Find one critical essay on The Sound and the Fury.
If you have the Norton Critical Edition, there are numerous essays in the back under "Criticism." If you do not have the Norton Edition or choose not to use it, use good ole LRC (password: elvis, then scroll down to Literature Resource Center) to find an article. Be careful not to use "overviews" or "reviews." They are not criticism.
In the near future we might have access to JSTOR, an exceptional online database, and if that happens, I will post instructions for accessing it.
You may also use any book in our school library (such as Novels for Students). Please do not take articles from the internet. Use only the Norton, LRC, or our library. Choose an article that you can understand and read well.
Do the following:
1. Cite the article properly (MLA format- use the OWL to help you.)
2. Summarize the article- what does it say about TSATF? This part is simply a summary, not your opinion. Write at least a full paragraph (6-10 sentences, at least).
3. React to the article- what parts do you agree/disagree with? What do you learn about the novel from this article? Again, about another full paragraph (6-10 sentences, at least).
If you accomplish the above three items correctly, you will receive 40 (!!!) points. That's double the usual blog grade! If you fail to do the above correctly, you will not receive full credit. If you post late, it is half credit until the end of Sunday.
Doing a casual search just now on LRC, I found an article pondering whether the man in the red tie is gay, another analyzing Jason's "Mother complex," and many, many more!
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73 comments:
(first comment: that's definitely not the norm for me...)
I'm going with the gay man with the red tie, since a single article of clothing is apparently a sign of one's sexuality. This should be interesting.
Abate, Michelle Ann. "Reading red: the man with the (gay) red tie in Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 54.3 (Summer 2001): p293. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 23 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier*.
*Blogger thinks the brackets are HTML and won't let me use them.
(thirty minutes later--way too long)
To start with, Abate gives us a brief history of homosexual attire in America. Apparently, if you wore a red tie you were a bottom; that era was characterized by conservative clothing choices, and red was apparently deviant, and as such only gay people wore it. The article goes on to describe Jason's change in attitude towards Quentin's boyfriend/gal-pal/"good listener," stating that he initially thought he was trying to hook up with her. However, well-versed in the community of sexual deviancy that was Memphis (he had a prostitute, apparently), he probably spotted the red tie for what it was. As such, his shame of being robbed was magnified; in addition to being robbed by his niece, he was also robbed by a "fairy." The article then proceeds to give a slew of "evidence" of Faulkner's experiences with the homosexual community, leading to the obvious conclusion that the dude was a flamer.
My response: the article is a piece of revisionist literary garbage, utter crap. It is taking a single detail and running off on a tangent. There is no real textual evidence for the man's homosexuality, only assumption. The guy makes out with Quentin on a swing; aren't homosexuals only sexually attracted to members of the same sex? And as my former youth pastor told me, kissing is only an attempt to lead up to sex--there is no reason that a young couple should so much as consider it; it's obvious that the guy was trying to get into her pants when they were making out on the swing. So, either the guy's bisexual or, the more reasonable answer, Abate is some pseudo-intellectual literary revisionist, simply trying to find certain things where they're not to be found. This is rather similar to the idea that the young businessman in Invisible Man was gay: trying to find something that's not there.
"I Have Sinned in That I Have Betrayed the Innocent Blood": Quentin's Recognition of His Guilt
Summary:
The author argues that the 3 scenes that play through Quentin's mind while he is knocked out by Gerald Bland (the part that looks like a long list without punctuation or capitalization) are the climax of Quentin's section. Most critics usually cite the 1st or 2nd scene (Caddy and Quentin at the branch with the knife and Quentin's fight with Dalton Ames) as the cause of Quentin's suicide, with the loss of Caddy to another man or the loss of the family's honor or Quentin's impotence. Bauer focuses on the 3rd scene (Caddy and Quentin after she tries to go after Dalton Ames) as the reason for Quentin's suicide because he feels guilt for ultimately causing Caddy's destruction. The reasoning behind this is essentially that Dalton Ames, to whom Caddy lost her virginity, was her only hope for a normal life with love that her family could never adequately provide her. Caddy’s quote “when they touched me I died” reflects that sex gave her an escape from her oppressive life situation. When Quentin stops her from chasing down her lover, and possibly starting a new life with him, he basically starts her down the path of promiscuity, leading to her pregnancy and marriage to a man she doesn’t love. The author argues that this realization of his role in Caddy’s destruction is what makes Quentin really decide to take his life. Facts in favor of this 3rd scene being the crucial scene, rather than the 1st or 2nd, are that fragments of the first two have floated around in Quentin’s consciousness prior to his being knocked out by Gerald, whereas the 3rd has been completely repressed until this moment. The author argues that the memories that are most painful to Quentin are those he tries hardest to repress, and thus the third scene has the most meaning for him. By the assumption that Quentin feels guilt for Caddy‘s downfall, the author further suggests that Caddy is the Christ figure of the novel. Quentin’s section takes place on Maundy Thursday, the Thursday before Easter, when Judas betrays Jesus. So Quentin is likened to Judas, betraying Caddy, the Christ figure, and, like Judas, later kills himself. Support for Caddy being the Christ figure also includes that she marries Herbert Head to preserve the family honor, an act of selflessness.
Response:
The essay was made some interesting points, such as the Maundy Thursday/ Judas Betraying Jesus correlation, which I had not noticed before reading it. It also helped me understand the breakdown of the three scenes while Quentin is unconscious. I think Bauer’s theory is possible, that Quentin feels guilty for Caddy’s destruction, but there aren’t many actual textual quotes that imply some sort of remorse on Quentin’s part. I don’t really agree that Caddy is a Christ figure because I don’t believe that her promiscuity was anyone’s fault but her own (most definitely not Quentin’s fault, even if he may think so). Nor do I really think that Quentin is a “Judas figure” who has betrayed Caddy in some way knowingly. He was perhaps misguided in his attempts to save her honor, but I believe his intentions were good. The point Bauer makes about the repression of his most painful memories is a strong one, though.
Bauer, Margaret D. "'I Have Sinned in That I Have Betrayed the Innocent Blood': Quentin's Recognition of His Guilt." The Southern Literary Journal. 32.2 (Spring 2000): p70. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 20 Mar. 2009 [http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier].
"'The way he looked said Hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in the Sound and the Fury."
Roggenbuck, Ted. "'The way he looked said Hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in the Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005): p581. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 March 2009
[http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier]
This article concentrates on describing Benjy as a dynamic character, instead of a man trapped at the age of three. According to this article, readers tend to categorize both Benjy and Caddy as static when they are in fact changing throughout the novel. Benjy's mental processes actually become dulled with age instead of sharpened. Whether this process is a result of his condition or of his own choosing can only be left to speculation. However, it cannot be denied that he was far more perceptive as a child than as an adult. We see this perception in the title of the essay. On the day of his grandmother's funeral, he is able to perceive that his father's face says "Hush." Not only is he able to determine what his father's face is conveying, but he is able to put the proper emphasis on it. As he gets older, his attempts to discern the world around him fade.
After reading this essay, I realized I was in fact one of those guilty of characterizing Benjy as static when he is very dynamic. As for the speculation as to why his perceptions dim, I believe it is due to the fact that he cannot find love around him. He realizes that Caddy will never be in his present life again, so he chooses to revert to the past in his mind. He would rather live in the past with Caddy than live in the present without her; his decision is one I can empathize with completely. I do not believe the memories he recalls are random, but are instead very conscious efforts. If his thought transitions were random, there would not be such a sense of grieving and loss about him.
Storhoff, Gary. "Jason's Role-Slippage: The Dynamics of Alcoholism in The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 49.3 (Summer 1996): p519. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 *http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier*
2.) At first, Storhoff discusses William Faulkner and his early childhood. He discusses the fact that Faulkner was raised by parents who were alcoholics and that in some part influenced his life and novels. Storhoff begins to discuss the relativity of this as it pertains to the novel. He points that out of alcoholism different types of personalities arise from the children. These traits being: the hero, scapegoat, and the lost child. Storhoff categorizes Quentin and Caddy being the "heroes" of the family. Quentin due to his concern of morals and traditional values, and Caddy for her mother-like caring for all of the members in the family. He continues to tell that Jason, however, splits the two traits of hero and scapegoat. While in his childhood, he is more of the scapegoat, supplying the sense of importance to Caddy and Quentin. But when he is forced to be the head of the household, he must act as the hero. Storhoff emphasizes to be the heor, though, he must act as a paradoxical character that must cause issues only to attempt to solve them. On top of this he wishes to try and push out his pain into society, hence his reason for being violent to others. But he can never truly expose his pain in order to achieve his role as hero, so he must live within himself for life.
3.) I thought this was a very interesting essay to read. Out of all of the characters in the novel, I find it hardest to like Jason in the same way that I do towards Quentin and Benjy. However, this essay put things into a different light than how I have seen Jason before. It was bizarre to try and understand what Storhoff was trying to get across early on. Soon though, it was interesting to see his analysis on the way that children influenced by alcoholic families grow up. Jason was just forced into the hero type and was not given time to adjust. This made me realize that he was not solely responsible for his cruel intentions for his actions towards Quentin. In short, I agree with several things Storhoff said.
MOORE, KATHLEEN. "Jason Compson and the Mother Complex." The Mississippi Quarterly. 53.4 (Fall 2000): p533. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.
Moore spends her article relating the obsessions and actions of Jason to a psychological disorder called mother-fixation. This Freudian concept results from a dependencing and obsession with one's mother that ultimately influences perceptions of and visual relations to the world. Jason references his mother constantly throughout his section and thinks of her as a pure christian woman. He seperates the corruption and promiscuity he knows exists within his mother in attempt to keep alive his heoric view of her. Moore believes that the other women in Jason's life, like Caddy and especially Quentin are representative of this promiscuous side of his mother. He sees a part of her in each of the women in his life causing his obsession with them. Moore writes that Jason is often deemed as the "villan" of the novel but perhaps this villanous attitude stems from his disorder. Other evidence used to support this idea includes Jason's obsession with money which acts as a tool of merit for his mother's affection and as a form of manipulation used to bond with his mother and to punish her for her promiscuity. Money is the only way he can have any control and power over his mother. Ultimately, Moore reveals the impossibility of a character being simply good or evil because of differing psychological realities.
My response: When I first read the title of the article, I was not convinced that Jason was obsessed with his mother. To me it seemed that she was simply an object in his way of gaining control. The text presents compelling evidence to support its theory and I do agree with the majority of the examples and that Jason does have an oddly obsessive relationship with her. His constant correlation between his mother and the other women in his life is believable, especially with Quentin. She represents everything that he tried to pretend did not exist within his mother and with her actions he realizes the promiscuity of his mother. One of the things I did not agree with was Moore's claim that Jason's money "symbolizes his power and control over his mother". Although he does in some ways have control over her (evident when Mrs. Compson is talking to Dilsey about how you can not argue with him you just have to let him do what he wants), other times she even has control over him when she tells him not to be too harsh on Quentin and to not take too much control over her. I think more than having obsession with his mother he longs to have some type of innocence perserved within his life. He constantly talks about trying to keep his mothers "good name" and ignoring anything negative that she might have done representing his ultimate desire for innocence and something innately good.
Who Never Had a Sister': A Reading of The Sound and the Fury
Summary- Longley writes that love is a main theme of TSATF but the subject matter is that of the "death of a family. He acknowledges that Caddy is the central love and decay of the family. Her absence and small appearances cause major effect on her three brothers. Longley states that if love is the main theme of the novel it is based off of who is able or not able to express that love. Longley conveys how Caddy controls the developmental characteristics of her brothers. This is shown by her honeymoon and marriage to Herbert Head, this was the loss of Benjy's sister and part of his routine. As for Quentin Caddy was an obsession because of her promiscuity. He wanted to take all her mistakes and put them on himself especially her loss of virginity to Dalton Ames. Lastly,though Benjy and Quentin show signs of love Longley expresses that Jason had a "pure immortal hatred and study of revenge."
Response- When i first read the title of this critical response I thought it would be based on Quentin's narrative. This because I tought of his question "did you ever have a sister." But as I started to read Longley began his reponse by saying love was a main theme. At first I did'nt agree the slightest bit, but after the explanations i began to understand. With Longley's descriptions of the thoughts of Caddy from the brothers it was revealed that there were several amounts of emotions stored up. Though the love was relevent at moments and others not, I believe that love is a main theme because of the effects it has on the characters throughout the novl.
