Suttree Themes & Symbolism

Suttree Significant Topics

Suttree is a large novel, epic in some ways, and it is densely and richly thematic. One of the novel's most significant thematic clusters concerns Suttree's quest for personal spiritual growth. His search for God makes this a deeply religious novel, one which delves into the profoundest questions of existence on both philosophical and psychological levels. Suttree's estrangement from his mother, aptly named Grace, symbolizes his personal crisis of faith. He is a lapsed Catholic, and the questions he ponders are basic ones: What is reality? Is there a God? If so, is the nature of God malevolent?

Suttree primarily turns inward for the answers to these questions so that from one perspective the novel assumes the form of an interior journey. Although the point has been debated, Suttree does seem to achieve a degree of spiritual progress by the end of the novel.

Various epiphanies...
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