It is not surprising, then, that Merton's more explicitly autobiographical writings continue to enjoy the greater popularity in the formidable canon. Although Merton did try his hand at other genres, like the biographies of Mother M. Berchmans and St. Lutgarde of Aywieres published, respectively, as Exile Ends in Glory and What are These Wounds? , and although he did write a systematic exposition of the ascetical theology of St. John of the Cross known as The Ascent to Truth, Merton's preference was clearly for the self-exploratory possibilities of both pure and disguised autobiography.

Merton's arduous quest for the real self, the true self, could only be seriously undertaken once he resolved to vigorously examine the myriad masks, the numberless faces, he donned in both the public and in the private realm. And so we have the tantalizing striptease of the would-be anonymous monk. Merton's strategy of disclosure, for all its presumed candor and spontaneity, is a deftly handled process involving stringent editing and careful construction. Merton strips with modesty.

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