Source Citation: Longley, John L., Jr. "Who Never Had a Sister': A Reading of The Sound and the Fury." Mosaic. 7.1 (Fall 1973): 35-53. Rpt. in Novels for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1998. 35-53. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 [http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier].
"Who never Had a Sister: A Reading of The Sound and the Fury"
Longley, John L., Jr. "Who Never Had a Sister': A Reading of The Sound and the Fury." Mosaic. 7.1 (Fall 1973): 35-53. Rpt. in Novels for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1998. 35-53. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 [http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier}.
This aritcle begins by asserting that this novel is very focused on the presence or absence of love in the Compson family and Caddy. Longley asserts that many characters are merely "weak, irresponsible, and self serving" and not really evil, and that the only truly loving characters are Caddy, Dilsey, and Mr. Compson. In his poinion, Caddy "will never find anyone commensurate with her own capacity to love", which "is her tradgedy". Longley also discusses the three brothers and their characters. He describes how Benjy's inablility to efficiently process information hinder his sense of time and processing the loss of Caddy. He portrays as not being able to live with losing the pain of Caddy's lost virginity and as pushing Caddy away with his obsession with it. As for Jason, Longley believes that he is truly evil and that Quentin embodies the grievances he assigns as Caddy's fault. He sees the rest of the world as insane, yet he is the one who is truly unable to fully process the situation and move on. Finally, he also discusses the importance of the Easter events in the conclusion of the novel, such as calling it "Jason's day of reckoning", and Banjy's instinctive knowing that Quentin is gone.
I thought that the focus on love was very interesting and true. The evil in the Compson house definatley has a large effect on the children as they grow up, such as Mrs. Compson's distinction between her family and her husbands. I'm not sure that I agree that Cady cannot find anyone with her same capacity to love, but I think that is just because I don't think I've seen enough of her to accurately determine that. I was very glad that Longley had some more explanation of the family events that I had not already seen, also, such as when Mrs. Compson mourns Caddy's first kiss. Another point that I found very important was Longley's claim that Quentin doesn't really want the pain of Caddy's actions to decreace. It's hard to believe that Quentin wants to be haunted by that, but I guess he must have felt that that was how he would pay for his guilt of not helping her, I'm not really sure, though. The description of Easter as "Jason's day of reckoning" was also really interesting to me. The description of him laying under the car beaten up is truly somewhat ironic becasue he usually is obsessed with being in control and will not bend to what others tell him, as he allows the boys to charge him more for their aid.
Hein, David. "The Reverend Mr. Shegog's Easter sermon: preaching as communion in Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005): p559. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.
2. Hein discusses the Easter sermon and how Shegog's voice is cold at first and then becomes loud and full of emotion. The Scripture is more important to the people than the communion. Dilsey is renewed, reborn, or chose life over death, unlike Quentin (male). The church is not really a church, but a building but the people do not really care. They just want to hear the Word of God. Shegog at first speaks like a white person, but he wants to relate the scripture and his point to the black people, so he starts to talk more southern black. Hein's main focus is the preacher and his word and how he speaks.
3. Hein discusses how Faulkner uses black people language and how he does not like that. But i disagree I think it got the point across without having to use proper English. I mean one would not see a black person, especially in the South, talking like a white person. I never would have thought about reading that much into the sermon. I learned that the sermon was very important to the people because most were illiterate. I liked this criticism because it focuses so much on the scripture and religion.
Hein, David. "The Reverend Mr. Shegog's Easter sermon: preaching as communion in Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005): p559. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 [http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier].
Hein is focusing on the Easter sermon that Dilsey, Benjy, and her family attend at her church. Many critics have focused on the Easter scene because it is so parallel to how Faulkner wrote the novel. Faulkner separates voice and speaker, as well as sound and sight in both. He mainly focuses on the shifting tones the preacher acquires to get his different points across. One example is the dialect changes, from "black" dialect to "normal" dialect. Shegog seems to almost "become like Christ himself," which helps him to connect with his audience. According to Hein, Faulkner's reason for writing the sermon scene to to interrogate modernism, mainly Jason's ego centrism and Quentin's despair. He points out that language is a huge part of Shegog's sermon, as it touched the hearts of everyone there, including Dilsey's; he relays his message in a dialect that his audience can understand and appreciate. As a result, Dilsey, like Christ, is "risen" again, as she is the character that survives and has seen "de beginning and now de ending."
Reaction: I found Hein's argument very interesting, especially about the part relating to modernism. I agree with him in a way, especially the part relating Jason and Quentin. With his cruel ways, the differences between him and Christ come alive in Shegog's sermon. I also agree with the fact that Dilsey is "risen" again. Because she has seen everything happen in the Compson family, it would be assumed that she would be ready to crack and crumble like them. However, she is the one that survives and remains the strongest. Concerning language, Shegog certainly gets his point across to his audience, as people cry out "Amen!" and similar utterances. I agree that his changes in dialect reveal the importance of that to black church-goers at that time.
Sartre, Jean-Paul. "Time in the Work of Faulkner." Literary annd Philosophical Essays. Michelson, Annette. London, England: Rider, 1955.
The author of the passage suggests that Faulkner's use of time, is the only way he could of possibly accurately told the story. People do not think completely in the present, humans are flooded with memories at all times. Some people seem to think that because we live in the present, what happens now are our most recent memories. This assumption is untrue, because our minds determine whether or not we repress certain memories. The passage also asserts that Quentin's section is told after he is already dead. He never questions whether or not he's going to kill himself, he knows he has no other choice. Quentin believes once he is dead, he ill finally escape the grips of time, which is ironic because the article states, "...only when the clock stops does time come to life." Meaning even though Quentin escapes his version of time, according to the passage, it is just no beginning.
I thought this passage was extremely interesting, because I found the concept of this inescapable time to be fascinating. I especially loved Quentin's sections, which is what its focus was primarily on. Perhaps I just missed this, but I never thought about Quentin already being dead when he's describing his section. This is ironic to me because wouldn't that mean he still has some concept of time? He still has memories that occur to him, and he is still able to recall certain memories, so I'm guessing time is still a factor. I also really liked the quote that was in the passage that suggests that time only comes to life when the clock stops. It's very true that man came up with the concept of clocks and calendars, so who is really to blame for this inescapable time?
Irwin, John T. "Doubling and Incest in The Sound and the Fury." Doubling and Incest/Repetition and Revenge: A Speculative Reading of Faulkner. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1975.
Irwin first describes Quentin Compson as a Christ-like figure. He then explains the connection between Quentin's suicide and Miss Quentin's birth soon after, asserting that she is the resurrection of his feminine characteristics. Irwin also suggests that the multiple references to incest that did not happen in the family reflect a time and place in human history, namely the South in the early twentieth century. He describes the "lessons" Quentin's father taught him as a "negative inheritance." Irwin also discusses the self-sacrifice that the writing of The Sound and the Fury demanded from Faulkner. He believed that the portrayal of such a corrupt family required Faulkner to sacrifice his reputation.
One thing I liked about this essay was Irwin's comparing Quentin to Christ. I have read others comparing Dilsey and Benjy to Christ, but Irwin points out many similarities that truly establish Quentin as a Christ-like character. Another thing I liked from this essay was Irwin's claim that Quentin "transforms action into narration and narration into action." I found this very true in my reading as Quentin was very consumed by abstract ideas while casually narrating significant events that occurred the day of his death. On a similar note, I also liked how Irwin stressed the fact that Quentin's past very much influenced the actions he took in the present, such as the fight at the end of the section. I learned a great deal about Faulkner's arduous process of writing this novel, which included innumerable revisions and learning new things about the characters that he himself created.
Okay I cannot help but comment on Jason's obvious obsession with his mother. Quentin is not the only one wanting to committ incest in this novel...
Citation:
MOORE, KATHLEEN. "Jason Compson and the Mother Complex." The Mississippi Quarterly. 53.4 (Fall 2000): p533. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.
Summary:
This article goes into the idea that Jason has a disorder which makes him love everything about his mother. Every woman he comes across gets compared to his mother. He holds her in higher regard than any of the people he associates with and believes she is pure and holy. A Freudian idea of Jason would suggest that he is suffering from a mother-fixation complex with hinders him from seeing anyone in the same way he sees his mother. His views help set up his mysoginistic view of life because no one can be quite as marvelous as the useless woman who raised him. He is never attached to anyone in his family like he is to his mother and he always holds her in a higher regard. He considers it his duty to protect her and keep her pure and helpless.
Reaction:
Jason is definitely attached to his mother. Although, just from reading his section I did not get that they had such a strong bond as this author did. I believe he loves and idolizes his mother but until reading this I did not see the closer than average relationship. I actually think this article looks too closely on their relationship. I did not seem to think that Jason had this obsession with his mother. He definitely loves her but he is more concentrated on controlling everyone than on his love for his mother. If anything she seems as if she is scared of him.
Brown, Arthur A. "Benjy, the reader, and Death: at the fence in 'The Sound and the Fury.'(Special Issue: William Faulkner)." The Mississippi Quarterly. 48.3 (Summer 1995): p407. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.
Summary: In this article, Arthur A. Brown focuses on death in The Sound and the Fury. Brown believes the title of the book, The Sound and the Fury, tells us that is about meaningless as a meaning, and the reader should question whether death’s role is to provide meaning or undermine it. Symbolically, he says, Benjy, Quentin, and Jason are all dead¾and have been dead since they saw Caddy’s muddy drawers. He goes on to say the first sentence is a death sentence. “Through the fence, between the curling flower spaces, I could see them hitting.” Benjy is in a space of enclosure which foreshadows the state asylum behind whose bars he will be confined. He says that for Benjy, Caddy’s muddy drawers, her loss of virginity, and her marriage represent the death of Caddy. Caddy’s absence places Benjy in a world of undying death.
Response: I found it interesting the Brown said that Benjy, Quentin, and Jason were all dead after having seen Caddy’s muddy drawers. At first I didn’t really understand what he meant by that but once you think about it, in a sense they are dead and spend the rest of their lives reliving that death. For example, Benjy’s life is defined by Caddy’s absence, Quentin’s life is defined by her loss of virginity, and Jason’s life is defined by her treachery (at least that is how he views it). When I questioned death’s role in the story, I felt that death was a commonly occurring them, however, it didn’t provide us with any closure. The way in which Brown analyzed the opening sentence and alludes to the fact that the fence represents the asylum in which Benjy will be confined was also interesting.
1) MOORE, KATHLEEN. "Jason Compson and the Mother Complex." The Mississippi Quarterly. 53.4 (Fall 2000): p533. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier.
2)This article focuses on Jason Compson and his relationship with his mother. The author believes that based on what we know about Jason and what is described in the novel that he has what Freud described as a "mother fixation." The author believes that Jason's racist and cruel behavior stems from the relationship he has with his mother and the fact that he is the only child she loves b/c she doesn't consider him a Compson. Jason also seems to be the only child that is truly attatched to the mother whereas the other children are more self-reliant. She goes on to suggest that the reason for this fixation is b/c Jason is the most like his mother; in the last section they are described as having the same attitudes and cold eyes. She also suggests that Jason's hostility towards women and his twisted relationships with them comes from the fact that he is looking for something to live up to his ideal woman, which is his mother.
3) I thought this article was very interesting from the stand point that it shed a lot of light on the completely irrational character Jason Compson. I can see where his fixation on his mother has warped his sense of right and wrong as well as his maturation proccess. His mother seems to expect the world from him and yet he can't deliever that so therefore he feels completely insignificant and he takes it out on the ones he does have control over such as Miss Quentin and Benjy. This article also helps to explain his strange relationships with women such as his prostitute in Memphis as well as Miss Quentin b/c he doesn't believe anyone can compare to his mother. I also thought this article shed a lot of light on the work as a whole b/c it showed it as more than just a artistic work of literature but it also serves as a glimpse into the human psych. William Faulkner obviously wrote his works on many different levels of meaning and they can be interpreted in hundreds of ways.
Gwin, Minrose C. "Hearing Caddy's Voice." The Feminine and Faulkner: Reading (Beyond) Sexual Difference. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1990.
By the way it took me forever to figure out how to italicize on Blogger. :(
This essay is a lot like the timed write we had to do in class. It talks about how Caddy is present mentally even if she is not present physically. The author says that Faulkner purposely fails to "write the female subject through a male consciousness" because Caddy represents a woman in that society that could not be defined. He says that we are all like Benjy, trying to make Caddy a tangible, definable character, but we can't. Then he switches to talking about the only time when Caddy is silent. He claims that when Caddy loses her virginity and comes home crying, she has lost the ability to be that undefinable female. She is in that moment a promiscuous girl and nothing more. The way she treats her loss of virginity after the initial reaction is what the Compsons have problem with.
