There
is the “southern gothic” meaning this species of southern writing contains the
characteristics of the gothic; i.e.: dark and violent. Faulkner and O’Conner have been said
to be “southern gothic,” but I don’t see Percy there.
I
am taking a Southern Literature course next semester – what does it mean? Well,what Nikki says, you are
southern, and you are a writer – does that distinguish you in any way from the
rest of the country? How is it different? One question to ask is, how does
Updike (as in, the Rabbit series, same era) differ from Percy? Percy is Southern, aristocratic,
Catholic; Updike, Northern, lower middle class, Protestant. How are
protagonists, themes, etc. different?
I
have been told that “soul” arises from pain. The South – of all regions of the
country – went through pain after the Civil War – and I would say unjust pain,
after being defeated and subsequently taken advantage of. There is a soul to southern writing
that manifests in the early to mid 20th century.
Catholic
– Percy is obviously and consciously (and subconsciously) Catholic.
Whether
Percy saw a difference between himself and other authors from other regions is
probably unimportant. It’s hard
to see ourselves. Percy was
especially blind to himself in lots of ways.
Karey
From:
percy-l-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org [mailto:percy-l-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org]
On Behalf Of rizwana banu
Sent: Wednesday, October 21, 2009
8:41 PM
To: percy-l AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: Re:
[percy-l] FW: percy's southernness
That
is beautiful. The spirit of southern writing springs not from being similar
but being diverse and celebrating all that pertains to the south, be it the
history( it is one history for the white man and another for the black
and sometimes a shared history), religion, or gender. However, critics want to
exaggerate the differences to the extent of convoluting the very joy and
essence of being southern. This makes it hard to substantiate one's
southernness with a necessity to take a stand on either this or that side.
From:
nikkibar AT aol.com
To: percy-l AT lists.ibiblio.org
Date: Wed, 21 Oct 2009
16:03:18 -0500
Subject: Re: [percy-l] FW: percy's southernness
The
characteristics of being a Southern writer are 1. You should be from the
Southern United States and 2 You should write. Walker hated being referred to
that way and always would rather be read as simply a writer. That he was
Southern was for him incidental and not of great importance. Nor is his
Catholicism of any characteristic importance. Eudora Welty wasn't, nor was
Faulkner. Nor am I, although nobody much reads my work the way they do with
Percy, Welty, or Faulkner. And yet by all right I am a Southern writer and
I'll fight the man what says it isn't so. Or at least smile in sardonic
amusement.
Nikki
Barranger
On
Oct 21, 2009, at 4:40 AM, rizwana banu wrote:
What
exactly are the characteristics of being a southern writer? Is it
difficult or necessary to prove being a white catholic southern writer? How
is it different from being a protestant writer and a white anyway?
From: nikkibar AT aol.com
To: percy-l AT lists.ibiblio.org
Date:
Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:41:03 -0500
Subject: Re: [percy-l] FW: percy's
southernness
Dear Rizwana,
It
is doubtful whether Uncle Will would have been thought of by his
contemporaries as bigoted. Walker certainly wasn't. It would also be a
mistake to assume that Southern implies bigotedness. There are lots of folks
hereabouts who are not, although sometimes we have to struggle against it.
If you want to understand Uncle Will's influence on Walker, reread The Moviegoer. There is
therein a beneficent aunt who is a kind of alter ego of uncle Will, someone
who stands for the things of the generation before to which we are loyal
without surrendering our inner most selves. You might get some further
insight into the matter by reading Walker Percy
Remembered. I have some trouble figuring what you mean by alienated
in your last question. You might read Eudora Welty (particularly her piece
about the death of Medgar Evers) and although it may be hard to follow the
ironies within the works (many Americans can't) look at Flannery O'Connor,
particularly A Good Man
Is Hard To Find. It
would be difficult to describe Miss Welty as being alienated but if I catch the drift of
your question she may fit with what you mean. I hope this doesn't confuse
the issue further for you.
Nikki
Barranger
On
Oct 20, 2009, at 5:14 AM, rizwana banu wrote:
From: riz_banu AT hotmail.com
To: percy-l AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject:
percy's southernness
Date: Tue, 20 Oct 2009 15:43:38 +0530
I
have been trying to understand Percy's southernness in terms of his
biography, as regards the influence of "Uncle Will" on him. I find that
inspite of his upbringing in a upper class southern background he had a
mind of his own which went beyond mere class distinctions and vested
interests in retaining class distinctions. Percy was able to see clearly
the two sides of the coin as regards the civil war, not as a defeat of the
South but as one of a particular class of society. Percy with his southern
roots of aristocracy was yet not bigoted. He seems to be a minority within
his own circle. Who are the other southern novelists during the period
from 1960s to 1990s or even contemporary novelists who seem to be
alienated/unique in their understanding within their own group?
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