Outer Dark is the second novel by American writer Cormac McCarthy, published in 1968. The time and setting are nebulous, but can be assumed to be somewhere in Appalachia, sometime around the turn of the twentieth century. The novel tells of a woman named Rinthy who bears her brother's baby. The brother, Culla, leaves the nameless infant in the woods to die, but tells his sister that the newborn died of natural causes and had to be buried. Rinthy discovers this lie and sets out to find the baby for herself. The name of the novel is derived from the Gospel of Matthew, specifically the meeting between the Roman centurion and Jesus, during which Jesus says: "But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth". Writing process McCarthy began writing the novel on December 15, 1962, in Asheville, North Carolina, and finished the first draft in New Orleans, in 1964. He wrote the early draft of the final version in Knoxville, Tennessee, and the middle and final drafts during a stay in Ibiza, Spain. Several different events occurred in McCarthy's private life during the writing of the first draft, the most important of which being the failure of his marriage to Lee Holleman McCarthy and their subsequent divorce in July 1963. During this time, McCarthy submitted The Orchard Keeper for review to Random House Books, subsequently receiving a lengthy list of suggested changes from his editor Larry Bensky, interrupting his work on the novel. His revision of The Orchard Keeper would at different times interrupt further work on the novel. Aside from the work on his first novel, McCarthy suffered loneliness during this period, with his wife and son having left him, and with McCarthy having moved to Knoxville, Tennessee. He wrote the final version of the novel 18 months after his marriage to Anne DeLisle. Plot and characters Introduction The novel begins with the introduction of the siblings Culla and Rinthy Holme, and the result of their sexual relationship with Rinthy being only a few days from labor. Here, the Tinker is introduced as well, and from his interaction with Culla and Culla's unwillingness to call for help during the birth, his shame over the child becomes clear. The child is soon born, and after Rinthy falls asleep, Culla leaves it out to die in the woods