First of all, I really wish that I had read this before we did the in class essay. I agree with him because one of the underlying subjects in the novel, is defining Caddy. Just as the three Compson boys fail in what they want to do, they also fail to comprehend what Caddy is. That is why she haunts their thoughts. It thought it was interesting about Caddy's silence after she loses her virginity because I never really thought there was a part where she was quiet. I guess the reason I can't understand most of the novel is because no one is able to fully understand Caddy and her strange mentality.
Smith, Christine. "Faulkner's The Sound and The Fury." The Explicator. 66.2 (Winter 2008): p100. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 March 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier.
This is about how Faulkner was very familiar with the bible and the verse from 1 Corinthians 13.4-7 is suppposed to be why Dilsey endured. She lives up to all the listed qualities of love by St. Paul. The foil of this biblical reference is Jason Compson who is "mean, impatient, envious, boastful, irritable, and resentful. Dilsey represents Faulkner's idea that mankind can truly endure anything with love. This is due to his optimism from growing up in his Mississippi childhood.
I agree with this because Dilsey really does show all the meanings of love and the time period that Faulkner grew up in was a very religious time period and being very well versed in the Bible was normal. So the fact the he used Dilsey to show that anyone can endure anything with love is a very acceptable conclusion.
"'The way he looked said Hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in the Sound and the Fury."
Roggenbuck, Ted. "'The way he looked said Hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in the Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005): p581. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 March 2009
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier
This essay focuses on Benjy as a dynamic character. Roggenbuck says that Benjy and Caddy are usually characterized as static characters; however, people fail to see that they are constantly changing throughout the novel. Benjy's mental abilities are worsened as he grows older, when you would think they would become better. It is obvious that Benjy is much more aware of things as a child than as a man. As a child he is able to read people's faces and figure out what it is they are trying to say. As he gets older, his attempts to discern the world around him fail and he is easily upset by things around him.
After reading this essay, it occurred to me that Benjy is almost like Benjamin Button, from the recent movie curious case of Benjamin Button. Like Benjy, Benjamin Button's mental abilities weaken as he gets older. Benjamin is born with all the physical features of an old man and as he grows older, his body gets younger but his mental capacity is like that of an old man that is losing his memory. He reminds me of Benjy because the two of them are both trying to understand the world around them. I also realized that I was one of those people that thought Benjy's character never changed. I thought this was a very insightful essay.
Ralph Ellison- Twentieth Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity
1.) Ellison gives the typical representation of African Americans in literature. He claims that authors either associate them with a "malignant stereotype" or a "benign stereotype." Ellison states that the African Americans in TSATF represent each side of the coin. Ellison also writes that the stereotypes are forcd upon the negro just as they are the white man. Especially in the south, white people face each day the implications of what Ellison calls, "anti-negro taboos." He writes that Ellison uses these stereotypes in order to seek out their true selves.
2.) I definately agree with Ellison in regards to his choice to use each stereotype. On one hand, we have Dilsey, a caring and compssionate woman, and on the other we have Luster, a little punk who delights in tormenting Benjy. Also, those stereotypes are forced upon white people. The days of slavery still affect racial interaction. Some have moved on and accept the other race while others continue to live in the past. For example, Caddy accepts Dilsey, while her daughter Quentin pushes her away. In regards to their true selves, some shine through in the novel like Dilsey while others constantly remain on the surface.
Ellison,Ralph. "Twentieth Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity." Shadow and Act. New York:Random House, 1953
1. Brooks, Cleanth. "Man, Time, and Eternity." The Sound and the Furty. Ed. David Minter. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1994. 289-297.
2. Brooks talks mostly about the four different points of view in the novel, the transitions between the sections, the characters who share their points of view, how they view Caddy, and how time affects all of the characters. Quentin is mentioned as being representative of Puritans and that Mrs. Compson was at the root of Quentin's lack of confidence. Jason's obsession with money is said to derive from his practicality, yet he is nonpractical in his bitterness and almost sadism. Brooks claims that Jason's section has some of the most brilliant writing that Faulkner ever created in it. Brooks also says that the Old South is a wonderful setting for this novel because the disintegration of the Compson family can be more easily seen through the old-fashioned ways of this setting. Brooks says that Dilsey's race "show less false pride, less false idealism, and more seasoned discipline in human relationships."
3. I really enjoyed reading this criticism of the novel. It really encompassed everything we talked about in class and was able to analyze even more. There were many things, such as how Brooks described the differences between the sections, that were really able to accomplish what they are truly about and put it into words I would most definitely not be able to create. There were a few points that I had never truly thought of, such as Mrs. Compson being at the root of Quentin's self-esteem issues. Obviously she is a retched character; however, Quentin rarely mentions her in his section and surely not as often as his father. I thought the explanation for why the setting fit the story was really interesting and definitely true. I love how Brooks worded how the African American figures in the novel were different from the Caucasians in the novel. In general, I enjoyed Brooks's criticism and could not have said it all better myself.
Roggenbuck, Ted. ""The way he looked said hush": Benjy's mental atrophy in The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005). 581. Literature Resources from Gale. 27 March 2009. http://go.galegroup.com/ps/retrieve.do?sgHitCountType=None&sort=RELEVANCE&inPS=true&prodId=LitRG&userGroupName=tel_k_collier&tabID=T001&searchId=R1&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&contentSegment=&searchType=BasicSearchForm¤tPosition=7&contentSet=GALE|A159392154&&docId=GALE|A159392154&docType=GALE
In this essay, Roggenbuck seeks to answer the question of how benjy sees his world and how he attempts to communicate his feelings to others. He claims that all of Benjy's different moans and cries are his desperate attempt to talk but his mental capacity limits him to only crying when he is distressed or moaning when he wants something. Roggenbuck also looks into Benjy's mental state. He notes that while Benjy is mentally retadred, he records every event in detail evn though he cannot grasp what is happening. He says that benjy's mind is like a phonograph on which a record plays over and over and he cannot choose where to stop it.
I agree with a lot of the idea in the article. Benjy obviously cries to express his dismay over things and moans when he wants caddy and such. He does precisely record events even though he wittnesses them from a narrow perspective as he cannot interpret whats happening around him. I dont think Benjy's mental capacity is not as atrophied as people think. He can grasp details and become emotional attached to people and places but he cannot understand the big picture. He just needs help making connections which is what caddy provides him.
Ellison, Ralph. "Twentieth-Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity." The Sound and the Fury. Second ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1929. 275-78.
Ralph Ellison discusses the object of the stereotype and how its made to not so much crush the negro as to console the white man in William Faulkner’s works. He talks about how Faulkner has a mixed view on this subject by taking his cue from Southern mentality in which the Negro is ofter dissociated into a malignant stereotype. His character have a dual dissociation of avoiding moral pain and this justifies the South's southern racial code. This then leads to making the Southern artist or writer use the Negro as a symbol of personal rebellion, guilt, and repression which is greatly seen in The Sound and the Fury. With The Sound and the Fury the artist is no freer than the society in which he lives, distorting their own humanity if stereotype or ignoring the negro takes place.
I cant help to feel as though the criticism is a bash or pat on the back to Faulkner. I think that Ralph Elison is correct when he speaks of minority being able to be a specific role or symbol for Faulkner's work. I was bothered that no example was really given but i can see what hes trying to say through Dilsey's family. They all have very specific roles and follow certain stereotypes, but they all end up better off than the white Compson family. This ultimately distorts the Compson's own order of humanity. I'm not sure but i think Ralph Ellison is trying to reveal the use of stereotype as a way to match a certain identity with a specific race but reveal that the stereotype is not what sums a race up entirely.
Roggenbuck, Ted. "'The way he looked said hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in The Sound and the Fury.(Benjy Compson)(Critical essay)." The Mississippi Quarterly 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005): 581(13). General OneFile. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009
(http://find.galegroup.com/ips/start.do?prodId=IPS)
Mine deals with Benjy's mental capacity. Mr. Roggenbuck starts off my saying that Benjy actually has no control over his crying and realizes it at certain points in the book. He uses it as communication towards Caddy, but also just randomly cries sometimes. He is unaware of many of his action throughout the book, but this is actually good for Benjy. While everyone else dwells on the past as a negative thing, Benjy actually finds refuge in the past. He is the least hurt person in the book because of that. Benjy is actually smarter than he is seen in the novel too. Faulkner portrays Benjy as dumb, but Roggenbuck believes that he is actually better off mentally than all the other characters because, "he was allowed to refuse the future." By 1928 Benjy is looking pretty independent in a mental stand point because he is no longer asking for help and only cries when they deviate from the original plan (used as communication,not pointless). The essay gives many examples where it shows that Benjy was much more normal than it may have appeared.
This essay made a lot of sense. I always thought Benjy was not as dumb as seen in the book but really could not find scenes showing it. I did not realize that Benjy actually was much better off in the past, unlike Jason and Quentin. This essay revealed that there was much more to Benjy than what it seemed in the book and he was a fairly important character, not just because of his non-bias narration.
1. Longley, John L., Jr. "Who Never Had a Sister': A Reading of The Sound and the Fury." Mosaic. 7.1 (Fall 1973): 35-53. Rpt. in Novels for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1998. 35-53. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009 [http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier}.
2. Longley believes that the strongest theme in the novel revolves around the way the Compson family demonstrates their love for one another. He frames the disfunctionality of the Compson children as “the heartbreak of loss and innocence." He recognizes that Caddy is the driving force behind the development of all other characters in TSATF. For Benjy, she was a source of comfort; for Quentin she represented all the values he loved and wanted to protect; and for Jason, she was his failures and her object of resentment. Quentin can’t live with Caddy’s loss of virginity, and his obsession with it drives him crazy. Jason takes Caddy’s daughter, Miss Quentin and focuses all of his hatred and disgust for Caddy on her.
3. I have to agree with most of what Longley describes. However, I would not have picked love as a dominant theme in the novel. I found it interesting what examples Longley brought in to explain his position. For example, I had completely forgotten about Caroline Compson “mourning” after Caddy’s kiss. I also found it strange that Jason’s hatred for Miss Quentin stems from his disgust with Caddy which stemmed from her search to be loved. His hatred for his niece even affects his desire to be in control. In his search for his niece and the man in the red tie, Jason allows himself to give into the raised price for driving him back to Jefferson.
Hey it's CJ! My email wasnt working for some reason.
Abate, Michelle Ann. "Reading red: The man with the (gay) red tie in Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 54.3 (Summer 2001): pg. 293. Literature Rosources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 March 2009. http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier
Doing this on my cell phone, on my way to Dallas TX! Haha!
Michelle Abate claims that the man wearing the red tie that Miss Quentin is supposedly in a relationship is homosexual. To argue this, she gives textual details within Jason's section and also historical proof of the timeframe when Faulkner wrote The Sound and the Fury. She writes of how Jason's attitude toward this man is a sign that he is homosexual, such as his comment that "real men don't wear red ties." Jason's inpersistence with allowing the two of them together also reveals that he believes he is no threat. Abate also mentions how red ties were a symbol of homosexuality, along with blonde hair. This was around the time period of Faulkner's writing of TSATF.
In my opinion, i think the man really could be gay based on this evidence, but it still could be that he and miss quentin are together. You can't deny that the red tie is a symbol for the novel, and after reading this criticism, the man being gay would make sense. It could mean the struggle of men to get into Miss Quentin's life because of Jason, or it could mean the hard time's homosexuals had in this time period, where it was suffocating to be who you were. Jason's attitude towards him really hints out that this man could be gay, especially when he demeans him just like he does women.
Morris, Wesley and Barbara Alverson Morris. "A Writing Lesson: The Recovery of Antigone." Reading Faulkner. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1989. 133-42.
The primary focal point of this critical essay, as hinted by the title, is the language and writing style of Faulkner, especially in the varying points of view. The transition from Benjy to Quentin in the first two sections signify the metamorphosis from childhood into adulthood. However, it also "molests" the novels authenticity by invading what had previously been established in the previous section, but such a theme is recurring and essential to the work as a whole. The first three sections parallel one another via ideas of incest, castration, distortion, and loss of innocence. All three brothers find an innate desire for Caddy, yet respond in varying manners. Whereas Benjy was physically castrated, in part (as the authors proclaim) due to Caddy's carelessness, Quentin's virginity and Jason's stagnant living both reflect a similar circumstance. Benjy's section focuses on his inability to communicate with his very sensual surroundings, yet he relates events and happenings with perfect detail. Faulkner emphasizes more distinctly what is lacking or absent rather than what is contributed through the language. Benjy is trapped in this world, surrounded by what he cannot understand; victimized by words.
