{"id":5867,"date":"2018-04-18T18:37:37","date_gmt":"2018-04-18T18:37:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/repeatright.com\/engine\/?p=5867"},"modified":"2018-10-09T05:43:47","modified_gmt":"2018-10-09T05:43:47","slug":"dillard-annie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.repeatright.com\/engine\/dillard-annie\/","title":{"rendered":"DILLARD, Annie"},"content":{"rendered":"
[vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453315804311{margin-top: -40px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531588223-e020d87d-f7dd094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cA schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

The Writing Life <\/em>(1989) New York: Harper Perennial, 2013, p. 32<\/p>\n

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Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Non-fiction] \u201cA schedule defends from chaos and whim. It is a net for catching days.<\/span> It is a scaffolding on which a worker can stand and labor with both hands at sections of time. A schedule is a mock-up of reason and order \u2013 willed, faked, and so brought into being; it is a peace and a haven set into the wreck of time; it is a lifeboat on which you find yourself, decades later, still living.\u201d (p. 32)<\/p>\n

Source note<\/em><\/strong>: From The Writing Life<\/em> publisher notes: \u201cExcerpts from this book appeared in Black Warrior Review<\/em>, Esquire<\/em>, the New York Times Book Review<\/em>, Tikkun<\/em>, and TriQuarterly<\/em>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1449531589797-29580b31-8c50094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

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Source<\/em><\/span><\/strong>: Editor\u2019s copy \u2013 The Writing Life<\/em> (1989|2013 Harper Perennial reprint) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-06-016516-6<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315829087-ce67c619-0fbc5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cHow we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

The Writing Life <\/em>(1989) New York: Harper Perennial, 2013, p. 32<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315829475-7c82a017-1e625381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Non-fiction] \u201cWhat then shall I do this morning? How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.<\/span> What we do with this hour, and that one, is what we are doing. A schedule defends from chaos and whim.\u201d (p. 32)<\/p>\n

Source note<\/em><\/strong>: From The Writing Life<\/em> publisher notes: \u201cExcerpts from this book appeared in Black Warrior Review<\/em>, Esquire<\/em>, the New York Times Book Review<\/em>, Tikkun<\/em>, and TriQuarterly<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1453315829682-63e8fade-cf4c5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

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Source<\/span><\/strong><\/em>: Editor\u2019s copy \u2013 The Writing Life<\/em> (1989|2013 Harper Perennial reprint) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-06-016516-6<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1e5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cI am a fugitive and a vagabond, a sojourner seeking signs.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek<\/em> (1974) New York: Harper & Row\/First Perennial Library edition, 1988 reissue, p. 267<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bf5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Non-fiction; author\u2019s narrative]\n

\u201cI stood, alone, and the world swayed. I am a fugitive and a vagabond, a sojourner seeking signs<\/span>.\u201d (p. 267)<\/p>\n

Source note<\/em><\/strong>: From the Pilgrim at Tinker Creek<\/em> publisher notes: \u201cPortions of this work previously appeared in the following publications: The Atlantic<\/em>, Harper\u2019s Magazine,<\/em> Travel and Leisure<\/em>, Sports Illustrated<\/em>, Prose<\/em>, The Christian Science Monitor<\/em>, The Carolina Quarterly<\/em>, The Living Wilderness<\/em>, Cosmopolitan<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1453315828572-dac97b48-68e05381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library – Pilgrim at Tinker Creek<\/em> (1974 | 1988 Harper & Row\/First Perennial) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-06-091545-5<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cOur life is a faint tracing on the surface of mystery.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek<\/em> (1974) New York: Harper & Row\/First Perennial Library edition, 1988 reissue, p. 9<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Non-fiction; author\u2019s narrative] \u201cWe don\u2019t know what\u2019s going on here. If these tremendous events are random combinations of matter run amok, the yield of millions of monkeys at millions of typewriters, then what is it in us, hammered out of those same typewriters, that they ignite? We don\u2019t know. Our life is a faint tracing on the surface of mystery<\/span>, like the idle, curved tunnels of leaf miners on the face of a leaf. We must somehow take a wider view, look at the whole landscape, really see it, and describe what\u2019s going on here.\u201d (pp. 8-9)<\/p>\n

