The Orchard Keeper

infobox Book |
name = The Orchard Keeper
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author = Cormac McCarthy
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language = English
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publisher = Random House
pub_date = June 1, 1965
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media_type = Print ()
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isbn = ISBN 0394439368
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followed_by = Outer Dark

"The Orchard Keeper" is the first novel by the American novelist Cormac McCarthy.Like all McCarthy's fiction, it has been heavily influenced by William Faulkner, probably more so than any of his other works.

The novel is set in a small, isolated community in Tennessee, during the inter-war period. It is the story of John Wesley Rattner, a young boy, and Marion Sylder, an outlaw and bootlegger, who has killed Rattner's father, a fact to which both are oblivious.

Themes

Main themes of the novel include fostering, hospitality, and nature. Woven in beautiful description of harsh surroundings, sudden actions -- a swing of a tire iron, a porch falling off a building, a car falling into a creek, or owl swooping down -- become a turning point changing everything the way a lever's action is altered by a fulcrum. These unexpected changes become the new environment the characters evolve in.

Characters

John Wesley Rattner- Son of Kenneth Rattner. He spends most of the novel around the age of fourteen. No physical description of him is ever given, but McCarthy alludes that he lives alone with his mother. He is strikingly independent and good natured, making numerous acquaintances and friendships, as well as being incredibly loyal.

Marion Sylder- Outlaw and bootlegger who kills, unbeknownst to any of the characters, John Wesley's father early in the novel. Is married, but his relationship with his wife is never expanded upon.

Arthur Ownby- Cited as "The Old Man" and "Uncle Ather" is a hermit who lives alone with his dog in the mountains. Also, he is acquainted with some of the local boys, eventually including John Wesley.