Lee Smith’s new book On Agate Hill
I hope everyone enjoyed Lee Smith’s short story, Tongues of Fire, from Susan Ketchin’s Christ-Haunted Landscape. In an interview Smith says she upset her family because she went around telling everyone that God spoke to her directly. Now, some of us were shocked about the idea of “speaking in tongues of fire” but does the notion that God might speak directly to us seem controversial? I know I’ve mentioned this in class before, but for several years I lived with my great uncle who was a preacher and speaking in tonuges, laying on of hands (miraculous healing), being filled with the Holy Ghost, praying in the name of Jesus, and God speaking to folks was a daily event. But pointing to the exception doesn’t prove the rule. The question I asked in class seems to be an obvious one for the story in my view: Did Karen have a genuine religious experience when she spoke in tongues at camp or was her sickness an excuse for her behavior? Considering the different social strata Karen (versus Tammy Lester) came from how does her telling affect the reader’s attitude toward this kind of charismatic religious experience–and speaking in tongues in general as a practice?
Think about the approach of some of the more radical evangelists at Speaker’s Circle on campus who held banners declaring the list of those God (supposedly) hates. How are the Speaker Circle evangelists approaching the Great Commission as compared to the exposure of this more holiness brand of religion in Smith’s work? Remember where Karen’s mother ranked the Maranatha Apostolic Church on her list? Flannery O’Connor wrote that the artist has a duty to her art that might lead her to Salvation while it may lead the reader into sin. She believed the Catholic church had a duty to tell Catholics what was appropriate for them to read. Interesting view but one I’m surprised O’Connor would espouse. What do you think?
Also, how should we think about this story from the perspective of a non-believer? I think those of you who come from a different religious background certainly might have a more objective view since it isn’t an emotional or spiritual issue. Southern literature is rich in this type of dialogue with and about characters from a protestant background torn between an all or nothing philosophy toward God and spiritual life.
Smith has a new book that is getting rave reviews set in nineteenth century North Carolina. The Charlotte Observer refers to the novel’s protagonist, Molly Petree, as a female Huck Finn. I’ve included a link to Smith’s official website if you want to learn more about her and her work. It may even be helpful with Essay 1 if you choose Tongues of Fire to write about. I’ve never met the author, but from all accounts she’s a wonderful person and has been very influential in developing young writers as a professor. If you found Tongues of Fire interesting you might checkout her novel Saving Grace which features Snake Handling in Appalachia. I understand she did a great deal of research to handle the subject accurately and respectfully.
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