 |
1945-1997
American novelist, short story writer, nonfiction writer, and author of books for children.
- Name: Michael Dorris
|
|
1945-1997
American novelist, short story writer, nonfiction writer, and author of books for children.
- Name: Michael Dorris
Introduction
Principal Writings by the Author
Further Readings about the Author
Critical Essays about the Author's Works
One of the most renowned Native American writers, Dorris promoted understanding of the Native American community and awareness of its burdens through his award-winning books. The Broken Cord (1989), his best known and best-selling work, tells the story of his own adopted son's battle with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), a debilitating consequence of excessive alcohol consumption during pregnancy that was found to be disproportionately common among Native Americans. Granted the National Book Critics Circle Award for general nonfiction and made into a television movie, The Broken Cord garnered widespread accolades for Dorris's intimate storytelling and statistical accuracy, and attracted international attention to the problem of FAS. Dorris collaborated with wife Louis Erdrich, also a noted author, to produce The Crown of Columbus (1991), a novel about Christopher Columbus and his impact on the contemporary world, particularly on Native America. Dorris's other novels, generally concentrating on the quest for an authentic Native identity, include the best-selling A Yellow Raft in Blue Water (1987), which relates the experience of Native American women across three generations, and the enthusiastically received Cloud Chamber (1997), which traces the mixed-blood paternal family lines of Rayona, a character from A Yellow Raft in Blue Water. In his fiction for young readers, Dorris explored notable historical events from a juvenile Native American perspective, including Columbus's arrival in America in Morning Girl (1992) and the first American Thanksgiving in Guests (1995).
In an interview with Rick Lyman shortly after Dorris's death, Erdrich, who married Dorris in 1981, reported that she had known he was suicidal "from the second year of our marriage." He fought a constant battle with depression, although to friends he never failed to present a facade of happiness. His second suicide attempt succeeded on April 11, 1997, shortly after he learned that he was the subject of an investigation for the possible sexual abuse of one or more of his children. At the time of his death, Dorris and Erdrich were in the process of divorcing. Erdrich declined to discuss the case, stating, "I don't agree with trying a man in the press after he is dead and judging him guilty or innocent." A number of Dorris's friends spoke out against the charges, citing Dorris's reputation as an outstanding father and advocate of children's rights. Douglas Foster, former editor of Mother Jones magazine, reported that Dorris had told him the charges were false but that he "didn't know how to fight without making things worse. And he had a realistic idea that no matter how baseless the allegations were, they were going to have a strong negative effect on his family and his work." Dorris held degrees from Georgetown University and Yale University and worked as a professor of English and anthropology at Dartmouth College. Perhaps his greatest achievement in the world of education was the Native American Studies department at Dartmouth, which he founded in 1972 and chaired until 1985. The Associated Press reported that Dartmouth President James Freedman said Dorris "was beloved by a generation of Dartmouth students, whose lives were touched with his humanity and his idealism. The Native American Studies program will stand as one of his enduring contributions to Dartmouth and to American higher education."
Interview with Dorris's estranged wife, Louise Erdrich, who reveals that the author had battled with depression and suicidal thoughts for over a decade.
Overview of Dorris's last years of life, including speculation as to the cause of his suicide and statements from friends defending him against child abuse charges.
Flynn praises Dorris's Morning Girl.
Review of Michael Dorris's Working Men, which Graham praises, describing it as an "honest, engaging collection."
Review of Paper Trail, admiring how Dorris "moves from the popular to the academic, from the intimate to the public, with an ease that makes him seem the sort of man we should cherish as an advisor, a teacher, even a friend."
Investigates the "problematization of identity production" in The Crown of Columbus.
Faults Dorris's storytelling techniques in Working Men.
In an essay devoted to Louise Erdrich's writings, Owens examines how Native American identity is constructed in Dorris's A Yellow Raft in Blue Water. [Excerpt reprinted in CLC, Volume 109.]
Obituary in which Streitfeld relates the shock that greeted news of Dorris's death. [Reprinted in CLC, Volume 109.]
"Michael Dorris; Chronicler of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome," in Los Angeles Times, April 15, 1997, p. A18. Reproduced by permission.
Rick Lyman, An obituary for Michael Dorris, in The New York Times, April 15, 1997, p. B11. Reproduced by permission.
Patricia Guthrie, "Alcohol's Child: A Father Tells His Tale," in The New York Times Book Review, July 30, 1989, pp. 1, 20. Reproduced by permission.
Peter Lomas, "Beyond Healing's Reach?," in Times Literary Supplement, August 24-30, 1990, p. 893. Reproduced by permission.
Kirsty Milne, "Sins of Mothers . . . and Fathers," in New Statesman & Society, September 7, 1990, p. 44. Reproduced by permission.
Alice McDermott, "The Girl Columbus Discovered," in The New York Times Book Review, November 8, 1992, p. 33. Reproduced by permission.
Ron Hansen, "Importance of Everyday," in Los Angeles Times Book Review, November 7, 1993, pp. 2, 13. Reproduced by permission.
Julian Ferraro, "Vestiges of the West," in Times Literary Supplement, December 2, 1994, p. 22. Reproduced by permission.
Linda Perkins, A review of Guests, in The New York Times Book Review, January 29, 1995, p. 20. Reproduced by permission.
Stephen Lyons, A review of Working Men and Paper Trail, in The Bloomsbury Review, May-June, 1995, pp. 19, 21. Reproduced by permission.
Pam Houston, "The Ventriloquist," in Los Angeles Times Book Review, February 16, 1997, p. 13. Reproduced by permission.
Sandra Scofield, "Michael Dorris Explores the Power of Family," in Chicago Tribune, March 2, 1997, p. 6. Reproduced by permission.
Scott Bradfield, "Ideals of Community," in Times Literary Supplement,
May 16, 1997, p. 22. Reproduced by permission.
Gale Database: Contemporary Literary Criticism
