Vardis Fisher
Encyclopedia
Vardis Alvero Fisher was a well-respected writer best known for historical novels of the old West and the monumental 12-volume Testament of Man
series of novels, depicting the history of humans from cave to civilization
.
, nominated for a Golden Palm award at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival
. The Mothers: An American Saga of Courage told the story of the Donner Party
tragedy. His historical novel, Children of God, tracing the history of the Mormons
, won the 1939 Harper Prize in Fiction. Tale of Valor is a novel recounting the Lewis and Clark Expedition
. God or Caesar? is his non-fiction book on how to write.
Vardis Fisher was born in Annis, Idaho
, near present-day Rigby
, of a Mormon family and descent. After graduating from the University of Utah
in 1920, Vardis earned a Master of Arts degree (1922) and a Ph.D. (1925) at the University of Chicago
. Vardis was an assistant professor of English at the University of Utah (1925–1928) and at New York University
(1928–1931), where he was friends with Thomas Wolfe
. Vardis also taught as a summer professor at Montana State University
(1932–1933). Between 1935 and 1939, he was the director of the Idaho Writer's Project of the WPA, writing several books about Idaho. He was also a newspaper columnist for the Idaho Statesman
and Idaho Statewide (which later became the Intermountain Observer).
One of his hobbies was house construction, so much so he built his own home in the Thousand Springs area near Hagerman
, Idaho. Vardis did the wiring, masonry, carpentry and plumbing himself. His father Joe, a hunter, had a working relationship with the Blackfeet Indians
of the area.
Vardis Fisher had one child with his wife, Leona McMurtrey, who was born September 10, 1917 and died September 8, 1924. He married his second wife, Margaret Trusler, in 1928. They had two sons, Grant and T. Roberts. He married his third wife, Opal Laurel Holmes, in 1940, and she was his co-author on Gold Rushes and Mining Camps of the Early American West (1968). Opal Fisher died in 1995, leaving $237,000 from her estate to the University of Idaho
for the creation of a humanities professorship.
To write the Testament of Man
series, Vardis Fisher read over 2,000 books on anthropology, history, psychology, theology and comparative religion. When the series was reprinted by Pyramid Books as mass-market paperbacks in 1960, it had an influence on DC Comics editor Joe Orlando
and the comic book Anthro, written and drawn by Howard Post and edited by Orlando.
Fisher died in 1968, at the age of 73, in Hagerman, Idaho
.
and Ezra Pound
, but Fisher was, perhaps, the most significant twentieth century novelist who was both a native and longtime resident of Idaho. When he was appointed to head the Idaho branch of the Federal Writers Project under the WPA, Fisher quipped that he had been chosen because there were only three writers in Idaho, and he was the only one who was unemployed. The comparison to Hemingway is germane, however. Like Hemingway, Fisher often achieved a naturalistic, straightforward style. Frederick Manfred
, who was among Fisher's staunchest literary champions, not only declared that Dark Bridwell (1931) was Fisher's best novel, but that Hemingway never wrote anything so good. Manfred gave as an example Fisher's portrait of Mrs. Bridwell who seemed to Manfred to be a more three-dimensional person than any of Hemingway's female characters.
With a few notable exceptions, most critics have been far harsher than Manfred. While they might regard a handful of Fisher's total of thirty-eight books as worth reading, many critics would not recommend the rest. His twelve-volume Testament of Man series to which Fisher devoted several decades of his life was, by and large, negatively received by the public as well as critics. A general consensus seems to be that Fisher's work is uneven: occasionally brilliant but more often workmanlike, promising in his early years but disappointing over all. Notwithstanding this general criticism, and as demonstrated by the 2000 collection of critical essays, “Rediscovering Vardis Fisher,” the author still draws praise as well as criticism for his work. (Notably the most sour note in this anthology was contributed by anthropologist Marilyn Trent Grunkemeyer who read no other work by Fisher besides the Testament of Man series.)
