Abstract This paper introduces, discusses, and analyzes several works by WilliamFaulkner. Specifically, it contains an analysis relating the author's life experiences to the writing he produced. The author believes that Faulkner's literary yet readable work endures because it captures the life and times of Southerners, resounding with their language, lifestyles, and customs. Additionally, the paper emphasizes Faulkner's use of setting as a powerful literary device.
From the Paper "Faulkner's style is literary, even when he writes of poor white Southerners. For example, in "Barn Burning," Sarty once thinks to himself, "Maybe it will all add up and vanish-corn, rug, fire; the terror and grief, the being pulled two ways like between two teams of horses-gone, done with for ever and ever" ("Faulkner 17). Faulkner's writing is complex and yet it gives a feeling of what the character is thinking and feeling in quite logical and simple terms. He also very effectively uses dialogue and dialect to indicate the characters locale, education, and even temperament. His style can be both "down home" and informal, and then learned and even sometimes cynical. In "Barn Burning" and many other works, Faulkner uses the colorful dialogue of the poor southerner to represent the family's sharecropper class. For example, throughout the story they never say "it," but always use "hit" instead. Because he understands the South so well, he can introduce the intricacies of the South to his readers quite effectively, which makes the reader feel as if they have been transported to a new place and time."
Abstract This essay shows how the opening scene in WilliamFaulkner's novel, "The Sound and the Fury", teaches the reader how to read the rest of the book by introducing the reader to the difficulties in narration and time that the story will present.
From the Paper "Throughout his writing career, William Faulkner always attempted to push the boundaries of literature. From creating his vast population and setting of southern characters to facing many tough southern topics such as racism and Reconstruction to stretching what was considered accessible and acceptable writing, Faulkner proved himself a true revolutionary and visionary. Perhaps his greatest feat, though, was teaching his reader how to read his work, and any other. One of the best examples of Faulkner teaching his reader how to read and how to experience a text is his masterwork, "The Sound and the Fury", in particular, the beginning passage. "
Abstract In "A Rose for Emily", WilliamFaulkner creates a story about a woman who loses her sense of reality after losing her father and everything they ever owned, and then falling for a man who was not true to her. This paper discusses the character of Emily and how she suffers from mental instability ranging from her father's mistreatment, mental illness in the family, being used by Homer Barron, and the community.
Abstract 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.
Abstract This paper is an in-depth literary analysis and synopsis of "Light in August", the novel by WilliamFaulkner. The author examines the themes of the book, contrasting between the old, pre-Civil War South and the new South. The paper specifically discusses the character Joe Christmas, how he represents Christ, and looks at the deep Christian undertones in the novel.
From the Paper "Joe Christmas is created by Faulkner to represent a twentieth century allegory of Christ that is in s is in some ways different from Christ. Another of the novel's central characters is the Reverend Gail Hightower, who is haunted by memories of his grandfather, who died fighting in the Confederate cavalry. Incidentally, Faulkner's great-grandfather, William Clark Faulkner, was also a Civil War veteran, who later wrote several books, including a popular romance "The White Rose of Memphis" in 1882. Light in August is a weave of many themes. The foremost of course is the theme of racism that is central to the novel. Joe Christmas? foremost dilemma is his ancestry and his identity. The people's attitude towards him depends on what they perceive of his race."
Abstract On one hand, Faulkner depicts strong and independent women. The narrative voice explores white women's complicity within the appropriate socio-ideological context, acknowledging Minnie Cooper as both victimizer and victim. (Faulkner, 180). Faulkner's view of women is not condescending or painful. It focuses on Faulkner's layered critique of the "miscegenation complex."
Abstract This paper is an analysis of the themes of the novel, "As I Lay Dying" by W. Faulkner. It looks at Faulkner's creation of an innovative structure to tell his story that reinforces the novel's major themes. The paper also looks at the use of multiple narratives of different narrators.
From the Paper "Expanding on the modernist tradition of utilizing stream-of-consciousness narratives to capture human consciousness and perceptions of reality, Faulkner created an innovative structure in his compelling rendition of the transportation of Addie Bundren's ..."
Abstract This paper examines the use of three fictive elements--setting, characterization and point-of-view--in Joyce's 'Eveline' and Faulkner's 'Barn Burning'. The paper explores the importance of these literary devices in making the works in question more resonant with the reader and notes that there are actually excepting, of course, the obvious differences in subject matter many more similarities than differences between the two works. The writer concludes that in the end, each story is as much a marvelously-constructed bit of literature as it is a work of imagination.
From the Paper "Both Faulkner and Joyce were brilliant story-tellers who knew how to use fictive elements to full effect. The following paper will explore three fictive elements - setting, character and point-of-view - as they are employed by both writers. In particular, the paper will review Joyce's "Eveline" and Faulkner's "Barn Burning" and argue that the differences between the two works begin and effectively end with their subject matter; beyond that, their use of literary technique is arrestingly similar. With that in mind, it is to a discussion of these issues that we now turn. As mentioned above, Joyce's "Eveline" uses three elements of fiction - setting, character and point-of-view - especially well."
