of reading Andersen's take make it more than worth the while in slogging through the text.
Elisabeth AndersenDisplaying 1 of 1 review