This essay was very intriguing in its focus not so much on content but rather the style and format in which it is revealed. It is obvious early on that Caddy represents an invisible hand that ties the family together, however unsuccessful that may be, but the recognition of the parallel circumstances among the brothers revealed a deeper connection. The emphasis on Benjy's violation by language is an understandable claim, yet the authors make a stretch by asserting that removing the name Maury from Benjy was a verbal banishment by his family. The name change may signify many things, but I fail to see a complete connection between that and his victimization. Quentin's section is described as "lyrical," which makes sense. Faulkner cleverly eliminated any kind of punctuation or even capitalization in certain memories, such as the knife scene with Caddy. This use of style shifts focus from action to the inner thoughts of the actor. The flow of the dialogue reflects the interior emotions of Quentin, which he is so careful to hide in most of his section.
1. Ellison, Ralph. "Twentieth-
Century Fiction and the Black
Mask of Humanity." Norton
Critical Edition: The Sound
and the Fury. Ed. David
Minter. New York: W.W.
Norton & Company, 1994. 275-
278.
(I have no ability to underline the title - blog will not let me)
2. Ellison opens with a description of the writing of both Herman Melville and Ernest Hemingway when pertaining to the subject of Negroes. Melville, Ellison believes, focused on a composition of his own personal beliefs and society's views, while Hemingway concentrated more on his personal ideas. Faulkner's literature tends to center on a blend of the social, personal, and moral ideas and consequences of the Negro. Faulkner's writing itself is complex enough to account for both sides of the social argument: the anti-Negro idea vs. the humane, equal Negro. However, his attitide tends to be mixed. Ellison believes that there are two types of Southern stereotypes of the black man: "the good nigger" and "the bad nigger" (277). Faulker can embody both. He attempts to "create and define Negro humanity" against the common, basic sterotypes of Southern lore (277). Ellison writes that Faulker was one of the forst writers to accept the sterotype as factual and the find the humanity within the Negro. He closes by stating that Faulker's ideas and writings are those for other writers in the future to follow.
3. In The Sound and the Fury, Faulker's writing tends to present the Negro sterotype, while simultaneously discovering the humanity and independence within that person. This is extremely evident with Dilsey. Faulker presents her as the typical black house servant, who is generally treated in such a manner as to confirm her social stature as one beneath the white Compson family. However, as the novel progresses, Dilsey is revealed to be a charcter of extrodiary independace and humanity, to the point of a comparison with Christ. Dilsey's compassion is emphasized through her diligent care and maintence of the Comson family. Faulker even continues to assert that Dilsey is the true recognition of the traditional South - the South that Quentin failed in preserving. This humanity Dilsey maintains verifies Ellison's statement that Faulker, though he accepts the sterotypes as true, eventually discovers the compassion and civility of the Negro.
I did "The Words of The Sound and the Fury."
It won't let me post my tag so I'm printing it off and I'll bring it to class Monday.
This essay talks about the significance of different symbols in the novel. It recognizes the frequent use of the word fire in Benjy's section and compares fire to Caddy. It also discusses Quentin's section as Faulkner's idea of conflicts of the human heart. It also recognizes the lantern in Quentin's section as an optimistic outlook on problems. It discusses Jason's greed and says it protects him.
I honestly don't remember half of the symbols it discusses and didn't recognize most as significant. I had only really thought about the fire. The article didn't really teach me anything other than recognizing the lantern. It kind of just restated what we've talked about in class and what I already know. It really just went into depth on each symbol. I wish I would have done this Wednesday night so all of this wouldv'e been fresh on my mind.
Ellison,Ralph. "Twentieth Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity." Shadow and Act. New York:Random House, 1953
Ralph Ellison- Twentieth Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity
Ellison starts by stating that the difference in 19th century literature and 20th century literature is the latter arouses a "a social effect.. in their respspective readers." Ellison begins to describe how Faulkner uses the average Negro to do just that. By using both sides of the Negro, the bad and the good, Faulkner more accurately identifies who they really are as humans. Ellision feels that Faulkner accepts these stereotypes to be true, but then pushes past them to "seek the human truth" hidden within the stereotypes. Ellison states that Faulkner also shows the effects of the Negro stereotype on whites. To interact or respect a negro can be seen as "taboo" causing whites to be seen as rebellious if they cross these divisions of race. Ellison finally states that by stereotyping or ignoring the Negro one is distorting their own reality and humanity, further implying that America is living in a state "masked by blackness."
I agree with Ellison; Faulkner's use of both sides of the stereotypes is the best way to illustrate the "Negro" just as any other. There are good ones and there are bad ones. Dilsey is the prime example of the loving, and nurturing side of the stereotype. The almost wise and all-knowing old woman. Luster on the other hand, shows the ignorant, lazy and at times cruel side of the stereotype. By showing the many sides of a stereotype i think that it simply shows that there should be no stereostype at all. A stereotype is someone who acts in a predictable and constant manner. By showing that there is no constant or sameness in each Negro, Faulkner proves that "Negro" should not be a stereotype, and rather that they are just like everyone else, good and bad.
Davis, Thadious. Faulkner's "Negro" in The Sound and the Fury. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1983.
In the first part of the criticism, Davis is mostly relating his ideas to Faulkner's Flags in the Dust, which in fact actually help relate to The Sound and the Fury, too. Davis recognizes in Flags in the Dust, too, that blacks remain in the background throughout the novel, even though "they emerge in the conclusion as a major thematic idea." Davis believes that Faulkner uses blacks as comic relief from the real tensions of white life. Faulkner finds it important to also place tension between the past and present, which becomes more evident as the novel progresses. Davis believes that Faulkner is struggling to combine his conception of blacks with his primary ideas about whites. Faulkner breaks through the stereotypes by revealing the "humanity of individual black people within the family." Faulkner uses the black world, or how he perceives it from the outside, to both highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the white world. The conflict and tragedy results from blacks and whites maintaining different attitudes and values. Fualkner's depiction os blacks suggests that the "simple bonds of faith and love embodied in the community's daily relationships are ignored by the modern southerner."
I didn't realize how Faulkner's use of blacks in novels is almost vital to his career, and after reading this criticism, I definitely look at The Sound and the Fury differently. I kind of wonder though if any white people were offended by his work because of the fact that the black is so important in his conclusions. I disagree with Davis's idea that Faulkner uses the blacks to increase the "dramatic tensions between the past and the present." Dilsey is the only one in The Sound and Fury who actually moves on from what has happened in the past. She doesn't talk about Caddy much in her section because she doesn't find the past important, unlike the other three narrations. I did like when Davis said that Benjy was born into a white world where those around him have all the advantages. Benjy's blessings may be overlooked because of his idiocy, though. The Sound and the Fury would obviously not have been completed without Faulkner's implications of blacks and the symbols he places them as.
Longley, John L., Jr. "Who Never Had a Sister': A Reading of The Sound and the Fury." Mosaic. 7.1 (Fall 1973): 35-53. Rpt. in Novels for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1998. 35-53. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009 [http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier}.
Longely addresses that love and lack of love given to the Compson children is a central subject in TSATF. He identifies Caddy, Dilsey and Mr.s Compson as the only characters that are able to give "pure" love. He recognizes the fact that Caddy is the central thing that all three brothers obsess over. Benjy associates Caddy with familiarity and affection; she always reached out to him showing him love. However, the absense of her is unbearable for him and makes him upset everytime he realizes she isn't there. Quention is unable to cope with the things he cannot change, getting back Caddy's virginity, and this is what leads him to his death. Jason laso loves, but only himself. He merely obsesses over his loss job and uses it as a "crutch" to excuse his harsh actions against his family. Caddy seems to be a connection to pain for all the characters.
Longely tied some very interesting things together. I had never thought of the Compson's as representing all of humans. I also had looked past the fact that Caddy really is a a thing of hurt in all of the brother's lives. I do not however agree with his claim that Mr. Compson was one of the characters that was capable and showed love. The only thing i remember about him is his cynical, depressing advice that he gave Quentin. He showed his lack of love for him when he did this because he knew how much Quentin about take to heart what he said. It was interesting to me though to read an essay on love because that have never crossed my mind while reading this book because i didn't think it was that central being only a few of the characters actually did love. I did not realize that the lack of love has a huge effect on the characters.
I read Ralph Ellison's criticism.
Ellison, Ralph. "Twentieth-Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity." Ed. Minter, David. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1994. 275-278.
Ellison talks about how society and culture shape the literature and the way that authors write during their time periods. He then rationalizes the differing opinions of rhetoric's role in literature and how it is used. He talks about how Faulkner is able to depict blacks from both ends of the spectrum of that time period. He explains how writers have a the task to write about the other aspects of humanity instead of just defining others. He closes with the idea of writing as a tool to express support and ethics.
I agree with a great deal of the ideas Ellison expresses. Writing cannot be determined by any one definition because it changes with the times and culture, that is why there are so many literary movements. I never really thought too much about the bias of writing about African American characters, but looking back I can see that Faulkner does a really good job of representing both opinions. In a way, I think this kind of makes them seem pretty neutral and almost in equality to the white characters. I found it interesting that by the way he attributes and characterizes these characters particularly he was actually defining the aspects of humanity as a whole. I agree with him that ignoring and stereotyping certain ethnicities actually distorts and stereotypes themselves.
Howe, Irving. "Faulkner and the Negros." The Sound and the Fury. Second ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1929. 272-75.
summary: Howe first evaluates Faulkner's work to show the problems that go on among the values of blacks and whites. He says that in The Sound and The Fury's happy parts are when the children of both races play together. Howe then goes on to show the problems that exist as whites discriminate the blacks because the way that society has made it. He says that Faulkner shows the change in perspective as a stereotype to "personal vision" by the character Dilsey in TS&TF. Howe characterises her as a selfless, non-judging role in a traditional setting for blacks. In the end she represents the big picture of justice for society, that should not be based on race and status. She is kind to Benjy and takes him to her church despite his mental illness. This shows the complexity that the Southern values have.
opinion: I thought that Howe was right about the treatment and stereotypes people have. Even now, after the time period The Sound and The Fury was written, people still often characterize blacks as 'bad'. The critisism is not exactly as insightful as I wanted it to be. He makes some basic points about Dilsey and her role, and how she does not try to be better than the Compsons who don't act like others in the community. He does make his critisism more universal, for the overall changes in racial attitudes, instead of specific to The Sound and The Fury. Overall, it was an okay essay about the social issues prevalent in this novel.
Well I am going to comment on Jason's section because his I think that Jason has a hidden obession with women that is covered up by his supposed hatred for women in his section. I think that this obssesion does not exclude his own family members, espicially his mother.
Summary:
The article that I read explains Jason's disorder which makes him adore everything about his mother, although he appears to degrade her every chance he gets. The article reveals that every woman he comes in contact with is closely compared to his mother. The author believes that Jason places his mother on a sort of pedalstool, which places her above everyone else in his life. His chauvinistic view of life bshows that no one is as marvelous as the worthlessly weak woman who raised him. Jason's mother is only one that he is able to truly form a relationship with throughout the whole novel.
Reaction:
Although I believe that most of what the author says is true, I believe that there is very little evidence in his section that points to this assumption. Jason throughout his section, he abuses his mother and belittles her with every chance he gets. I think that this has to do with his obsession with power, and his need to control the lives of those that live around him. Jason tends to show cruelty towards those he view as weak which include women and children espicially.
Citation:
MOORE, KATHLEEN. "Jason Compson and the Mother Complex." The Mississippi Quarterly. 53.4 (Fall 2000): p533. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.
Citation: MOORE, KATHLEEN. "Jason Compson and the Mother Complex." The Mississippi Quarterly. 53.4 (Fall 2000): p533. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.
