"He Hardly Knew If He Dreamt Or Not": Altered States Of Consciousness In Suttree

Cormac McCarthy's novels often relate the story of characters traveling through vivid landscapes populated by bizarre, sometimes even fantastical characters and images. As his characters journey through nightmarish Appalachian hollows shadowed by unholy triumvirates of thieves or ethereal desert mesas haunted by demons of a more personal nature little of their thoughts processes or emotions are revealed. The emotionally detached renderings of scenes of violence by McCarthy are rarely, if ever, accompanied by an emotional reaction from the characters.