Source note<\/em><\/strong>: From the Pilgrim at Tinker Creek<\/em> publisher notes: \u201cPortions of this work previously appeared in the following publications: The Atlantic<\/em>, Harper\u2019s Magazine,<\/em> Travel and Leisure<\/em>, Sports Illustrated<\/em>, Prose<\/em>, The Christian Science Monitor<\/em>, The Carolina Quarterly<\/em>, The Living Wilderness<\/em>, Cosmopolitan<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-search” add_icon=”true” title=”Source ISBN” tab_id=”1449531592891-f39e055b-a66e094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

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Source<\/em><\/span><\/strong>: Library – Pilgrim at Tinker Creek<\/em> (1974 | 1988 Harper & Row\/First Perennial) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-06-091545-5<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1e5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cShe reads books as one would breathe air, to fill up and live.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

The Living<\/em> (1992) New York: HarperCollins, 1992, p. 391<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bf5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Fiction]\n

\u201cShe wrote, as Hugh did, in a state compounded of mental vigor and bodily exhaustion. After she wrote her letter, she read borrowed books into the small hours. She reads books as one would breathe air, to fill up and live<\/span>; she read books as one would breathe ether, to sink in and die.\u201d (p. 391)<\/p>\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library \u2013 The Living<\/em> (1992) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-06-016870-6<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cThe answer must be, I think, that beauty and grace are performed whether or not we will or sense them. The least we can do is try to be there.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

Pilgrim at Tinker Creek<\/em> (1974) New York: Harper & Row\/First Perennial Library edition, 1988 reissue, p. 8<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Non-fiction; author\u2019s narrative. Dillard is describing a mockingbird that dove from a tree before spreading its wings to break its acceleration toward the ground.]\n

\u201cThe fact of his free fall was like the old philosophical conundrum about the tree that falls in the forest. The answer must be, I think, that beauty and grace are performed whether or not we will or sense them. The least we can do is try to be there<\/span>.\u201d (p. 8)<\/p>\n

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Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library – Pilgrim at Tinker Creek<\/em> (1974 | 1988 Harper & Row\/First Perennial) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-06-091545-5<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1e5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cThe sea pronounces something, over and over, in a hoarse whisper; I cannot quite make it out. But God knows I have tried.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

\u201cTeaching a Stone to Talk\u201d (January 1981) The Atlantic<\/em> magazine, Vol. 247, No. 1, Boston, MA: Atlantic Monthly Co., p. 38<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bf5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Essay]\n

\u201cBillions of stars sift among each other untouched, too distant ever to be moved, heedless as always, hushed. The sea pronounces something, over and over, in a hoarse whisper; I cannot quite make it out. But God knows I have tried<\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Source note<\/em><\/strong>: Dillard\u2019s essay can also be found in her book Teaching a Stone to Talk: Expeditions and Encounters <\/em>(1982).<\/span><\/p>\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library \u2013 The Atlantic<\/em> (January 1981) International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) 0004-6795<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cThere are no events but thoughts and the heart\u2019s hard turning, the heart\u2019s slow learning where to love and whom. The rest is merely gossip, and tales for other times.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

Holy the Firm<\/em> (1977) New York: HarperCollins eBook, July 2007 edition, p. 35; online via Scribd [subscription service] www.scribd.com<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Non-fiction narrative]\n

\u201cWe sleep to time\u2019s hurdy-gurdy; we wake; if we ever wake, to the silence of God. And then, when we wake to the deep shores of time uncreated, then when the dazzling dark breaks over the far slopes of time, then it\u2019s time to toss things, like our reason, and our will; then it\u2019s time to break our necks for home.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0 There are no events but thoughts and the heart\u2019s hard turning, the heart\u2019s slow learning where to love and whom. The rest is merely gossip, and tales for other times.<\/span>\u201d (p. 35)<\/p>\n

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Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Holy the Firm<\/em> (1977 | July 2007 eBook edition) online via Scribd [subscription service]: https:\/\/www.scribd.com\/read\/163632896\/Holy-the-Firm#Search_search-menu_73878<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1e5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

There is no shortage of good days. It is good lives that are hard to come by.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

The Writing Life <\/em>(1989) New York: Harper Perennial, 2013, p. 32<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bf5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Non-fiction] \u201cThere is no shortage of good days. It is good lives that are hard to come by.<\/span> A life of good days lived in the senses is not enough. The life of sensation is the life of greed; it requires more and more. The life of the spirit requires less and less; time is ample and its passage sweet. Who would call a day spent reading a good day? But a life spent reading \u2013 that is a good life.\u201d (pp. 32-33)<\/p>\n