Fisher was always ambitious to become a mainstream novelist, but seems relegated to being a giant in regional Western literature. His Western novels are must reading for aficionados of that genre, and his fans include such Western writers as novelist Larry McMurtry
and essayist Mick McAllister.
, his opinion soured and he became a staunch critic of President Franklin D. Roosevelt
. Until the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor at the end of 1941, he favored an America First
stance, preferring that the U.S. not enter World War II. Following the attack, however, he immediately accepted the inevitability of war. He was an outspoken critic of U.S. foreign policy in general and opposed U.S. involvement in Vietnam
at least as early as the administration of John F. Kennedy
.
Testament of Man
The Testament of Man, by American author Vardis Fisher, traces the physical, psychological and spiritual evolution of Western civilization from Australopithecus to the present. Comprising twelve books , it explores a pantheon of subjects: myth, ritual, language, family, sex and especially sin,...
series of novels, depicting the history of humans from cave to civilization
Civilization
Civilization is a sometimes controversial term that has been used in several related ways. Primarily, the term has been used to refer to the material and instrumental side of human cultures that are complex in terms of technology, science, and division of labor. Such civilizations are generally...
.
Life and works
Vardis Fisher's novel, Mountain Man (1965), was the basis for Sydney Pollack's film, Jeremiah JohnsonJeremiah Johnson
Jeremiah Johnson is a 1972 western film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Robert Redford as the title character and Will Geer as "Bear Claw" Chris Lapp...
, nominated for a Golden Palm award at the 1972 Cannes Film Festival
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes International Film Festival , is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films of all genres including documentaries from around the world. Founded in 1946, it is among the world's most prestigious and publicized film festivals...
. The Mothers: An American Saga of Courage told the story of the Donner Party
Donner Party
The Donner Party was a group of American pioneers who set out for California in a wagon train. Delayed by a series of mishaps, they spent the winter of 1846–47 snowbound in the Sierra Nevada...
tragedy. His historical novel, Children of God, tracing the history of the Mormons
Mormons
The Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, a religion started by Joseph Smith during the American Second Great Awakening. A vast majority of Mormons are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while a minority are members of other independent churches....
, won the 1939 Harper Prize in Fiction. Tale of Valor is a novel recounting the Lewis and Clark Expedition
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, or ″Corps of Discovery Expedition" was the first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States. Commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson and led by two Virginia-born veterans of Indian wars in the Ohio Valley, Meriwether Lewis and William...
. God or Caesar? is his non-fiction book on how to write.
Vardis Fisher was born in Annis, Idaho
Idaho
Idaho is a state in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state....
, near present-day Rigby
Rigby, Idaho
Rigby is a small city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Idaho, United States. The population was 2,998 at the 2000 census.The larger "Rigby area" includes such outlying unincorporated communities as Annis, Garfield, Grant, Labelle, and Clark...
, of a Mormon family and descent. After graduating from the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
in 1920, Vardis earned a Master of Arts degree (1922) and a Ph.D. (1925) at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. Vardis was an assistant professor of English at the University of Utah (1925–1928) and at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
(1928–1931), where he was friends with Thomas Wolfe
Thomas Wolfe
Thomas Clayton Wolfe was a major American novelist of the early 20th century.Wolfe wrote four lengthy novels, plus many short stories, dramatic works and novellas. He is known for mixing highly original, poetic, rhapsodic, and impressionistic prose with autobiographical writing...
. Vardis also taught as a summer professor at Montana State University
Montana State University - Bozeman
Montana State University – Bozeman is a public university located in Bozeman, Montana. It is the state's land-grant university and primary campus in the Montana State University System, which is part of the Montana University System...
(1932–1933). Between 1935 and 1939, he was the director of the Idaho Writer's Project of the WPA, writing several books about Idaho. He was also a newspaper columnist for the Idaho Statesman
Idaho Statesman
The Idaho Statesman is a U.S. daily newspaper serving the Boise, Idaho metropolitan area. The paper has a circulation of 61,000 daily, 83,038 Sunday, and employs about 300 people. It is owned by The McClatchy Company....
and Idaho Statewide (which later became the Intermountain Observer).