Sumary: This article deals with Jason Compson's "mother-fixation", whcih is defined as a combination of an odephial complex and "fixation", which in psychological terms is a childlike fixation on an object. Jason's hate, pessimism, and lust fr money can all be contributed to Caroline Compson. Caroline's fondness for Jason had hindered "the development of the libido" in Jaso, meaning he is unable to unattach himself from his mother and find another woman to love or marry. This is proved when Jason is not so harsh on Quentin when Caroline cries. Jason also compares all the women in his life, Lorraine, Caddy, and Quentin, to his mother. In Jason's stream-of-conciousness narration he often jumbles the women in his mind, mixing them with his mother; further exaple of mother-fixation. He calls them whores, ingoring that his mother had sex with his fater to produce children. Jason also competes with the father figures in his life, his father and Maury. His obsession with money is an attempt to control the female figures in is life, which all relate to his mother.
My Response: Freud's analysis of Jason makes perfect sense. It's no wonder he has this complex gorwing up in such a chaotic family. Jason was funny before, but now he just seems sad and twisted. EW!
1. Sartre, Jean-Paul. "Time in the Work of Faulkner." Literary annd Philosophical Essays. Michelson, Annette. London, England: Rider, 1955.
2. In his essay, Sartre asserts that time in The Sound and the Fury is stuck in the past. He claims that all the real and important action takes place in the past in the novel, even while the characters are seemingly in the present. One example Sartre uses to show this is the fight between Quentin and Gerald. Quentin is focused on getting revenge on Dalton Ames during the fight, and completely zones out until the fight is over, and he has lost. To Quentin, and the other characters, the past is inescapable. Sartre asserts that Faulkner's focus on the past most accurately mimics real life, because past events have much more impact in life than present events. This is so because one has more time to realize the effects of events in the past than events in the present.
3. This essay was really interesting to me because after reading it I realized that most the action in the novel really does occur in the past. The fight with Gerald is reminiscent of the past, all the occurrences with Caddy take place in the past, and also, Quentin's suicide is only seen for what it really is in the past. I also think that Sartre's essay was accurate in the sense that past event really do affect people more than present events. People are constantly haunted by the past, because they have much more time to think about it than the present they are living in. The Compson family is constantly unhappy because they only focus on their terrible past experiences.
Davis, Thadious M. "Faulkner's Negro in The Sound and the Fury." Faulkner's "Negro":Art and the Southern Context. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1983.65-73.
This essay is basically pointing out a few major points about Faulkner and his inclusion of blacks in his works. The novels that Faulkner wrote before The Sound and the Fury failed to address the importance blacks play in the lives of the whotes and the rest of society living in the South. This is partly because of Faulkner's heritage. He grew up among several stereotypes and expectations of blacks. This causes him to not include any real significance of blacks in the southern way of living. He changed his approach, though, in The Sound and the Fury. He uncludes many blacks, namely the Gibson family, that are a vital part of the lives of the Compson family.
In my opinion, what Davis writes about Faulkner's heritage affecting his writing makes sense. As a southern white during the years after the Civil war, he would obviously carry some beliefs of the insignificance of blacks in the world. Though blacks may serve some purpose in his work, he previoulsy failed to capture their relevance in society. However, in The Sound and the Fury, Dilsey and her family play a great part in the lives of the Compson family and society. For example, Dilsey is somewhat of the redemption of the Compson family. She possesses all of the fruits of the spirit that the family lacks. She, in fact, is the one who keeps the family alove and part of society. She is the sole person with enough compassion to take care of such ungrateful and undeserving people. Faulkner includes blacks ina context where they are part of and relevent to society as a whole, and not just the black community.
Ellison, Ralph. "Twentieth-Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity." Norton Critical Edition: The Sound and the Fury. Ed. David Minter. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1994. 275- 278.
Ellison opens with a description of the difference between nineteenth- and twentieth-century writers and gives his personal opinion about Faulkner's specific reasoning behind the use of the stereotypical whites and blacks in the novel. He believes that the "object of the stereotype is not so much to crush the Negro as to console the white man," and that Faulkner's mixed attitude towards the Negro led to these extreme characters. He also has the extreme white characters. He has both the good and the bad Negro as well. Ellison notes that the presented Negro in TSATF is a "compelling object of fascination" rather than a personal opinion or belief. He thinks Faulkner's real attempt with the Negro characters is to find the true nature of man. He seems to admire Faulkner's blunt use of the stereotype and sees his technique as one to continue.
I agree with Ellison's interpretation of Faulkner's extreme stereotypes. I wouldn't go as far as saying Faulkner's feelings towards the Southern Negro was confused because I don't think anybody can use that as fact. But I can see his rationality behind it; Faulkner doesn't have just the bad Negro, he also includes the almost Christ-like Dilsey. On the other hand, we have the horrendous white man, Jason. He is no better than any of the Negros in the novel. I do agree that the exaggerated stereotypes have an artistic impact on the novel and say a lot about Faulkner's style.
(Mrs. Charbonnet, I posted on time!!!!)
this is lucy by the way. cj had to borrow my name
n_n
Abate, Michelle Ann. "Reading red: the man with the (gay) red tie in Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 54.3 (Summer 2001): p293. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier.
The article starts with Abate saying how Miss Quentins boyfriend must be gay instead of being in a traveling circus because of his tie. It then talks about the history of homosexuality; which talks about red being a "gay" color and if you wore it, it meant that you were gay. Abate believes that Jason thought of Miss Quentins boyfriend to be gay because he knew about the sexual things going on because of his prostitue in memphis. She also believes that Jason may have acted this way towards him because it was another loss of control because this suppossedly gay man stole his niece from him. She then talks bout Faulkners gay experiences which give more reason for the gayness that is emmitted from the guy with the red tie.
well then, I do not agree with Abate at all. She is off her rocker. First off, if this guy was gay, what is he doing with Miss Quentin? Why would a gay man want to get with a Girl. That is the first check. Yes, he may be closeted, but still. It's just dumb. The color red has nothing to do with someones sexuality, he may have been wearing like a black shirt and wanted a popped of color...well that doesn't help him. But he is not gay. If he was, he wouldn't have been playing tonsle hockey with Miss Quentin on the swing. Abate is just dumb.
:)
oh and the quote "real men don't wear red ties" doesn't make sense cause then why do guys wear pink all the time?
he is not gay.
face facts.
:)
Sartre, Jean-Paul. "Time in the Work of Faulkner." Literary and Philosophical Essays. Michelson, Annette. London, England: Rider, 1955.
Summary:
Sartre begins with questioning the reasoning behind Faulkner splitting up his work into four sections, thus distorting time. He asserts that the present is chaotic only because it was man that created watches and clocks in a way of capturing time. Jean-Paul Sartre then cites examples in the novel that illustrate the "nameless and fleeting" nature of the present. There is no way of capturing time or stopping change. He compares it to the shadows that constantly reappear in Quentin's section, referring to its oppressive, persistent nature. The past, he claims, is more relatable. He believes that Faulkner demonstrates time as a device that is primarily meant to separate. Ultimately, Sartre states, it is Faulkner's own despair that leads him to introduce a dismal present and future.
Response:
I agreed with most everything in this article. Time is incapable of being bound and transformation is inevitable. The past is comforting and familiar, while the present and future can instill fear. I never really considered Quentin's section being written after he is already dead. The monologue is written in the past, but it never crossed my mind that he had already committed suicide. Also, I concur that William Faulkner's own life and loss for hope directly relates to his characters' perspective of time. Ultimately life is absurd and the omnipresence of time only leads to more chaos.
Summary:
Abate starts by informing us on her reasoning for concluding that the man with the red tie is actually gay. Apparently, in those days, people dressed fairly simply and dressing in something as flamboyant as a red tie could apparently give indication to one's sexual orientation. At first I figured maybe the red tie was just part of the whole 'carnival get-up' but Abate quickly gave me another perspective, stating: "Documentation of attire worn by both circus and carnival staff during this period does not indicate that it was a convention for pitchmen, showmen or talkers to wear a red tie as a part of their professional garb." Apparently the man chose to wear the tie on his own, which Abate implies leans toward a certain message he was trying to convey.
Analysis:
I think that while this certainly provides a different way to look at this, it also seems very ignorant. It seems like kind of a stretch to make every little thing symbolic, but then again there are different ways to interpret it.It seemed pretty evident that he was atleast trying to put on a front, as he was smooching all over her on the swing. It seemed pretty voluntary and I highly doubt Quentin had to force him into anything. I think the red tie could symbolize something, but I highly doubt that it symbolizes homosexuality.
Abate, Michelle Ann. "Reading red: the man with the (gay) red tie in Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 54.3 (Summer 2001): p293. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 23 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier*.
Jason Complex and the Mother Complex
MOORE, KATHLEEN. "Jason Compson and the Mother Complex." The Mississippi Quarterly. 53.4 (Fall 2000): p533. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.
Moore compares the Freudian theology of "fixation" and the Oedipal complex to Jason Compson's very own relationship with his mother. Fixation is the affliction of one being unconsciously focused on one particular event or object for so long that they have robbed themselves of a present or future. She points out that Jason's relationships with the other women in the novel are primarily sexual. This is because these other women act as sexual outlets for Jason who, according to the Oedipal complex, will look at his mother as a woman of high moral fiber and respectability. She also compares the relative likeness between Jason and his mother using the quote from the text about their hazel eyes ringed in black with cold, callous stares. In this both Jason and his mother share a more than familial connection because they are describe as having two identically cruel souls. Then Moore goes onto describe Jason's disrespect towards men who may become potential father figures and his obsession with money. These idiosyncracies are crutches for Jason's insecurity and fear of failure and are also ultimately utilized for control and power.
I agree with Moore's points on the psychological reasonings of why Jason is so cruel and why he is a control freak. Moore mentions that in Peter Gay's understanding of Freud is that fixation is a defense against anxiety. This is interesting in that Jason is fixated on the lost job he was promised and through the fear of appearance, Jason puts up a front so as not to look weak. I thought it was also very interesting that Jason views every woman in his family unit on a primarily sexual level and tries to control them by insinuating and or insulting their promiscuity. Basically, Jason had all the symptoms of an Oedipal complex and a fixation issue. The only thing I am left wondering is if Faulkner's characterization was inspired by the Freudian theory.
Irwin, John T. “Doubling and Incest in The Sound and the Fury.” Johns Hopkins University Press, 1975. The Sound and the Fury, Norton Critical Edition.
Irwin starts off talking about how Quentin is a Christ like figure. They are both sacrifices for the world. Quentin’s suicide is the death of the South, thus being the sacrifice of the South. Irwin then talks about Faulkner and how he is a sacrifice for his novels. He spent so much time writing this novel and he wrote the story four different times and still was not satisfied with the way he presented the story. Faulkner wants the novel to be something he can look at and be proud of, not something he lives within. Irwin ends with talking about how Caddy comes from the sister Faulkner never had and the infant daughter he was about to lose.
I was drawn to this criticism because I loved Quentin's section and the way that Faulkner wrote four different views but still was not satisfied. I really agree with Irwin’s point that Quentin represents a Christ like figure. Also the fact that Miss Quentin left the day before Easter represents a resurrection from the Compson home was sort of a new way to look at the situation. This criticism helped me to understand the process and frustration that Faulkner went through while writing the novel. He had to rewrite it through four different perspectives because he was not satisfied. I know how he feels not being satisfied with something and wanting to keep going, because it eats at you. This criticism helped me to realize the struggle that some authors go through while writing a novel.
VISSER, IRENE. "Faulkner's THE SOUND AND THE FURY." The Explicator 52.4 (Summer 1994): 171. General OneFile. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009
http://find.galegroup.com/itx/start.do?prodId=ITOF.
Summary:
Visser really ties together Caddy's tragedy in the play, and gives her opinion that Caddy's story helps contribute to the overall tragedy of the book. She points out that even though Caddy isn't once mentioned, she is a pertinent part of the last section. She shows textual examples through the character's dialogue that no one quite has the same relationship with Benjy like Caddy did--Caddy asked Benjy "Are you cold?", but his mom and even Dilsey asked "Is he cold?". There are many references through Dilsey's actions in the fourth section that refer to Caddy, even if not stated: for example, Mrs. Compson treats Dilsey just like she treated Caddy in the first section. She quotes Faulkner that The Sound and the Fury is the story of "a tragic little girl."
Response:
I like this passage a lot, as it was actually very similar to the timed write I wrote, albeit better written. Her textual details through dialogue and actions of the characters show Caddy's presence, even in the fourth section--though not of an obsessive narrator. This viewpoint provided the omniscient perspective of how much Caddy affected the family, even though she wasn't really in the section. In my opinion, the best thing about this passage is the assortment of quotes that depict Caddy and her interaction, comparing her treatment of Benjy to Dilsey's, Mrs. Compson's, and even Luster's. Overall, pretty fresh.
This is Ashley...
