Suttree is the fourth novel written by Cormac McCarthy, published in 1979.
The novel tells the story of the titular protagonist, Cornelius Suttree, a fisherman who chooses to abandon a life of privilege provided by his prominent family and instead resides on a run-down houseboat along the Tennessee River near Knoxville. In this marginalized community of outcasts, consisting of eccentric individuals, criminals, and squatters, he maintains a sense of detachment, humor, and dignity that elevates him above the challenging living conditions and the people around him.
Tropes found in the novel:
- Anachronic Order: Not only is the novel plotless, but the narrative structure is also non-linear, with each chapter taking place at different and unspecified times and episodes throughout the novel.
- Born Lucky: Zig-Zagged with Harrogate. He does often get into a lot of situations where he should get harmed or worse. But somehow he manages to come out of it alive and with his wits about him until the end when he gets arrested again.
- Byronic Hero: Suttree is highly intelligent, angsty, brooding, and self-loathing.
- But Now I Must Go: After suffering from a nasty bout of typhoid fever, and after Harrogate gets arrested and some friends of his get gunned down by police. Suttree decides to leave Knoxville and find a new life for himself.
- The Comically Serious: Suttree is usually unflappable and often plays the straight man to many of his friends' wacky hijinks, rather it be Reese or Harrogate.
- Deconstruction: Of the romanticized Huckleberry Finn-esque notions of being a boat man. Suttree constantly struggles to make a living for himself and barely has enough money to get by. He often hangs out with the dregs of society rather than strange, quirky characters (though they are that as well.)
- Expy: Suttree is a more melancholy version of Huckleberry Finn, while Harrogate is an even more impulsive, yet dumber version of Tom Sawyer.
- Lighter and Softer: Despite the Gothic overtone, grotesque imagery, burst of violent episodes and moments of immense sadness and tragedy, Suttree is a lot less dark and more humorous in tone, compared to McCarthy's previous novels.
- Noodle Incident: It's never explained why Suttree decided to leave his affluent family and life.
- Odd Friendship: Suttree and Harrogate. They're complete opposites as Suttree is intelligent, self-loathing, and generally keeps to himself while Harrogate is outgoing, gregarious, and dumb as a bag of hammers.
- Protagonist Title: The title was named after the protagonist, Cornelius Suttree.
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The derelicts, degenerates, and reprobates in this novel constitute into this. Suttree, Harrogate, J-Bone, Hoghead, and the others are a group of misfits, alienated from society but attempting to make their own way in the world.
- Refuge in Audacity: If there's one thing to say about Gene Harrogate, Suttree's friend and bunkmate in jail, it's that when he gets in trouble, he goes all the way. Rather it be when he has sex with watermelons, gives up bat corpses to the hospital, or when attempting to tunnel under the city using dynamite.
- Self-Imposed Exile: Suttree left his home and began living like a hermit.
- Surrounded by Idiots: Considering that Suttree lives among the dregs of society, one could expect that he knows that they're not the brightest folks around. But even Suttree is baffled by some of the harebrained schemes that his friends come up with, especially Harrogate.