Source note<\/em><\/strong>: From The Writing Life<\/em> publisher notes: \u201cExcerpts from this book appeared in Black Warrior Review<\/em>, Esquire<\/em>, the New York Times Book Review<\/em>, Tikkun<\/em>, and TriQuarterly<\/em>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Editor\u2019s copy \u2013 The Writing Life<\/em> (1989|2013 Harper Perennial reprint) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-06-016516-6<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cWe are here to abet creation and to witness it, to notice each thing so each thing gets noticed. Together we notice not only each mountain\u2019s shadow and each stone on the beach but we notice each other\u2019s beautiful face and complex nature so that creation need not play to an empty house.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Meaning of Life\u201d (December 1988) LIFE<\/em> Magazine, Vol. 11, No. 14, New York: Time, Inc., p. 93, column 2<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Excerpt from Dillard\u2019s response to the LIFE<\/em> magazine prompt: \u2018What is the meaning of life?\u2019]\n

\u201cThe Old Testament Book of Micah answers the question of why we are here with another: \u201cWhat doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?\u201d We are here to abet creation and to witness it, to notice each thing so each thing gets noticed. Together we notice not only each mountain\u2019s shadow and each stone on the beach but we notice each other\u2019s beautiful face and complex nature so that creation need not play to an empty house<\/span>.\u201d (p. 93, column 2)<\/p>\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Editor\u2019s Copy \u2013 \u201cThe Meaning of Life\u201d (December 1988) LIFE<\/em> magazine, International Standard Serial No. (ISSN) 0024-3019<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1e5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cWhy are we reading, if not in hope of beauty laid bare, life heightened and its deepest mystery probed? Can the writer isolate and vivify all in experience that most deeply engages our intellects and our hearts?\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

The Writing Life <\/em>(1989) New York: Harper Perennial, 2013, p. 72<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bf5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Non-fiction] \u201cWhy are we reading, if not in hope of beauty laid bare, life heightened and its deepest mystery probed? Can the writer isolate and vivify all in experience that most deeply engages our intellects and our hearts?<\/span> Can the writer renew our hope for literary forms? Why are we reading if not in hope that the writer will magnify and dramatize our days, will illuminate and inspire us with wisdom, courage, and the possibility of meaningfulness, and will press upon our minds the deepest mysteries, so we may feel again their majesty and power?\u201d (pp. 72-73)<\/p>\n

Source note<\/em><\/strong>: From The Writing Life<\/em> publisher notes: \u201cExcerpts from this book appeared in Black Warrior Review<\/em>, Esquire<\/em>, the New York Times Book Review<\/em>, Tikkun<\/em>, and TriQuarterly<\/em>.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Source<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Editor\u2019s copy \u2013 The Writing Life<\/em> (1989|2013 Harper Perennial reprint) International Standard Book Number (ISBN) 0-06-016516-6<\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1449531591105-7edf5f39-feaa094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t test courage cautiously.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

~Annie Dillard<\/strong>, American author<\/p>\n

An American Childhood<\/em> (1987) Harper Perennial, 1988 First Perennial Library edition, p. 108; online via Open Library [free subscription service] openlibrary.org<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1449531591631-43861bc7-da28094f-cf635381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong>:<\/em> [Memoir \u2013 Dillard is describing a childhood run down Penn Avenue] \u201cYou can\u2019t test courage cautiously,<\/span> so I ran hard and waved my arms hard, happy.\u201d (p. 108)<\/p>\n

Source note<\/em><\/strong>: From the An American Childhood<\/em> publisher note: \u201cParts of this book have appeared, in different forms, in the New York Times Magazine<\/em>, American Heritage Magazine<\/em>, and the New York Times Book Review<\/em>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Library \u2013 An American Childhood <\/em>(1987 | 1988 First Perennial Library edition) online via Open Library [free subscription service]: https:\/\/archive.org\/stream\/americanchildhoo00dill#page\/108\/mode\/2up\/search\/courage+cautiously<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1453316221301{margin-top: 0px !important;border-top-width: 0px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_tta_tabs style=”modern” shape=”square” active_section=”1″][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-book” add_icon=”true” title=”Citation” tab_id=”1453315828001-b5e2e52e-ea1e5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Annie Dillard – Misattribution<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u201cYou\u2019ve got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