Davis, Thadious M. "Faulkner's 'Negro' in The Sound and the Fury." The Sound and the Furty. Ed. David Minter. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1994. 393-397.
Summary: Davis acknowledges Faulkner's attempt to fully recognize African Americans roles in the society he knows so well through the integration of characters in his novels. However, his understanding is still limited and therefore limits his artistic portrayals, as does the norm of characterization of his contemporaries. African Americans remain in the background, although their thematic importance is paramount in the last section of The Sound and the Fury. At the same time, he manages to illustrate African Americans' humanity and individuality respectfully and innovatively. His artistic development of African Americans' presence in plot, structure, themes, and symbols breaks the boundaries of his personal perspective and experience as a Southern white man. He divides The Sound and the Fury into black and white, using the black world (as he sees it) to show the weaknesses of the white world and its inhabitants, although he rarely also tries to show their strengths, too. Davis claims that Faulkner uses African Americans to show their adaptability--resulting from love and faith--which allows them to adjust in a changing society. The African Americans and whites, although together in the Compson household, are in separate worlds unattainable to inhabitants of the other world.
Reaction: Although we skimmed the role of Dilsey and her family, we never got too in-depth. This article does an excellent job of breaking down the thought processes behind Faulkner's use of these characters, even considering the influences that Faulkner himself couldn't and didn't recognize. I definitely saw the division of the two "worlds" (seriously, who couldn't though?) and thought it was interesting how bluntly Davis states that the two can never truly mix together--they are infinitely separate. Another good point he makes is that while the white Southern society was disintegrating (represented by the Compsons), the black family within the household survived--all of these family members are aware of the strength they possess together. I loved when Davis said that "In their (Dilsey and her family) closeness they represent a continuity of family that is vital to traditional society," which is so completely true. Without a basic family structure, a strong, stable, lasting society is impossible to achieve because that sense of greater unity must first be found within the home. Dilsey, Roskus, Luster, Versh, and the rest are the only source of unconditional love, respect, and security in the novel, which I think Davis suggests may come from their tradition of duty to the white family. If someone can remain loyal to a stuck-up, jerk of a family, then the love they feel for their own family is not easily taken for granted or forgotten.
Hey, Mrs. Charbonnet, I've already done the blog post, but I was wondering if you could give me a link to that New York Times article about how college acceptance/rejection letters are not that big a deal? Or if I could get another copy from you on Monday? Thanks!
"Language and act: Caddy Compson"
by Linda Wagner
Wagner, Linda W. "Language and act: Caddy Compson." The Southern Literary Journal. 14.2 (Spring 1982): p49. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009
This article focuses on describing how the entire novel could be wrapped up in one quote: "You've got your Caddy. Haven't you got your Caddy."
Caddy speaks these words to Benjy to comfort him, to reassure him of his value and negate some of the dehumanizing the rest of the family has done to him.
Wagner argues that not only Benjy's perspective, but the plot of the novel is dependent on either the presence or absence of Caddy.
Caddy is the only family member, besides Dilsey later on that devotes her time and energies to helping Benjy, loving him, and teaching him. She teaches him about ice, about fire, to stoop over, and she loves him the way no one else is capable of. She doesn't patronize him, so many would. Instead she tells him, "You're not a poor baby. Are you. You've got your Caddy."
Wagner also points out how Caddy acts as not only a comfort, but also an interpreter. She and Benjy have a language all their own through smells (trees), sights (fire) and sounds (Benjy's crying).
Honestly I thought at first this Wagner lady offered few insights to an already complex novel, but she just waited till deep in the article to say them! I liked seeing how she tied Caddy to communication in Benjy's life. It seemed like when they were younger it was great. She could smell like trees and watch over him and have fun. Then as Caddy begins to mature, their previously impenetrable communication began to disintegrate. She lost her childlike, sincere scent with the perfume. She lost her youthful innocence with the loss of her virgininty. And her wedding symbolized the more permanent loss of her connection with the brother that needs her. Ironically on the day Benjy's interpreter leaves, her wedding, Benjy finds his "voice." Never before (chronologically) have we heard of his bellow. He had cried before, but this point seemed to be the introduction of Benjy's own "sound" with which he will now have to attempt to communicate in Caddy's absence. Wagner's article made these two Compsons an actual family and took me through step by step through their transformation.
Cecil, L. Moffitt. "A rhetoric for Benjy." The Southern Literary Journal. 3.1 (Fall 1970): p32. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier .
First, Cecil compares Faulkner's made up speech for Benjy to that of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn. Cecil notes that it was harder though for Faulkner because he could not draw from his experiences as Twain could since he wasn't an idiot and an idiot of Benjy's proportion would not be able to tell Faulkner. The way that it is set up, as an interior monologue, makes it where Benjy is characterizing his self instead of others when talking about them. Cecil goes on to give some alarmingly exact statistics about how many different words Benjy uses (about 500), also splitting them into their different categories (nouns, adjectives, etc). Cecil talks about all the different ways that Benjy talks and how objects do things, not people doing things to the objects.
First thing I have to say about this article is that this person has absolutely no life, taking the time to COUNT and RECORD each different part of speech that Benjy uses (says) in his section. Second, Cecil calls Benjy an idiot which is understandable, but he(?) goes as far as saying that Benjy is a mute. I personally think that while Benjy never really talks in the book, I think he is still able to form some kind of words; I mean he has a massive memory (way better than mine) and an okay understanding of things. I think that Cecil does try to pull a little to much out of what exactly Benjy says. I doubt that Faulkner really planned out every word thinking "well i'm up to 199 nouns, but is it worth letting benjy understand another object at the sacrifice of my last word; i doubt it.
"The way he looked said hush":Benjy's mental atrophy in The Sound and the Fury
Roggenbuck, Ted. "'The way he looked said hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005): p581. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009 [http:go.galegroup.com/ps/ start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_ collier].
Roggenback opens up stating that even though Benjy's mind does not seem to grow beyond childhood, he is still feels the effects of his life experiences. He suggests that Benjy's mind almost reverses its path because during his childhood, Caddy tries to understand him, but in his adult life, surrounding people, Luster and Jason, do not pay enough attention to him. In his younger years, Benjy's associates his crying as a form of communication and tries to understand it, but as he gaes, he is confused by it and loses interest in whether it means anything or not. Roggenbuck suggests that Faulkner uses Benjy as an element of innocence, that he was born with it, and is never able to part with it, because he is not capable to try. Roggenbuck also writes that Benjy refuses to live in the future. Benjy only focuses on the present long enough to remember past events. He also asserts that Benjy's loss of Caddy contributes to his lack of interest in the present, that his losses have taken away his interest.
I would have to agree with Roggenbuck. He basically restates how we interpret Faulkner's novel. I do think that if Caddy had not been taken out of the picture, Benjy would have more interest in the world around him, in the present. I believe that his mind could have expanded more, if she had even stayed around for just a while longer. I agree that crying is a form of communication for Benjy at first, but that as time progresses, it becomes a habit. He seems to associate hit to pain, which he constantly experiences, whether physical or mental. Benjy's lack of growth, or even reversal of growth, actually helps the novel play out like it does, which Roggenbuck cites that Faulkner implies. He says that he should "never grow beyond this point." This point meaning his peak--with Caddy around.
"Faulkner and the Negroes" by Irving Howe
Summary:
Howe starts by stating the peak of the novels tensions are because of Faulkner's "presentment of Negro life and character." Furthermore, he emphasizes his concern with Faulkner's views on the 'racial question' are no greater than his concern with "the way they condition the novel." He [Howe] comments the Compson families happy memories are only the ones with images of 'white and Negro children playing together' and then continues to reference other novels in comparison. Such examples include Absalom, Absalom! , "The Bear," Intruder in the Dust, "Go Down, Moses," Light in August, and "the Fire and the Hearth." He shows how, because of the past, whites discriminate against the black race. Also, Dilsey represents how things and times are changing. She shows no resentment or effect by the discrimination around her and she is the idol of justice because of the way she treats Benjy and doesn’t treat him differently because he is challenged.
Opinion:
At first I thought Howe was going to rant that Faulkner was racist and expressed his racial opinions through the characters. But then I realized he was showing how Faulkner illustrates the effects of racism and the tension for future generations it has created. And also how it is shown in other novels such as Absalam Absalam. He uses Dilsey as an example of positive change for the future. He shows that there is hope for the future generations if they can just become selfless and put the past behind. But he didn’t really focus on only The Sound and the Fury, which would have been better in my opinion.
Howe, Irving. "Faulkner and the Negros." The Sound and the Fury. Second ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1929. 272-75.
I will be talking about the "Negro" aspect of the novel.
Davis, Thadious M. "Faulkner's Negro": Art and the Southern Context. Louisiana State university Press, 1983. 65-73
In Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury, although he brings out the black society's heritage, he does it with respect. He grew up around a racist community, yet he learned to look past the stereotypes and found good in their community. To emphasize on this factor, Faulkner switches the roles of the white and black community. For example,the Gibsons(Dilsey's family) seem to bring great vitality into the novel, why the Compson family are all decaying. Through the southern views, Faulkner compares the Compsons with the Gibsons, implying the decision of choosing service and loyalty, or material goods and protection.
Davis doesn't really say anything to fire me up because,on the most part, I agreed with him. For instance, I do believe that he was determined to change; he helped break the stereotype through his writing, showing that there is good in the black society, despite what the corrupted white society says. I especially respect him for this, knowing that he grew up around racist white people who looked down upon black men and women. Basically he tells all readers that there are good and bad men, despite what race. Stereotyping gets you nowhere in life, it only causes people to place each other into categories which are unfavorable.
Howe, Irving. "Faulkner and the Negroes." The Sound and the Fury. Ed. David Minter. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1994. 272-275.
First, Howe mentions how Southern white writers make complicated and vague responses to the blacks which are supposedly predictable. In The Sound and the Fury, the only happy memories of the Compsons remember are ones in which both white and black children play together. He then mentions how the shame of blacks and racism in general creates a feeling of loss and confusion in all of Faulkner's works. In the end, the methods by which black and white men separate themselves is too costly and too wearisome. He even suggests that the whites are bogged down by guilt and suffering. Faulkner's portrayal of the black person is particularly sad and poignant. Dilsey is pointedly important for her steadfastness and her ability to preserve selfhood in her conditions. Interestingly, Howe claims that although she is morally strong, she is not an embodiment of Christian endurance and strength. He says that Dilsey cannot be categorized into a certain moral archetype or model. Dilsey's role in The Sound and the Fury is also unconventional and untraditional. She is more than just a mere servant, she is a moral observer who resents the Compsons not for their treatment of blacks, but for each other. To Dilsey, the Compsons do not live up to their name.
This critical essay focuses on Dilsey, perhaps one of the most important characters in the novel (and one of my favorites). What I particularly disagree with is when Howe claims Dilsey is not an embodiment of Christian values such as endurance and strength. Dilsey is a very strong Christian and represents the Christian values and attitude. For example, she defends bringing Benjy to church on Easter because God doesn't care whether Benjy is smart or not. She is admirable for her compassion and affection. However, I do agree with the idea that she plays a very unconventional role as a black woman in the novel. She is indeed more than just their servant, cook, and caretaker. She is the symbol for hope and resurrection in the final section of the novel, which happens to take place on Easter Sunday. Interestingly, I never thought about why she resented the Compson's like the way Howe suggested. She judges them based on their treatment of each other and their moral deterioration. As she says, "I saw de beginnin and de end." She acknowledges their downfall and their fall in status as an aristocratic Southern family. The Compsons have lost their prominence and they have lost their way in their morals and values.
Howe, Irving. "Faulkner and the Negros." The Sound and the Fury. Second ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1929. 272-75.
Howe is talking ablot the roles that african americans paly in Faukner's novels. He mentions many novels by faulkner but in particular he talks about Dilsey in The Sound and the Fury. He says how she seems to portray the "Old South" in an unconventional way. He says that"while dilseys strength and goodness may be acceptable to traditional patternalism, she gradually resumes a role not quite traditional for the southern negro." He thinks that her representation of hope and her influence over thse compsons set her apart from her racial sterotype. Howe also mentions that the compsons only have good memories when they think back to kids playing with people of different races. He is saying that there is racial acceptance in Faukner's novels.
