Where “dead people lay like saints”: Gothic Modernism in Cormac McCarthy’s Child of God

Abstract

This paper examines how Cormac McCarthy uses Gothic and Modernist modes in Child of God, a novel primarily known for its place in the Southern Gothic genre. In Gothic Modernism, writers blur traditional literary techniques—in the form of Gothic tropes or stylistic choices such as the framing narrative, unsettling landscapes, or depictions of madness—into Modernist techniques, using experimentation to evoke alienation or engage in social critique. I argue that Child of God, though published in 1973, is a Gothic Modernist text due to McCarthy’s stylistics, aesthetics, themes, and tropes. By looking at the novel through the lens of Gothic  modernism, we better understand McCarthy’s reasoning, influences, and methodology for telling the story of Lester Ballard. For example, McCarthy depicts the grotesque, death, and decay in eerie settings suggesting isolation, alienation, disillusionment, and individualism, layering the novel with nuance and experimentation. By bridging gaps between genres, eras, and aesthetics, McCarthy challenges readers’ expectations of the novel form and how we are complicit in our communities. I use research from Gothic Modernist scholars such as John Riquelme and Charles Crow to support the argument that McCarthy, consciously or unconsciously, uses Gothic and  Modernist tropes in his stylistic approach to the novel.