~Ray Bradbury<\/strong><\/span>, American author<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Bradbury, reiterating a version of a phrase he first introduced in the late 1970s, in “Writer lives life at \u2018top of my lungs\u2019” (9 September 1990) Interview with Luaine Lee, New York Times Syndicate, in The Anniston Star<\/em>,\u00a0Vol. 110, No. 252, 9 September 1990, Anniston, AL: Consolidated Publishing Co., p. 1C, columns 2 & 3 [p. 41 of full\u00a0edition]; online via Newspapers.com [subscription service] www.newspapers.com<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-ban” add_icon=”true” title=”Misquotes” tab_id=”1449531589281-1a7ccd5f-aa59094f-cf635381-89e5″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Re-quote notes<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Bradbury repeated versions of his \u201cbuild your wings\u201d quote a number of times throughout his career. Although the 1990 version featured on our page is one of the more common iterations, Bradbury had spoken & written earlier versions of the idea extending back at least to 1979.<\/p>\n

The \u201cQuote Investigator\u201d Garson O\u2019Toole<\/strong><\/span> had already tracked down many of the sources listed below a few years before we researched the quote. Although we added some additional details here, overall our search in 2017 aligned with his earlier findings. Please see misattribution notes below & our “Source Link” tab for more information & a link to the Quote Investigator page.<\/p>\n

A few examples of Bradbury’s most notable ‘build your wings’ quote variations include:<\/p>\n

November 1979<\/u> – Bradbury<\/strong> \u2013 Book review: \u201cThen the long march from the rim of the cave to the edge of the cliff where we flung ourselves off and built our wings on the way down<\/strong> <\/span>quickens to focus. It\u2019s all here, in a building, in a book.\u201d<\/p>\n

[Source<\/em>: Ray Bradbury, \u201cHymn to humanity from the cathedral of high technology\u201d (18 November 1979) Book review of The National Space and Air Museum by C.D.B. Bryan, in Los Angeles Times, The Book Review<\/em>, p. 1, column 3; in The Los Angeles Times<\/em>, Los Angeles, CA [p. 316 of full edition file]; online via Newspapers.com [subscription service] www.newspapers.com<\/a>]<\/span><\/p>\n

October 1986<\/u> – Bradbury<\/strong> \u2013 Keynote remarks, cited in regional newspaper: \u201cIn his keynote address, author Ray Bradbury declared that if enough people followed their hearts, they could realize their optimistic vision of humanity\u2019s future. Bradbury exhorted his enthusiastic listeners to \u201cjump off the cliff and learn how to make wings on the way down<\/span><\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

[Source<\/em>: Ray Bradbury, Keynote address, \u2018Future Style\u2019 symposium (18 October 1986) University of California Irvine, Nelson Auditorium; cited in \u201cFuture Style\u2019 Slickly Peers Wrong Way,\u201d Charles Solomon, Orange County, CA; Los Angeles Times, The Book Review<\/em>, p. 1, column 5; in The Los Angeles Times<\/em>, Los Angeles, CA [p. 122 of full edition file]; online via Newspapers.com [subscription service] www.newspapers.com<\/a>]<\/span><\/p>\n

March 1999<\/u> \u2013 Bradbury <\/strong>\u2013 Interview with Luaine Lee, reiterating a shorter version of his 1990 Lee interview remarks: \u201cWell, that\u2019s nonsense. You\u2019re going to miss life. You\u2019ve got to jump off the cliff all the time and build your wings on the way down<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

[Source<\/em>: \u201cFantasy writer Ray Bradbury doesn\u2019t let reason restrict him\u201d (22 March 1999) Interview with Luaine Lee, Knight-Ridder\/Tribune News Service, in St. Louis Post-Dispatch<\/em>, St. Louis, MO, p. E3, column 1; online via Newspapers.com [subscription service] www.newspapers.com<\/a>]<\/span><\/p>\n

Misattribution notes<\/em><\/strong><\/span>: Bradbury\u2019s quote has been misattributed to authors Kurt Vonnegut<\/strong><\/span>, Annie Dillard<\/strong><\/span>, and Kobi Yamada<\/strong><\/span>.<\/p>\n

Late 1990s<\/u> \u2013 Author Kobi Yamada<\/strong><\/span> started receiving credit for this paraphrasing of Bradbury’s quote:<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes you just have to take the leap and build your wings on the way down<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