I think that Dilsey does exaxctly what Howe says and defys boundraies that people expect to hold her back. She goes past a sterotypical african american woman and becomes the mother for children whose mother had very little intrest in them. She also becomes hope for a family so plagued with destruction that there is almost no chance of redemption except for dilsey. She has religion and something to back her up in times of destruction. This all ties into the feeling that happiness only comes with unity and equality. Until the Compsons realize that they are equals with and eally need dilsey to be their saving grace, they will continue down the ath of complete destruction.
"The way he looked said hush": Benjy's mental atrophy in The Sound and the Fury
Summary:
In this literature criticism, the author claims that even though Benjy has the mentality of a child, his mind is still altered by his experiences. He had more intelligence as a kid than most claimed, but he has become so withdrawn in the present that he lives through a series of coincidental presents. He is too mentally and emotionally withdrawn to attempt to interpret what is going on. He does not even say when he is crying or what upset him; we must interpret it in other ways. He says that Benjy's detachment from the world is more due to his diminished interest in his current present than it does about the limits of his intelligence. He displays more interest as a child and therefore is about to relate to it more complexly. His holding Caddy displays his emotional awareness as a kid. He however seems to suffer the least due to his disinterest. He is stuck in his innocence, and his losses have brought disinterest. He cannot accept the future. He goes on to give more examples of Benjy's emotional awareness in the past and disinterest in the present.
My response:
Benjy focuses on the past because the present doesn't seem to have significance anymore. I agree with the author because it does seem that Benjy is more invested in the past than the present. The only thing that he ever finds significant is Caddy, and since she is only in the past, that is where most of his thoughts lie. There isn't anything for him in the present or future because she is gone. He is no longer interested in it. He seems more able to get his feelings across when he has Caddy to help him and comfort him. I do think, however, that his mental retardation is a pretty large factor in his awareness. It keeps him stuck to the familiar, so he is unable to adapt and find significance in new things. He will always only think about Caddy and her effects. He had moral support from her and was thus more aware of the things happening in the past, so he could understand them somewhat. Now he is lost without her and reverts to the memories in his mind.
Roggenbuck, Ted. "'The way he looked said hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005): p581. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 28 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier. (can't have HTML so I can't put brackets)
Davis, Thadious M., "Faulkner's "Negro" in The Sound and the Fury." Art and the Southern Context. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University, 1983. 65-73. The Sound and the Fury. Norton Critical Edition. 393-397.
Summary: Through his criticism, Davis reveals the importance of blacks in Faulkner's novel. First, while the black characters are not major characters, their presence has a major impact on the themes of the novel. The ending of the novel shows the blacks holding to thier values of family and religion, while the white family, the Compsons, is disintegrating. The Gibsons show a cretivity and spiritness in thier approach at life that is juxtaposed by the decay and moral corruption in the Compson family. Secondly, Davis connects the black characters to foreshadowing events in the novel and show motifs. The Gibson seem to hold the Compsons together, especially Dilsey and Luster. Davis asserts that Faulkner is able to insert the negros into the novel in a respectful and innovative way that does not include sterotypes, but actual characters of negros, with family vaules.
response:
I agree with all the points that Davis makes in his essay. I think it is important to see the importance the black characters have to the central theme of the book. Diley's actions of living in the present and showing love contrast the bitterness and painful memories of the Compson sons. While Dilsey and the Gibsons will be redemmended, the Compsons are unable to raise above their tarnished family name. Also, the black charcters do foreshadow many events, like when Roskus states "there aint no luck on this place," he foreshadows the eventual decay and destruction of the Compson family. However, I found most intesting about this article was the contrasts between the two families that I missed when I read the novel. From the way the two families view life, to the values and attitudes the two families keep, the families are foils for each other and help the reader to understand the central theme of the novel. It also shows the decay of Southern values or the Old South because the blacks are raising up and the whites are decaying and dying away.
Ellison, Ralph. "Twentieth-Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity." The Sound and the Fury. 2nd ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1929. 275-78.
In this essay Eliison dicusses the protrayal of the "negro" sterotype in Faulkner's works. His thesis is that the "negro" stereotype is meant to console the whites rather than bring down the negros. Ellison writes that while ordinarily souther writers break dwon their negro character into the steretypes of good negro and bad negro Faulkner portrays them as indivduals having both good and bad traits. Ellison believes that in Faulkner's works he accepts the sterotype and seeks to difne where it came from and what it implies, a feat unheard of during his time.
I can definatly see where Ellison is coming from. In many ways the Gibson family strays from the Black stereotype. Dilsey for instance possess the positive old southern qualities that Faulkner idealizes, and her family is often associated with rebirth and the continuation of the south. I think Faulkner is criticizing the negro steretype of the south esspecially in Jason's section. Jason seems to represent the negative parts of old southern heritage that remain, the main ones being racism and bigatry.
Howe, Irving. "Faulkner and the Negros." The Sound and the Fury. Second ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1929. 272-75.
Irving Howe writes about how Faulkner, like many other white Southern writers of his time, treats his Negro characters with complexity. His attitude toward negroes is ambiguous, combinging the stereotypical opinions of the Old South with a new sense of "lost fraternity." Scenes of Negro children happily playing together are a reminder of how whites and blacks have the potential to get along. Howe asserts that perhaps Faulkner's treatment of Negroes in literature results from guilt he feels for whites' treatment of blacks. Dilsey is a great example of Faulkner's shifting opinion. Throughout the novel, she gradually shifts away from the stereotypical Southern Negro towards a respectable and moral person.
I think Howe's opinion is interesting and it made me really think about Faulkner's opinion toward blacks. While he depicts some of the traditional characteristics and roles of black people, I think he portrays them as far from the slavery they were once in. It's hard not to see the irony in Faulkner making the most good-hearted, moral character a black woman. He portrays the white characters as people who all strive to have power but can never attain it. However, he gives the ultimate powers of love and forgiveness to Dilsey. I'm not quite sure I agree that this comes from guilt as Howe suggests, but i think that it definitely reveals how Faulkner accepts blacks as having the ability to be equal to whites.
Longley, John L., Jr. "Who Never Had a Sister': A Reading of The Sound and the Fury." Mosaic. 7.1 (Fall 1973): 35-53. Rpt. in Novels for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1998. 35-53. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 26 Mar. 2009 [http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier}.
John L. Longley uses love as an explanation for the disfunctionalism of the Compson family. Its absence leaves characters overly concerned with their own faults, creating an obsession with avoiding failure. With the exception of Caddy, her father, and Dilsey. No other character in "The Sound and the Fury" is capable of loving, according to Longley. While Benjy is described as being unable to cope with Caddy's loss, Jason is said to be an embodiment of evil. Quentin, just as Benjy, is unable to live with the loss of Caddy's virginity and because of this, both characters suffer immensely. Caddy's inability to share love with any other character is her flaw. Longley also discusses the closing scene of the novel and describes Benjy's being upset with his realization that Quentin is never coming back.
I both agree and disagree with some of the things i've read in this article. For instance, I don't think Benjy suffers from not being able to let go of Caddy's innocence. I think that is Quentin's flaw. I think Benjy's flaw is that he cannot order or understand events properly. Jason is a jerk, but he is not evil. I think he is simply bitter from years and years of pent up anger, similar to Quentin's depression as a reaction to the same type of not letting go. Also, while i do think the end signifies Jason's reckoning day with Miss Quentin's revenge, i do not think Benjy realizes completely yet of his brother's death and i do not think he ever will.
Longley, John L., Jr. "Who Never Had a Sister': A Reading of The Sound and the Fury." Mosaic. 7.1 (Fall 1973): 35-53. Rpt. in Novels for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1998. 35-53. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier.
Summary: The essay begins with the central theme of the novel having to do with love, or rather, the lack of such, within the Compson family. It then goes into the relation of Caddy to the other characters within the novel and the fact that she has no real voice in The Sound and the Fury other than through her brothers points of view. He points out the differences between the evil characters, such as Jason, and those that are merely weak and self-serving such as the mother Caroline, and Uncle Maury. Claiming that Caddy's problem is her misfortune of not having anyone to love, especially considering her family ties, Longley also states that Caddy was born in the wrong time period, one of a "Victorian Americana religious atmosphere" in which she is destined to fail living up to the unrealistic expectations of chastity and reputation considering her personality.
I really liked the article by Jason Longley. I learned many things which I didn't necessarily understand throughout the novel, such as the fact that he reveals, "We have one more glimpse of her in a picture magazine, as the mistress of a Nazi Stabsgeneral." I had no idea of this fact, and it kind of confuses me. Also, Longley compares Mr. Compson with Dilsey and Caddy, saying he is one of the more moral characters of the novel. This fascinates me, considering the fact that I thought Mr. Compson was always a bad influence on Quentin, one which sucks all of the hopes and dreams right out of him. Longley also reveals that Faulkner's appendix claims Jason to be the only realistic and sane character throughout the novel, which is obviously ironic. All of the other characters are apparently act on emotion which is linked to insanity, and Jason is not. However, I disagree with this argument because Jason does rely on emotion, jealousy, rage, and hate.
Sartre, Jean-Paul. "On The Sound and The Fury: Time in the Work of Faulkner." The Sound and the Fury. Ed. David Minter. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1994. 265-271.
Faulkner's main theme in the novel is that "man's misfortune lies in his being time-bound." With this in mind, the reader must forget time in order to truly unlock this seemingly random novel. The present is represented in the clockless scenes (ex: Quentin breaking his watch and Benji's inability to tell/comprehend time). The future is unknown to the reader; each new scene is another present--forever beginning anew. However, the present is also disguised by the past through parallel scenes (ex: Quentin fighting Gerald Bland and Dalton Ames), resulting in the past taking on a "super-reality." The present is interpreted in terms of the past. The characters in the novel never look ahead, only linger in the past.
I agreee with Sartre's position of time within the novel as being ultimately obsolete to the entire meaning of the story. As he commented in his article, it is impossible to try to chronologically order the events to understand them. To do that would leave gaping holes and more confusion than its already present catastrophic order. Rather, it is that random jumping from back and forth, past and "present," that allows the reader to understand the dynamics of such complex characters as a suicidal and a mentally retarded man. These characters don't think in terms of time; their brains are clouded with frantic and unreasonable logic. Likewise, in order to understand them, we must experience and think as they do. Also with the concept of time, I believe the stream-of-consciousness would fail to exist. I think I should have used Sartre's theme in my essay. :)
Howe, Irving. "Faulkner and the Negros." The Sound and the Fury. Second ed. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1929. 272-75.
Howe first shows the problems that go on between blacks and whites and how they are portrayed in Faulkner’s work. In TSATF the children seem to be happy when both races are playing together. Howe claims that whites discriminate against blacks because that is how the society is set up today. Howe also believes that Dilsey breaks the mold in the novel. She doesn’t feel that a black man belonging to a white man is completely wrong and she doesn’t care about her inferior status. She seems to never judge and always worry about others more than herself. Dilsey seems to be the big picture for the novel. She is kind to everyone including Benjy and she is confident in herself.
I think it is ironic that the person in the novel with the best character is actually a black person and they talk about racism in throughout the novel and the old south. Howe looks at Dilsey and racism in the novel in a completely different way than I did. Like Howe, I believe that this shows that Faulkner believes that whites and blacks can be equal. Also, it is obvious that Dilsey is the most honorable character in the novel while the white characters seem to have no morals. Although I do agree with the portrayal of the of the treatment of different races. For much of history, and even some today, blacks can be seen as the "bad" race or even have a negative connotation.
VISSER, IRENE. "Faulkner's THE SOUND AND THE FURY." The Explicator. 52.4 (Summer 1994): p171. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 28 Mar. 2009 galegroup.com
In the beggining the article exclaims that caddy is the most important charachter in the entire nove yet she is not even in the last section. The auther feels that dilsey is always there for Bejy in a since but is and never will be as close and as of an intimate relationship is that Caddy has with benjy. he goes on to believe that everyone is a shoe in for Caddy and she can never just be there all by herself in the story. he thinks that all the characheters are parallels to caddy. along with parallel charachters most of the other charachters are in contrast with caddy and even the scenes without caddy in them are a big contrast to the ones with caddy in them. the author of the critisism says that her not being in the last chapter exeplifies the fallen tragedy of the novel.
Response: After reading the critism i completly agree with him. Faulkner uses a great deal of symblos and caddy being one of them. She is not in the last section because that was the end it represented the fall of the old south and what it used to be. As in it used to be this innocent thing that over time has become what it has. and also now looking back there was a lot of contrsting things that went on in the novel and most the contasting things and scenes and people. i completly agree with the author of this literary cristism
Citation:
Martin, Robert A. "The Words of The Sound and the Fury." The The Southern Literary Journal. 32.1(Fall 1999): p46. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 27 Mar 2009. [http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.]