One of his hobbies was house construction, so much so he built his own home in the Thousand Springs area near Hagerman
Hagerman, Idaho
Hagerman is a town in Gooding County, Idaho, United States. The population was 768 at the 2007 census.-Geography:Hagerman is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
, Idaho. Vardis did the wiring, masonry, carpentry and plumbing himself. His father Joe, a hunter, had a working relationship with the Blackfeet Indians
Blackfoot
The Blackfoot Confederacy or Niitsítapi is the collective name of three First Nations in Alberta and one Native American tribe in Montana....
of the area.
Vardis Fisher had one child with his wife, Leona McMurtrey, who was born September 10, 1917 and died September 8, 1924. He married his second wife, Margaret Trusler, in 1928. They had two sons, Grant and T. Roberts. He married his third wife, Opal Laurel Holmes, in 1940, and she was his co-author on Gold Rushes and Mining Camps of the Early American West (1968). Opal Fisher died in 1995, leaving $237,000 from her estate to the University of Idaho
University of Idaho
The University of Idaho is the State of Idaho's flagship and oldest public university, located in the rural city of Moscow in Latah County in the northern portion of the state...
for the creation of a humanities professorship.
To write the Testament of Man
Testament of Man
The Testament of Man, by American author Vardis Fisher, traces the physical, psychological and spiritual evolution of Western civilization from Australopithecus to the present. Comprising twelve books , it explores a pantheon of subjects: myth, ritual, language, family, sex and especially sin,...
series, Vardis Fisher read over 2,000 books on anthropology, history, psychology, theology and comparative religion. When the series was reprinted by Pyramid Books as mass-market paperbacks in 1960, it had an influence on DC Comics editor Joe Orlando
Joe Orlando
Joseph Orlando was a prolific illustrator, writer, editor and cartoonist during a lengthy career spanning six decades...
and the comic book Anthro, written and drawn by Howard Post and edited by Orlando.
Fisher died in 1968, at the age of 73, in Hagerman, Idaho
Hagerman, Idaho
Hagerman is a town in Gooding County, Idaho, United States. The population was 768 at the 2007 census.-Geography:Hagerman is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
.
Criticism
Fisher seems to have chafed at comparisons between himself and the better known writers who were connected with Idaho, notably including Ernest HemingwayErnest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
and Ezra Pound
Ezra Pound
Ezra Weston Loomis Pound was an American expatriate poet and critic and a major figure in the early modernist movement in poetry...
, but Fisher was, perhaps, the most significant twentieth century novelist who was both a native and longtime resident of Idaho. When he was appointed to head the Idaho branch of the Federal Writers Project under the WPA, Fisher quipped that he had been chosen because there were only three writers in Idaho, and he was the only one who was unemployed. The comparison to Hemingway is germane, however. Like Hemingway, Fisher often achieved a naturalistic, straightforward style. Frederick Manfred
Frederick Manfred
Frederick Feikema Manfred was a noted Western author.Manfred was born in Doon, Iowa. He was baptized Frederick Feikes Feikema, VII, and he used the name Feike Feikema when he published his first books...
, who was among Fisher's staunchest literary champions, not only declared that Dark Bridwell (1931) was Fisher's best novel, but that Hemingway never wrote anything so good. Manfred gave as an example Fisher's portrait of Mrs. Bridwell who seemed to Manfred to be a more three-dimensional person than any of Hemingway's female characters.
With a few notable exceptions, most critics have been far harsher than Manfred. While they might regard a handful of Fisher's total of thirty-eight books as worth reading, many critics would not recommend the rest. His twelve-volume Testament of Man series to which Fisher devoted several decades of his life was, by and large, negatively received by the public as well as critics. A general consensus seems to be that Fisher's work is uneven: occasionally brilliant but more often workmanlike, promising in his early years but disappointing over all. Notwithstanding this general criticism, and as demonstrated by the 2000 collection of critical essays, “Rediscovering Vardis Fisher,” the author still draws praise as well as criticism for his work. (Notably the most sour note in this anthology was contributed by anthropologist Marilyn Trent Grunkemeyer who read no other work by Fisher besides the Testament of Man series.)
