Cormac McCarthy in context

"From childhood, Cormac McCarthy demonstrated a novelist's sensibility. He admits that at an early age he enjoyed many "hobbies." Later, traveling for the sake of traveling and more specifically to research his many novels, he has focused much on what might be drawn from the language of The Crossing-the "world in its making." Given what we can determine from the biographical information available, his interests have been eclectic, ranging from inquiries into the processes that govern the natural world, from science and cosmology, to religious and secular philosophy, to social and political issues historically construed. Of course, this intellectual journey has culminated with his long association with the Santa Fe Institute, a think-tank known for its advanced inquiries into questions that employ but press the boundaries of science more narrowly understood. All these pathways have led to a remarkably rich array of novels, plays, and screenplays. McCarthy has published ten novels, two plays, two screenplays, among other works, each reflecting an intense interest in the formal aesthetics of his predecessors but demonstrating a confidence in his ability to contribute and advance those aesthetic practices in important and interesting ways. McCarthy's works manifest a deep and complex engagement with the very interests that have compelled him, and though the archives and personal correspondence reveal a desire to reach an audience, that motive never seemed primary to McCarthy. The act of artistic creation for McCarthy tends to have a more personal dimension, as novels are a way of setting ideas at play"--