Trauma in Dancing After Hours

Abstract

This chapter traces a contrast to Alice Munro not only in Andre Dubus’s narrative strategies but in the abrupt turn he takes toward a late style that differs so remarkably from his earlier stories. He relies far less than before on straightforward narrative sequence, while his profound faith shifts emphasis from ­crises over Catholic doctrine to plots more pervasively split by spiritual awareness and liturgical imagery. Remarkably, he converts religious epiphanies into narrative ones, with a late stress on remaining ever alert to the moment, living fully within it. Contrary to Munro’s defiance of conventional sequence, Dubus highlights narrative flashpoints. The chapter follows a methodology pursued in each of the others, exemplifying distinctive characteristics of a late style. This involves showing its evolution via detailed analysis of stories across his oeuvre, then focusing on the construction of the late “Blessings.”