A Literary Shema: Annie Dillard's Judeo-Christian Vision and Voice

For the duration of her writing career Pulitzer Prize-winning author Annie Dillard has unflinchingly asked and kept on asking enormous and difficult questions: What is the relation of Creator to creation? Why is there evil and unjust suffering? How do we make meaning of our experiences? Who is responsible for redeeming the worlds brokenness? Moreover she has done so in every genre within the impressive range of her canon: her poetry literary nonfiction novels autobiography literary criticism and memoirs. Two enduring influences have shaped Dillards cosmos-spanning questions and their metanarratives-Christianity and Jewish mysticism particularly Hasidism and Isaac Lurias Kabbalism. Though much scholarly attention has been paid to the influence of Christian mysticism in Dillards work none has yet explored the role of her lifelong interest in Jewish mystical traditions. This book seeks to fill that scholarly gap and demonstrate how Dillards theological vision and voice both reflect and enact central features of Hasidic and Kabbalistic thought resulting in what could be called Dillards literary shema.