Editing Walker Percy (section)

==Legacy and honors==

=== Influence ===
Percy's work, which often features protagonists facing displacement, influenced other Southern authors. According to scholar Farrell O'Gorman, Percy's vision helped bring a fundamental change in southern literature where authors began to use characters concerned with "a sense of estrangement".<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=O'Gorman|first=Farrell|date=Spring 2002|title=Languages of Mystery: Walker Percy's Legacy in Contemporary Southern Fiction|journal=Southern Literary Journal|volume=34|issue=2|pages=97–119|doi=10.1353/slj.2002.0009|s2cid=159886725}}</ref> His writing serves as an example for contemporary southern writers who attempt to combine elements of history, religion, science, and the modern world.<ref name=":22"/> Scholars such as Jay Tolson state that Percy's frequent use of characters facing spiritual loneliness in the modern world helped introduce different ways of writing in the south post-war.<ref name=":03"/>

=== Awards and honors ===
In 1962, Percy was awarded the [[National Book Award for Fiction]] for his first novel, ''[[The Moviegoer]]''.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal|last=Underwood|first=Thomas A.|date=December 2004|title=A Visit With Walker Percy: An Interview and a Recollection|journal=Mississippi Quarterly|volume=58|pages=141–159}}</ref>

In 1985, Percy was awarded the [[St. Louis Literary Award]] from the [[Saint Louis University]] Library Associates.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://lib.slu.edu/about/associates/literary-award |title=Recipients of the Saint Louis Literary Award |author=Saint Louis University Library Associates |access-date=July 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160731082313/http://lib.slu.edu/about/associates/literary-award |archive-date=July 31, 2016 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.slu.edu/libraries/associates/award.html |title=Website of St. Louis Literary Award |access-date=2016-07-26 |archive-date=2016-08-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160823003924/http://www.slu.edu/libraries/associates/award.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1989, the [[University of Notre Dame]] awarded Percy its [[Laetare Medal]], which is bestowed annually to a Catholic "whose genius has ennobled the arts and sciences, illustrated the ideals of the Church, and enriched the heritage of humanity".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://newsinfo.nd.edu/content.cfm?topicId=21727 |title=Notre Dame website |access-date=2007-08-23 |archive-date=2007-06-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070609194112/http://newsinfo.nd.edu/content.cfm?topicid=21727 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Also in 1989, the [[National Endowment for the Humanities]] chose him as the winner for the [[Jefferson Lecture]] in the Humanities. He read his essay, "The Fateful Rift: The San Andreas Fault in the Modern Mind".<ref>[http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/id/159052 Walker Percy, "The San Andreas Fault in the Modern Mind"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121009145433/http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/id/159052 |date=2012-10-09 }}, C-Span Video, Jefferson Lecture, National Endowment for the Humanities. Retrieved 2010-04-01.</ref>

[[Loyola University New Orleans]] has multiple archival and manuscript collections related to Percy's life and work.<ref>{{cite web |title=Archival & Manuscript Collections |url=http://library.loyno.edu/research/speccoll/archival_collections.php |website=Special Collections & Archives, J. Edgar & Louise S. Monroe Library, Loyola University New Orleans |access-date=17 July 2018 |archive-date=1 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180801221531/http://library.loyno.edu/research/speccoll/archival_collections.php |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 2019, a [[Mississippi Writers Trail]] historical marker was installed in [[Greenville, Mississippi]], to honor Percy's literary contributions.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Mississippi Writers Trail markers for Shelby Foote and Walker Percy unveiled in Greenville {{!}} Mississippi Development Authority|url=https://www.mississippi.org/news-room/mississippi-writers-trail-markers-for-shelby-foote-and-walker-percy-unveiled-in-greenville/|access-date=2020-06-16|website=www.mississippi.org}}</ref>