Abstract This paper analyzes the poems "The Young Housewife" and "This Is Just to Say" by William Carlos Williams, which reflect domestic desire and the problems of intimacy that lie hidden within American suburbia. The author points out that Williams shows an abstracted form of simile, allusion and symbolism to reflect the frustrations of couples trying to live with each other in divided homes. The paper contends that, by actively revealing his own lack of sexual fulfillment, Williams is able to convey these messages in these simply written, yet cryptic poems.
From the Paper "This poetical analysis explores the theme of domestic desire within the two poems: "The Young Housewife" and "This Is Just to Say" by William Carlos Williams. By revealing William's poetry related to domestic desire through simile, allusions and symbolism, one can learn why these two poems reflect isolation and the romantic problems within 20th century American suburbia. In understanding William's poems through the theme of domestic desire, one can assume unfulfilled sexual and romantic energies that reside within his verse. The poem "The Young Housewife" reflects the barriers and sexuality of the suburbs in the way that Williams present both the woman and the doctor in the poem."
Abstract A study of William Styron, a recovering alcoholic who slid into a deep and complicated depression. The author tries to diagnose Styron who meets the criteria for a major depressive episode. For the bulk of Styron's battle with depression, he was on medication, Halcion. With a situation as serious as William Styron's he will have to spend a long time working on the causes of his depression that may still be buried.
From the Paper "William Styron's condition began to take over his life by late 1985. He states that it was present for several months, but it did not become apparent how serious it was until this time. It was in 1985 when he first thought that he might die due to his condition (Styron 1990). By December of 1985, Styron was thinking about suicide, but even before that, he could not function socially or in his career. He could not sleep, was disinterested in sex, had slowed speech, had a depressed mood for most or all of the day, was fatigued from lack of sleep, and could not concentrate on regular tasks (American Psychological Association, 1994; Styron 1990). His wife was concerned and encouraged him to seek help, but his friends tried not to bring it up too often (Styron 1990). At this time, and with this type of person ? upper class, "socialite" ? it was not "good manners" for friends to bring up personal problems. (Styron 1990). "
Tags: darkness, depression, dsm, iv, psychology, Styron, visible, William, manners, personal
Abstract "There can be little question that William Byrd was one of America earliest writers and in later generations one of its most controversial. The following paper examines the secret diary of William Byrd of Westover as it was written in the period 1709-12. Specifically, the paper examines the text in light of his own situation during these years--he was still a relatively young man at the time--as well as what factors might have prompted him to write as he did. Beyond that, the paper briefly catalogues the major themes of Byrd's diary, the literary style employed and a key issue raised by the diary entries. In the end, it is fair to conclude that Byrd's writings are a window into the attitudes informing the actions of eighteenth century country gentlemen.
Abstract In this paper, the writer considers William Blake's novel "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell" as a reaction to the Enlightenment. William Blake saw the Enlightenment as favoring the rational over the imaginative and explicitly reacts to this thought process in "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell." The paper discusses how Blake contrasts science, poetry, rationality, and imagination to show the limitations and problems that privileging the rational has had by exploring the imaginative in a diabolic way.
From the Paper "Blake dismisses the advantage that has been placed upon good over evil by taking on a diabolical voice and condemns the Church, as it has condemned men, by explaining that "All bibles or sacred codes have been the causes of the following Errors:..."6 (Plate 4), then affirming that "the following Contraries to these are true:..."6 (Plate 4). Blake uses this rejection of the bible to point out the misleading notions that the Church has caused, then blatantly writes "Those, who restrain desire, do so because theirs is weak enough to be/ restrained; and the restrainer or reason usurps its place and governs the unwilling."6 (Plate 5) Here, Blake points out the insufficiencies that "conventional moral[ity]"6 (1377) holds while restraining those who do not wish to follow, as a prediction of the breaking away from Church or State governance."
Abstract This paper focuses on William Wordsworth's poem ?Animal Tranquility and Decay.? It explores the relationships between man's mind, his body, and his natural environment. The title refers to the "tranquility" that Wordsworth seems to perceive in nature and the "decay" that a human being undergoes during his life. The paper concentrates on the various insinuations made by Wordsworth about tranquility and decay. Definitions are raised and examined, as well as related to everyday life. Also, symbolism is examined in the poem, as well. Phrases and stanzas from the poems are analyzed in search of an overall theme.
Tags: animal, decay, poem, poetry, tranquility, william, wordsworth, age
Abstract An explication of the role of God and the human spirit in salvation as expressed in the poetry of William Blake, with comparison to similar attempts by other poets.
