Science Versus Nature in Cormac Mccarthy’s Blood Meridian
Happy Harry
Professor Bob
English 102
3/20/04
Science Versus Nature in Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian Few modern writers have generated the attention of Cormac McCarthy. His straightforward, southern writing imitates William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor, whom he is often compared to (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). Cormac McCarthy was born in Rhode Island, but moved to Knoxville, Tennessee at the age of four (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1) and the language and culture of the Appalachian people figure prominently in all of his writing. He attended high school in Knoxville, and for a few years he attended the University of Tennessee. His education was interrupted by four years of military service in the Air Force, but then he returned to the University in 1957 (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). His talent for creative writing became apparent to his professors, who encouraged him to “develop his ability” (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). In 1960, he left the University to pursue a career as a novelist, even though he hadn’t finished his degree. Diane Cox, a professor at the University of South Carolina writes, “it seems true that McCarthy had not long planned to be a novelist, but rather had embraced his career gradually as his talent became evident to him and to his teachers during his college years” (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). On a ship to Europe, McCarthy met his future wife, an English singer by the name of Anne De Lisle (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). They have lived in several locations, including Tennessee; Asheville, North Carolina; Chicago, Illinois; and Texas (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). During the years of 1965 to 1999, McCarthy published eight novels. He has won numerous grants and awards for his writing, including a fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, a Guggenheim, and the prestigious National Book Critics Circle Award. Like William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor, McCarthy’s novels “have in common...a rustic and sometimes dark humor,
Professor Bob
English 102
3/20/04
Science Versus Nature in Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian Few modern writers have generated the attention of Cormac McCarthy. His straightforward, southern writing imitates William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor, whom he is often compared to (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). Cormac McCarthy was born in Rhode Island, but moved to Knoxville, Tennessee at the age of four (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1) and the language and culture of the Appalachian people figure prominently in all of his writing. He attended high school in Knoxville, and for a few years he attended the University of Tennessee. His education was interrupted by four years of military service in the Air Force, but then he returned to the University in 1957 (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). His talent for creative writing became apparent to his professors, who encouraged him to “develop his ability” (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). In 1960, he left the University to pursue a career as a novelist, even though he hadn’t finished his degree. Diane Cox, a professor at the University of South Carolina writes, “it seems true that McCarthy had not long planned to be a novelist, but rather had embraced his career gradually as his talent became evident to him and to his teachers during his college years” (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). On a ship to Europe, McCarthy met his future wife, an English singer by the name of Anne De Lisle (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). They have lived in several locations, including Tennessee; Asheville, North Carolina; Chicago, Illinois; and Texas (“Cormac McCarthy” par. 1). During the years of 1965 to 1999, McCarthy published eight novels. He has won numerous grants and awards for his writing, including a fellowship from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, a Guggenheim, and the prestigious National Book Critics Circle Award. Like William Faulkner and Flannery O’Connor, McCarthy’s novels “have in common...a rustic and sometimes dark humor,
Cited: Arnold, Edwin and Diane Luce. Introduction. Perspectives on Cormac McCarthy. Eds. Edwin Arnold and Diane Luce. Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 1999. 1 - 15. “Cormac McCarthy.” Contemporary Authors. Gale. Horry-Georgetown Technical College Lib. 15 March 2003 <http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC>. Daughtery, Leo. “Gravers False and True: Blood Meridian as Gnostic Tragedy.” Perspectives on Cormac McCarthy. Eds. Edwin Arnold and Diane Luce. Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 1999. 159 – 174. McCarthy, Cormac. Blood Meridian: Or the Evening Redness in the West. New York: Vintage International, 1985. Sepich, John Emil. “ ‘What kind of indians was them?’: Some Historical Sources in Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian.” Perspectives on Cormac McCarthy. Eds. Edwin Arnold and Diane Luce. Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 1999. 123 -144.