ANNIE DILLARD: THE MODERN MYSTIC

Abstract

In her book titled Annie Dillard, Linda L Smith's writes that Pilgrim at Tinker Creek appears to be book about natural but reality is about God and his relationship to man (Smith, 1991, p.16). In my view, what characterizes Annie Dillard's writing about her surroundings in Pilgrim at Tinker Creek is continuous vacillation between her detailed, fresh depiction of natural world and her speculative and mystical inclinations. This vacillation between material and spiritual vision is what establishes close affinity between her works andnineteenthcentury American Transcendentalism.Dillard's mystical vision can be shown in chapter two of her book Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, meditation on seeing. is matter of verbalization to great extent, says Dillard. Verbalization can call seen object into attention which,therefore, can be seen. Otherwise, would remain unseen, Seeing is of course very much matter of verbalization. Unless I call my attention to what passes before my eyes I simply won't see it (Dillard,2009, p. 40). Dillard thinks that secret of seeing is a pearl of great price (Dillard,2009,p. 43) and feels she is ready if only she could find someone to teach her art of doing so, to go through deserts in quest for knowing. Dillard looks for amystical, spiritual vision through which she can see light. She speaks of two kinds of seeing, literal and figurative. I focus on figurative seeing'which is more complicated than literal. This seeing' requires us to look with inner eyes and go beyond outward appearances to see what is hidden. This kind of seeing requires us to be mystics. It is kind of seeing which involves letting go. When I see this way I sway transfixed and emptied (Dillard,2009, p. 41). This is state of mind that allows mind's muddy river to flow unheeded and to stare at the realm of real where subjects and objects act and rest purely, without utterance (Dillard,2009, p. 43) that is not tainted by cultural distortion inherent in language. These are moments of truly seeing and are described by Dillard as an experience of transcendence: Something broke and something opened. I filled up like new wineskin. I breathed an air like light; I saw light like water. I was lip of fountain creek filled for ever; I was ether, leaf in zephyr; I was flesh-flake, feather, bone (Dillard,2009, p. 41). Dillard says, vision comes and goes, mostly goes, but I live for it, for moment when mountains open and new light roars in spate through crack, and mountains slam (Dillard,2009, p. 43).Dillard's experience seems very similar to that of Emerson's when his egotism disappears and he feels that he becomes transparent eye-ball(Emerson, 1983, p. 10). In her book Literary Epiphany in Work of Annie:The Space Between, Sandra Johnson discusses those illuminating moments. She says that modern poets work at creating such illuminated moments for reader while earlier poets intended only to convey that vision happened. A literary epiphany allows reader to share experienced moment while vision is just described by writer and recognized by reader as reader is unable to experience visionphysically(Johnson,1992, P.8). Dillard, thus adopts this nineteenth-century transcendental tradition but adds modern sense to by seeking to create illuminated moments in reader and going beyond mere description. W.T. Stace notes that what creates mystical experience is feeling of union with environment and this union may happen in two ways. The first way whichStace calls extrovertive vision or vision of natureis achieved when mystic undergoes unifying vision of reality and feels unified with surroundings but keeps personal awareness. The second type of mystical experience happens when person feels unitary consciousness and awareness. …