Fisher was always ambitious to become a mainstream novelist, but seems relegated to being a giant in regional Western literature. His Western novels are must reading for aficionados of that genre, and his fans include such Western writers as novelist Larry McMurtry
Larry McMurtry
Larry Jeff McMurtry is an American novelist, essayist, bookseller and screenwriter whose work is predominantly set in either the old West or in contemporary Texas...
and essayist Mick McAllister.
Politics
His newspaper columns, written for various local and regional publications over three decades and often dealing with then-topical national and local issues, still make for lively reading. Fisher did not have a good word to say about any U.S. president who served during Fisher's lifetime, regardless of political party. (Although he did not live beyond the primary season of the presidential election year of 1968, Fisher had already made his low opinion of Richard M. Nixon clear during Nixon's vice-presidency.) He was suspicious of all politicians and favored smaller, less-intrusive government. Initially willing to participate personally in the New DealNew Deal
The New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosevelt's responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call...
, his opinion soured and he became a staunch critic of President Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
. Until the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor at the end of 1941, he favored an America First
America First
America First may refer to:*America First Committee, a group that opposed entry of the United States into World War II*America First Credit Union, a credit union in Utah*America First Party , an isolationist political party...
stance, preferring that the U.S. not enter World War II. Following the attack, however, he immediately accepted the inevitability of war. He was an outspoken critic of U.S. foreign policy in general and opposed U.S. involvement in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
at least as early as the administration of John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
.
Vardis Fisher Novels
- Pemmican: A Novel of the Hudson's Bay Company (1956)
- Children of God
- Mountain Man: A Novel of Male and Female in the Early American West (1965)
- The Mothers: An American Saga of Courage (1943)
- Toilers of the Hills
- Dark Bridwell
- April: A Fable of Love
- Forgive Us Our Virtues
- City of Illusion
- Tale of Valor
- Vridar Hunter tetralogy:
- In Tragic Life
- Passions Spin the Plot
- We Are Betrayed
- No Villain Need Be
- Testament of ManTestament of ManThe Testament of Man, by American author Vardis Fisher, traces the physical, psychological and spiritual evolution of Western civilization from Australopithecus to the present. Comprising twelve books , it explores a pantheon of subjects: myth, ritual, language, family, sex and especially sin,...
series:- Darkness and the Deep (1943)
- The Golden Rooms (1944)
- Intimations of Eve (1946)
- Adam and the Serpent (1947)
- The Divine Passion
- The Valley of Vision
- The Island of the Innocent
- Jesus Came Again: A Parable
- A Goat for Azazel
- Peace Like a River (pb title: The Passion Within)
- My Holy Satan
- Orphans in Gethsemane (pb two vols: The Great Confession and For Passion, for Heaven)
Non-fiction
- The Neurotic Nightingale
- God or Caesar?
- Suicide or Murder?
- Thomas Wolfe As I Knew Him
- Idaho Encyclopedia, as Federal Writers’ Project, state director. Caldwell, Idaho: Caxton Printers, 1938.
External links
- Vardis on IMDB
- Vardis Fisher
- Excerpt from A Goat for Azazel (1956)
- Vardis Fisher Lives!
- Papers of Vardis and Opal Fisher, 1934–1996 at Boise State UniversityBoise State UniversityBoise State University is a public university located in Boise, Idaho. Originally founded in 1932 as a junior college by the Episcopal Church, the university became an independent institution in 1934, and has been awarding baccalaureate and master degrees since 1965...
- "Vardis Fisher: An American Atheist Author" by Richard M. Andrews
- "Vardis Fisher: The Real Idaho Writer, Mountain Man" by Mick McAllister
- "The Uses of History in the Novels of Vardis Fisher" by George F. Day
- "Vardis Fisher: The Frontier and Regional Works" by Wayne Chatterton - found in the Western Writers Series Digital Editions
- Soul of a People: The WPA Writers' Project Uncovers Depression America by David A. Taylor