"A Light in August"

Analytical Essay # 11084

English > Analysis
Literature > English

"A Light in August"

A look at the use of windows as an imagery in Faulkner's "A Light in August".

688 words () | 1 source | MLA | 2002 United States

Paper Summary:

A paper which shows how the image of windows serves as a divide between the innocent and the not so innocent William Faulkner's "A Light in August". It shows that those who dare to go outside the windows through which they gaze, are subject to the gossip and hypocrisy of society and those who remain inside are subject to this same torture as well. It discusses the character Gail Hightower chooses to stay inside, while Lena Grove chooses to venture outside. Lena is innocent because she has not experienced the falsehood of society while Hightower is not.

From the Paper:

"Windows play a major role in the first seventy- six pages of William Faulkner's novel, A Light in August. Faulkner first mentions a window on page five. It is through this window that the young Lena Grove climbs through during the night in order to see her boyfriend, Lucas Burch. Faulkner again mentions a window on page fifty-seven, while describing the daily life of former minister, Gail Hightower. According to Faulkner, by staying inside windows people are just as likely to be victimized by society as those who venture outside. The only thing that separates those who stay inside or go outside, is experience."