Regional Studies: Appalachia 1905-1972: A Selected Annotated Bibliography

Abstract

Regional Studies: Appalachia 1905-1972 A Selected Annotated Bibliography by LYNN DICKERSON & BARBARA VANN Lynn Dickerson, a contributing and advisory editor of Appalachian Heritage, has appeared here before with articles dealing with the writings of John Fox, Jr. and Appalachian religion. This is Mrs. Vann's first appearance. She has a special interest in pyschohgical approaches to literature and has published in this area. Both co-authors teach in the Department of English, University of Richmond. INTRODUCTION: In this fourth of a series of bibliographical articles on Southern Appalachian literature and culture, the subject is restricted to studies about the mountain people, their history, and their environment. The list of books reviewed is in no way definitive. It represents some of the works that some authorities would include in a selected bibliography . It omits the three large surveys of the region that Loyal Jones discussed in the first article in this series. It also omits some works that seem to specialize in crafts and folklore. Moreover, it does not attempt to evaluate the validity of the studies. Its function is more descriptive than critical. Many of the works deal with the mountain personality. Recent books, however, warn against reducing the mountain people to a stereotype. They view such generalization as simplistic, and they are right. But sometimes it is necessary to speak of the mountaineer in order to draw any conclusions at all. If the reviews err on the side of simplicity, it is not a slight to the mountain people but an attempt to make concepts meaningful. The books appear in the order in which they were published. This order is itself significant, for it suggests the direction in which Appalachian studies are moving. Miles, Emma B. The Spirit of the Mountains. New York: James Pot and Co., 1905. The strength of this book is its simplicity. It does not argue a sophisticated thesis or speak the jargon of the professional social scientist. Instead, it presents the mountain people as they were. The authenticity of the presentation is attested by the sensitivity of the author. She not only knows these people intimately but also identifies with them. They are, in her words, "my people." She treats them with dignity as well as with compassion. She admires their skills, marvels at their self-reliance, and upholds their values. 41 Abandoned House On Quicksand Creek But the author does not only identify with the mountain people. She also keeps some distance, and it is this distance that enables her to present the material with some objectivity. This delicate balance between objectivity and compassion is especially evident in a passage on mountain religion: His religion is really the outgrowth of his own nature and environment rather than of the written Word—although he would, of course, indignantly deny that such is the case. He believes that he reads the Book and conducts himself according to its tenants to the best of his ability; but he is most of the time reading himself into the Bible. In addition to observations on religion, Emma Miles comments on mountain schools, social customs, feuds, folk music, and language. Although her writing is primarily expository and descriptive, it is sometimes narrative, frequently with dialogue. The setting is always pastoral but primitive. Kephart, Horace. Our Southern Highlanders. New York: Outing Publishing Co., 1913. Horace Kephart begins his book with a reference to the popular caricature of the mountaineer as a "tall, slouching figure in homespun, who carries a rifle habitually as he does his hat." After admitting that there is some truth to the caricature, the author moves toward a serious study of the mountaineer which is as interesting as a travelogue and as exciting as an adventure story. The date is one thing that makes the book interesting. The description of the primitive state of the mountain communities at the turn of the century is an eyewitness account . Kephart was there. He saw the forest disappear and the spongy humus erode; he saw the razorback hogs running wild through the mountains; he saw the wildlife slaughtered by people who took what they wanted when they wanted it. He lived in a mountain cabin and he hunted bear...