SOURCE: “The Short Stories,” in Hugh Hood, Twayne Publishers, 1983, pp. 10–53.

In the following excerpt, Garebian provides a stylistic and thematic analysis of Hood's short fiction, in particular his use of allegory.

As a Catholic, Hood cannot help making the redemption of man a central creed in his fiction. The theme is not turned into a sectarian inquiry, however. Redemption becomes something available to everyone, no matter what his natural talents or opportunities, his psychic or cultural development. Catholic theology is a moral force that implicitly informs his deepest vision. The moral tone is high, but without being injunctive or doctrinaire. Hood espouses without preachment; he observes without necessarily forcing issues or moral victories. Yet, by some special balance in his craft, he is always interpretive—never simply a passive documentarian. And sharpening this sense of significance is a strong physical form for the fiction. Sometimes this sense of...