After 2000<\/u> \u2013 Author Kurt Vonnegut<\/strong><\/span> also started receiving credit for variations of Bradbury\u2019s quote, including this version:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to continually be jumping off cliffs and developing our wings on the way down<\/strong><\/span>.\u201d<\/p>\n

2005<\/u> \u2013 Author Annie Dillard<\/strong><\/span> was credited with a version of Bradbury’s quote in an Australian newspaper.<\/p>\n

Dillard, however, is on record that she never said nor wrote a version of the \u201cjumping off cliffs\u201d quote. To view Dillard\u2019s remarks and additional citation details related to Bradbury\u2019s quote & related misattributions, please see this detailed Quote Investigator page: Garson O\u2019Toole, \u201cJump Off the Cliff and Build Your Wings on the Way Down,\u201d Quote Investigator, quoteinvestigator.com\u00a0<\/a>[See ‘Source Link’ for full 2017 page URL]\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section i_icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-plus-circle” add_icon=”true” title=”Context” tab_id=”1453315828385-86abfac4-79bf5381-89e57ff2-12f6″][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”]\n

Extended excerpt<\/em><\/strong> [Bradbury interview remarks. While this version appears to be one of the most frequently cited online, please see \u2018Re-quote Notes\u2019 tab to view earlier Bradbury iterations of the same idea.]:<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we listened to our intellect we\u2019d never have a love affair. We\u2019d never have a friendship. We\u2019d never go into business, because we\u2019d be too cynical: \u201cIt\u2019s gonna go wrong.\u201d Or \u201cShe\u2019s going to hurt me.\u201d Or, \u201cI\u2019ve had a couple of bad love affairs, so therefore…\u201d Well, that\u2019s nonsense. You\u2019ve got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down<\/span>.\u201d (p. 1C, columns 2-3)<\/p>\n

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Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span> [1990<\/strong> Bradbury \u2013 Featured quote<\/strong> – first Luaine Lee interview<\/span>] \u201cWriter lives life at \u2018top of my lungs\u2019\u2019 (9 September 1990) The Anniston Star<\/em>; via Newspapers.com [subscription service]: https:\/\/www.newspapers.com\/image\/106527345\/?terms=Bradbury%2B%2B%2B%22couple%2Bof%2Bbad%2Blove%2Baffairs%22<\/a><\/p>\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span> [1979<\/strong> Bradbury<\/span>]\u201cHymn to humanity from the cathedral of high technology\u201d (18 November 1979) Los Angeles Times Book Review<\/em>; via Newspapers.com [subscription service]: https:\/\/www.newspapers.com\/image\/385273211\/?terms=%22wings%2Bon%2Bthe%2Bway%2Bdown%22<\/a><\/p>\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span> [1986<\/strong> Bradbury<\/span>]\u201cFuture Style\u2019 Slickly Peers Wrong Way\u201d (21 October 1986) The Los Angeles Times<\/em>; via Newspapers.com [subscription service]: https:\/\/www.newspapers.com\/image\/402530239\/?terms=%22jump+off+the+cliff+and+learn+how+to+make+wings+on+the+way%22<\/a><\/p>\n

Source link<\/em><\/strong><\/span> [1999<\/strong> Bradbury \u2013 second interview with Luaine Lee<\/span>] \u201cFantasy writer Ray Bradbury doesn\u2019t let reason restrict him\u201d (22 March 1999) St. Louis Post-Dispatch<\/em>, via Newspapers.com [subscription service]: https:\/\/www.newspapers.com\/image\/141956831\/?terms=%22wings%2Bon%2Bthe%2Bway%2Bdown%22<\/a><\/p>\n

Source link<\/span> <\/em><\/strong>[Quote Investigator<\/em> <\/strong>website, with additional details on the Bradbury misattribution<\/span>]: \u201cJump Off the Cliff and Build Your Wings on the Way Down\u201d (c. 2012) Quote Investigator: https:\/\/quoteinvestigator.com\/2012\/06\/17\/cliff-wings\/<\/a><\/p>\n[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_tta_section][\/vc_tta_tabs][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]\n

Resources<\/h4>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text css_animation=”none” el_class=”Wrapper-Author-Resources”]Learn more about Annie Dillard <\/strong><\/span>| Here are a few good places to find out more –<\/p>\n