A paper examining William Faulkner's portrayal of racial issues in the American South during the reformation.
Written in 2002; 2,770 words; 10 sources; MLA; $ 82.95
Paper Summary:
The following paper discusses the way in which Faulkner's characters: Benjy, Quentin, Jason, and Dilsey, display the common views on racial issues of the time, as well as Faulkner's own views of the society he lives in. The writer examines how each character shows a different side of Southern life, and varying degrees of understanding towards the African- American cause.
From the Paper:
"My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery" (Lincoln 636). President Abraham Lincoln did free the slaves January first of 1863, creating chaos in the American South (Segal 244). Slavery, being abolished, had been replaced by confusion. African American wageworkers replaced slaves in most jobs, but did not share in the wealth of white men (Hale 94). The Jim Crow laws left black citizens living in segregation, in poverty, and with the constant threat of violence, despite the government's intention of creating a separate but equal society (Chafe 31). The white man still perceived himself as superior to other races, and asserted and reiterated their inferiority with every word and gesture (Chafe 1). William Faulkner was raised during the turbulent times of the early twentieth century, when the pre-existing social structure was banned, and none had been conceived to replace it (Morris 12). His characters in The Sound and the Fury exhibit his uncertainty with respect to the racial issues of the era. Benjy, a mentally handicapped man, does not perceive racial differences and is unable to act upon his "superiority". Quentin III is the typical southern gentleman - always aware of blacks, and perceiving himself as above them (Davis 71). Jason, the youngest son, has become burdened by his social position - he has been forced to lower himself to the level of a working class "slave" to support his family, despite the shame it brings him. Quentin IV seeks attention, love, and protection, but cannot accept it from the only person who offers it, Dilsey the African American housekeeper (Davis 70). Finally in part four of the novel Faulkner reveals his own views of the restoration in Mississippi. He views and tells Dilsey's story from a literate, white, southern male point of view, showing his inability to criticize Southern notions, and his sympathy and respect for all black people (Howe 61). Faulkner's fictional family, the Compsons, exemplify the different views of racial inequality that were common during the reconstruction, and the author's own uncertainty.
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