Pilgrim at Tinker Creek by Annie Dillard
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, written by Annie Dillard, is a novel based on the writers
curiousness about the mystery of God and the world which surrounds her. She is truly
baffled by the thought of God and the way his world seems to be evolving. Dillards novel
encompasses two main themes. Her first theme is actually a brilliant question; Dillard
wonders how there can be a loving and caring God when he has created such a brutal
environment. Her second theme is based on the idea that in every aspect of life, both good
and bad, there is beauty to be seen. Dillard struggles through the novel in search of factual
answers to her questions and proof of a loving and caring God.
Annie Dillard relies much on her senses, one particular one being sight. She
emphasizes that living life fully, means that each and every person must see beauty in
every aspect of life.
" But the artificial obvious is hard to see... I see what I expect." (p.18)
In many of Dillards passages, she uses animals and nature to convey har messages. The
author desperately searches for some rational explanation of why man kills man, why man
kills animal, and why animal kills animal. She searches for the answer to the theory of
"survival of the fittest" and questions why God would allow such inhumane acts. He
created this world and is continuously destroying it, and for what reason(s)? According to
Dillard, it is virtually impossible to believe in a God that is unseen by her eyes and causes
so much pain and distruction. She wants to believe that her God would do no harm and
only promote positive actions and consequences, but in fact he does the opposite. Her
desirable vision of God is difficult to conjure up...
... middle of paper ...
...esh perspective, we can
see the beauty in every aspect of life.
" In general the newly sighted see the world as a dazzle of color
patches." (p.27 )
She describes seeing through the fresh eyes of a child and because they are so young, they
fully live in the present. Simply by living in the present, the view is much more beautiful.
As soon as one begins to focus on the future, beauty is not as awesome, thus making the
individual bored and unable to focus on the beauty.
Dillards themes are more than just the major points of the book to her. She is
searching for the reasons why her world and its' creator are not perfect. Dillard focuses on
beauty and hopes that she can better understand God and his mysterious ways. She
emphasizes the idea that every action has beauty in it and we should all take the time to
look at the world from a fresh point of view.
talks about how she shot a gun and is able to paint a vivid picture of
She alludes to the idea that as people we must look deeper into our lives and see were we may have been given unearned privilege whether is be from race, gender, or sexuality.
perceive the novel in the rational of an eleven-year-old girl. One short, simple sentence is followed by another , relating each in an easy flow of thoughts. Gibbons allows this stream of thoughts to again emphasize the childish perception of life’s greatest tragedies. For example, Gibbons uses the simple diction and stream of consciousness as Ellen searches herself for the true person she is. Gibbons uses this to show the reader how Ellen is an average girl who enjoys all of the things normal children relish and to contrast the naive lucidity of the sentences to the depth of the conceptions which Ellen has such a simplistic way of explaining.
explores. They are also themes that she found in the Genesis narrative of Adam and Eve in
life; she nourishes and ensures the fertility of the land and people through her thirst for blood and sacrifice as a ritual for rebirth. As a pre-Christian goddess, she is not
One example that is very powerful is “it covers two acres of bottomland near Tinker Creek with six inches of water and six thousand lily pads.” This shows how humans are animals of perfection because the author takes a wild unorganized area and tries to make it organized by using exact numbers like two acres, six inches of water, and finally six thousand lily pads. By showing the reader how ridiculous it is to try and live so perfectly the author is strengthening her thesis That we should all grab onto our one necessity in life. This is the author’s argument in the 10th paragraph “his journal is tracks in clay, a spray of feathers, mouse blood and bone: uncollected, unconnected, loose-leaf, and blown.” This strength the authors thesis because it portrays how weasels live without looking back and they hold onto their one necessity with is surviving. These are perfect examples of how dillard used her arguments throughout each paragraph to connect the paragraph back to the
sin and because of sin, which affects both of their lives. The ideas that she delivers to her child,
Tom Robbins’s controversial first novel, Another Roadside Attraction, epitomizes the declination of religious devotion, especially Catholicism, in America during the 1960s. Influences on Robbins while conceiving this novel include the early history of Christianity, eastern religion, and author Joseph Campbell. Campbell is famous for his massive and detailed comparisons of Western and Eastern spirituality, myth, and belief. Additionally, the experimentation with psychedelic drugs such as LSD and psilocybin mushrooms led Robbins to new perspectives and mind expansion and consequently to question the validity of Christianity and the divinity of Jesus Christ. Robbins was intrigued by the extent to which Western Civilization—from its cultural myths to individual behavior—was predicted on the divinity of Christ. He wanted to explore questions and possible answers about what would happen if American Christians learned conclusively that Christ was not divine; questions such as, "What would this say about Western Civilization, about the future of Western Civilization? Could we continue to lead moral and ethical lives if Christ was proved to have died and stayed dead?" (Whitmer 245). This premise, conceived while writing art reviews for the Seattle Times, led Robbins to speculate about the consequences of world religion if the corpse of Jesus Christ was unearthed. When he approached Luther Nichols, west coast editor of Doubleday Books in 1968 with the concept for Another Roadside Attraction, Nichols bought the idea and Robbins was off and running on his first piece of fiction (Hoyser 9-12).