Summary:
First, Martin informs the reader that throughout the course of The Sound and the Fury, many key phrases and words are found in each section, signaling common ground between each character's experiences. He begins with talking about the recurring image of "fire" within Benjy's section, usually appearing as a safe haven for Benjy--something that ultimately soothes and calms him. Other words appear frequently in Benjy's section, just as "shadow" dominates Quentin's section. Just as in Benjy's section, both include the image of the "window", which is portrayed as something frusterating and awful. A window is used to show what is happening in another place, while also being distanced at the same time. Martin then talks about how Faulkner makes the reader work in order to understand his novel, the reader having to interpret a lot of different symbols and styles of writing. In Jason's section, there is not those same recurring images, instead more greed and cruelty--this shows the reader how different he is from the rest of the Compson family. Martin than tells us that when we get back to Dilsey's section, the reader comes across key words once again--words such as "door" and "window". We are also finally able to see the full picture of the Compsons through Dilsey's eyes--something we did not come across earlier in the novel. Because she is removed from the family, she has a bigger picture of the family, something none of them can see for themselves. Martin ends with Faulkner indicating that not all of the symbols and images were intended, it was more instinctual and natural instead of forced into the novel.
Reaction:
First of all, i thought it was so interesting how at the end of the essay, Faulkner indicates that not all of the symbols were deliberately put in! I think that's amazing...it was more of instincts than planning. Martin also goes on to talk about how through these certain symbols...the window, mirror, blur, smoke, fire...etc, we are able to see the Compson family more clearly, it is almost the way in which they are defined. I also agree with him in that Dilsey is the only true way we are able to recieve the full image of the Compson household--and it's interesting how it's through someone who is not fully part of the Compson family. I agree with him in that Faulkner does make us work in order to understand his novel, his writing is very stylistically different--the reader is given a part of the story, and then our own thinking must interpret the rest. His idea for this story was brilliant; it's something someone wouldn't normally come up with or normally think about, and that's what makes it so intriguing. He's telling one story through four different points of view and through four different sets of eyes, filling in little details along the way.
Howe, Irving. "Faulkner and the Negroes". William Faulkner:A Critical Study, 3rd ed.Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1975.
This article was about the representation of black people in Faulkner's work and what they symbolize. Faulkner shows through characters a bad feeling towards black people, but as the works progress, the attitudes become more accepting. There are a few positive black figures in his works, such as Dilsey, Joe Christmas, and Lucas Beaucamp. These characters show different facades of black stereotypes. All in all, though, they represent positive things and yearning for the past. As in The Sound and the Fury, characters look back into their memories and the only good times in their lives are in thier childhoods while playing with black friends. this shows how black people in Faulkner's work represent innocence and memory. they show the goodness in life and longing for their past innocence. He uses complex characterizations to show these things.
I agree that Faulkner's portrayed role of black people in his work is very complex and symbolic. i'm not sure though if they represent goodness, innocence, longing, etc. as much as the characters just wish for the past. i really don't think it's because of them, but just becasue it was an easier, simpler time. i learned that in all of FAulkner's works he shows his views of "the racial question." I think he wanted to make a statement and give good attributes to black people because they usually weren't given that. i like that he makes them the only positive characters in a story full of villians.
"'The way he looked said Hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in the Sound and the Fury."
Roggenbuck, Ted. "'The way he looked said Hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in the Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005): p581. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 29 March 2009
[http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier]
This article concerns the character Benjy in The Sound and The Fury and the state of his mental processes. Through the first part of TSATF, we experience Faulkner's attempt to tell a story through a mentally retarded character. Thus many specific details are left to question. The article ponders whether Benjy can associate the movements of his body with his feelings, if his thinking deteriorates with age, and why he lives so far in the past. Roggenbuck asserts that Benjy is only as helpless as he seems because of the unfortunate events that shaped his childhood. At a young age he had someone who loved him, but with Caddy's departure, he becomes less perceptive and consciously lives in the past because that is where his only happy memories exist.
I thought this essay was very interesting because I took Benjy's section for its face value. I did not try to delve deeper into his thought processes, but only tried to glean from it the lifestyle and personality of the family. Reading this article, I wonder too how Benjy thought and arrived at his many memories. He has very few happy memories, and in fact, he has few where he is not crying. Luster's teasing and the resulting burn that Benjy receives from the fire causes Benjy to wail. But even he doesn't distinguish how loud he is crying. Through the narrative, he only tells us how the sound of his voice is increasing, establishing that even he cannot control his own voice. Yet at other times in the book shows brief moments of intelligence, interpreting spoken words, smelling Caddy, and reading facial expressions. So perhaps it is that Benjy relinquishes control in extreme situations of pain or grief, and his mental state does not deteriorate, but he simply gives up after Caddy leaves.
Sartre, Jean-Paul."On the Sound and the Fury". University of Saskatchewan.http://www.usask.ca/english/faulkner/main/criticism/sartre.htmln
To begin with, the author of this criticism on The Sound and the Fury concentrates on Faulkner's use and to say manipulation/distortion of time in his novel. The author suggests that Quentin's breaking of his watch gives readers access to time without clocks. He then states that in Faulkner's realm the future does no exist and that the present is only a facade in perspective to the past. In his perspective , the present in the novel appears to have no reason and nothing ever comes from the future. He then goes onto to questioning whether conscienceness can exist within time itself.
Second, at times I found this criticism very confusing and all over the place. However, it did provide insight into ideas and theories I had not thought of myself. I enjoyed reading the criticism, because the author goes into such depth questioning the progression of life without time, and questioning what time is or whether it even exists. I did agree in a way that time was created by man as a way to gauge how long it took for actions to be completed. Overall, I enjoyed the criticism and the in depth questions it has you pondering about all night long.
Roggenbuck, Ted. "'The way he looked said hush': Benjy's mental atrophy in The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 58.3-4 (Summer-Fall 2005): p581. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 29 Mar. 2009
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.
Summary:
The author starts off by disagreeing with the common notion that Benjy is a static character. He says that Benjy's mind does not in fact, stay unaltered, but instead as he gets older he regresses mentally. When he is younger he studies people's faces to know what they are saying, making an effort to communicate. As he gets older however these attempts are no longer successful, or Benjy simply stops trying to communicate. The author says Caddy is the one who really pushed Benjy to communicate. His regression could be choice, just Benjy taking refuge in the past.
Reaction: I found this article really interesting because i think it shows both that Benjy was not just an idiot and how he views time. Benjy does decline mentally as he ages, which is odd, but maybe he does it almost as a protection mechanism. He loses mental capacity as life gets worse and worse for him, causing him to take refuge in the past instead of living in the painful present. I think Benjy really is more aware of what's going on around him than I initially thought. I think he just lacks the ability to see a big picture, and instead just has all the pieces. So he expereinces all past and present at once, and sometimes makes a decision to stay in the past where things aren't so bad.
Blaylock, Janet K. "Women and Their Roles-Sound and the Fury by Faulkner." Suite101. 29 Mar. 2009.
In this article Blaylock talks about the the roles of women within TSATF and how messed up a lot of them are. She begins with how Mr. compson views women. She talks about how to him women are incapable of being pure regardless of their actual character. she also talks about how to him a women is never actually a virgin in the first place. Then, she talks about how selfish Mrs. Compson is. She believes that one of the main reasons that she is so mean towards her children, (other than jason) is because she is so selfish and therefore does not want to deal with Benjy's condition and Caddy's as well.
I would have to say that i agreed with what she said almost entirely. i most dfinetly agree with the part about Mrs. Compson's major problem being that she is selfish. I think that if she wasn't so greedy she would have actually taken the time to be a real mother to her children and not have left that job up to Dilsey. It is quite clear to me actually that she seemed to be almost annoyed by the idea of taking care of Benjy and his condition. it was almost as if she thought that it was a punishment for her which does not seem right at all to me.
Abate, Michelle Ann. "Reading red: the man with the (gay) red tie in Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury." The Mississippi Quarterly. 54.3 (Summer 2001): p293. Literature Resources from Gale. Gale. Collierville High School. 29 Mar. 2009. http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRG&u=tel_k_collier.
Summary: Apparently in the 1800-1900s a red tie was a symbol for "inverts" or gay people. This was found in big cities and even depicted in famous paintings; however, red ties were not typically worn for circus attire. The depictions of carnivals and circuses in TSATF, therefore, are not accurate to the times. The article continues on to talk about how Jason uses the word "dam" to describe the red tie, which asserts that he is a female or has feminine qualities.
Response:
First of all, I find it impressive that you can look that deep into a single symbol. I knew when I was reading that the red tie symbolized something, but I never would have guessed that he was gay. The fact that they eloped threw that idea out the window for me. But after reading Abate's essay, it seems clear that Faulkner did intentionally make him gay.
Gwin, Minrose C. "Hearing Caddy's Voice." The Feminine and Faulkner: Reading (Beyond) Sexual Difference. Knoxville: University of Tennessee Press, 1990.
The article begins by stating the reader as trying to hear Caddy's voice through the inarticulate hints of her masculine fraternal counterparts. Gwin goes on to say essentially that Caddy is essentially undescribable; she is a character that through her presence we know she is important, but we cannot describe how. This also plays to Faulkner's "failures" at trying to describe Caddy and writing multiple sections of TSATF. It also talkes about how Caddy is a very strong focal character in the novel, but very little is known because she fades in and out of her brother's sections. However, she never fades entirely, popping up when we least expect it. The article continues to talk about the pivitol role Caddy plays in Benjy's life, and how she seemingly takes the mother's place through the nurturing of Benjy. The article ends essentially saying that to fully understand Caddy we must listen to her as she does Benjy- "beyond the sound and syntax and between the lines"
Overall, the article was interesting without really bringing that many ideas to light that had not already been discussed in class. Gwin mainly talks about Caddy's interactions with Benjy, leaving some room for discussion about Quentin, and rare interspersed tidbits about Jason; I did like the spread of focus just because I liked Benjy's section the best and didn't like Jason's section. One thing I did find interesting was how Gwin refers to Caddy as a maternal unti for Benjy- I always thought of Caddy as a caregiver for Benjy, but never quite a motherly figure. This made much more sense as to why Benjy's moaning is incessant any time Caddy's name or memory is brought up. To have a child's seeming;y innocent mother's virginity stripped away and have a mother, the only one he relates to, leave is traumatic for a child like Benjy who has little brain capacity to understand anything else. I also liked how the article ends: "she is the text which speaks multiplicity, maternity, sexuality, and as such she retains not just one voice but many." Gwin states that these feeling in particular are what drives the brothers to act in the way they do, because Caddy has all the things that the brothers want. And it is because of this that Caddy is seemingly cast out, wether it be by her own doing or her brothers, to a solitary life without her dysfunctional family.
1. Martin, Robert A. "The Words of The Sound and the Fury." Southern Literary Journal. 32.1 (Fall 1999): 46-56. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Thomas J. Schoenberg and Lawrence J. Trudeau. Vol. 178. Detroit: Gale, 2006. 46-56. Literature Resource Center. Gale. Collierville High School. 30 Mar. 2009 http://go.galegroup.com/ps/start.do?p=LitRC&u=tel_k_collier.
2. This critical essay really focuses in on the symbols and diction choices that are ironically compiled in Benjy's section (mostly). Martin describes in detail the significance of fire. Benjy seems to use fire as a constant because Caddy changes. With fire always being fire, Benjy can find some peace in its consistency. Then, in Dilsey's section, Martin shows how again Faulkner uses the door in the book and overwhelming amount of times. Also, with the mentions of mirror and lantern, there is a hint of how the story told as merely a bent reflection of actual events.
3. I found this essay to be very informative. Although i noticed the fire in Benjy's section mentioned quite a bit, i related it to life, but I can now see how Martin relates it to Caddy. The essay covered some symbols that aren't as obvious as the dirty drawers, etc, but still important nonetheless. The mirror and lantern seem somewhat far-fetched in my opinion; however, I am not that close a reader when it comes to symbolic diction. By showing just how many times these images occur in a specific section backs up Martin's claims of them as images and definitely not accidental mentions. while the story was confusing enough to keep track of, I was happy that some of the symbols I overlooked are now uncovered so that the story makes a little more sense (though still twisted). Overall, I agree with Martin on his claims of symbolic imagery although i don't find many of them as obvious as they seem after reading the essay.
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