In conclusion, humankind is blessed with life as God created it. One must reflect on their actions throughout life because one will be judged by God in the next life, one must see the importance of gasping liberation, and one must have a loving and open heart when helping the poor. Life should be lived to its fullest because once time is lost, it cannot be regained; life needs to be appreciated.
makes references back to the animals she cares for and comes in contact with on
...iate God more and respect His authority. She finally gives in to what life is and takes it for what it is.
She allows the reader to identify with her by pointing out that she “went to the zoo all the time with [her] family” and that she “loved pandas” (Carr); the reader identifies with her, as the reader is likely to have visited the zoo as a child or likely to have a love for animals. Initially, she was very excited about seeing the animals so closely, but then she realized, even at that age, the “animals were miserable” (Carr). By telling the reader about her memory, Carr persuades the reader into believing that zoos are depressing and that animals do not belong in unnatural environments. Carr also mentions that she no longer goes to the zoo and urges her family and friends to do the same. The author then adds that she has a love for animals and wishes for the zoo animals to be set free. Again, by involving loved ones and reinforcing her love for animals, Carr appeals to the emotions of the reader. The reader is then likely to identify with the author, urge his or her family members and friends to not go to the zoo, and wish to see animals free from captivity. Therefore, Carr persuades the reader into believing that zoos are wicked by using the persuasive method of pathos. Along with Carr appealing to the reader’s emotions, she appeals to the reader’s
and she believes that by following God's moral code she will be right and just.
Her belief system is based on religion. She is consider herself as a Roman Catholic therefore she believes in one God, Saints, and the Virgin. She believes in
It was finally summer time and my friends and I couldn’t be happier. We had just gotten out of school when David, my next door neighbor and best friend started reminiscing on the times when we all used to head out to the lake every weekend. Even though David, Johnyboy, and Chris hadn’t all hung out as friends in a while, we decided to ask our parents if we could plan a camping trip during the summer. After deciding on asking, Johnyboy tells everyone to meet back up in two hours to see if everyone can go or not. While I was walking home, I kept having doubts about the camping trip. What if something happens? When we all used to go camping Johnyboy and David would always end up going to crazy. Even though David was my best friend, he still would go crazy from time to time, especially with Johnyboy being around. He was always the instigator of the trouble. I had trouble with making a decision when it came to the trip. If I went, I would be risking getting in trouble, but if I don’t go, I could risk missing out on a great time. I reached home and began talking to my mom. I told her how David, Johnyboy, and Chris wanted to go camping and to get her consent. She knew that David was a trustworthy guy, and Chris was a consistent religious follower, but my mom did not know the whereabouts of johnyboy. However, once we talked about the situation, she finally agrees to let me go on typical parent conditions like checking in every night and making smart choices. After we finished, I went upstairs and took a shower and got ready before I had to meet back up with the guys again. We met at our normal spot, the Circle K pump-n-go. Once everyone arrived we discussed how we would go about planning for the camping trip. Chris said he couldn’t ...