April 8, 1928

Easter. Revelation. In Dilsey's chapter we are given some perspective on the dynamic of the crumbling Comspon family. Each preceding chapter has been a focused, narrow first person view of events, but the third person narration in this chapter gives a 360 degree view of the Compson family's deterioration. Like a lot of readers, I wondered at first why Faulkner chose Dilsey for the final chapter rather than Caddy. I assumed Caddy represented the New South in contrast to the men of the Compson family, but I realized Dilsey fills this role even better. She is a selfless black housemaid who cares about the selfish members of the family. Jason is the most clearly selfish, but I would argue that all members of the Compson family are selfish. Dilsey symbolizes a dramatic shift in the nature of the South; 100 years earlier she would have been property of the family, but instead she is caring for them out of her own selflessness. She symbolizes everything about the Old South that is good which gives hope that the ways of the Old South can be purified and reborn as a New South.

The family is in ruins at the end of the novel; only Benjy and Jason remain (and Caroline of course, but she is a generation removed). At the conclusion I formed an idea of what the title could mean--The Sound and the Fury--Benjy and Jason. Benjy is almost always wailing or screaming or crying or howling, and Jason is always furious about something. After the events of the story play out, the family is distilled to these two remaining members besides the matriarch Caroline. In this context, Caroline is the Old South, and Benjy and Jason are children of the Old South who must face the changing times. One of the best symbolic examples of this is at the end of the book when Luster takes Benjy on a different route at the cemetery than he is used to. Benjy begins howling, and Jason hits both Benjy and Luster when he arrives. Benjy's reaction is a manifestation of his resistance to change as is Jason's. In simplest terms, both Compson men want to remain firmly footed in the comfortable ways of the Old South, but they react differently.

Benjy and Jason (although one is likeable and one is detestable) are both obstinate. However, it is important to note that Jason cares more about himself than any Old South ideals. This is important because is symbolizes how Old South ideals were soiled by selfish intent. This is incontrast to Dilsey. When I think about the title, I conclude that Benjy and Jason are the most important characters in symbolizing reactions of the Old South to developments of the New South. Faulkner clearly chose Easter as the final day in the book for a reason; it is a parallel with the resurrection of Christ, hinting that maybe the South will resurrect itself. In the context of this along with the Compson family representing the South, Faulkner is suggesting the capability for change while highlighting the fierce resistance to it.

April 6th, 1928

I like Jason as a narrator because he is capable of communicating with basic grammar and coherent (although hateful and bigoted) thought, but I hate him as a character. He is utterly detestable. His chapter is profanity laden from the first line, "Once a b*tch always a b*tch, what I say" (p. 113). We know right away what he thinks about women. It doesn't take long to notice that Jason is full of hatred, jealousy, and contempt. To some extent he envies Quentin's education, and he certainly does not demonstrate much care for Benjy. I was appalled by some of Jason's discriminatory comments; he immediately reveals his sexist, racist, and anti-Semitic sentiments.

However, one must read Jason's chapter with perspective. It's easy to get consumed in hating Jason, but what's more important is why Faulkner created such a repugnant character. I'm honestly not sure yet, but I anticipate a better perspective when I've finished the book.

Another thing that makes Jason's narration stand apart from Benjy or Quentin is the way he skews things. With Benjy and Quentin both, we experience things as they do; with Jason we are fed his perspective. It's certainly something to keep in mind while reading his chapter.

June 2, 1910

Quentin's chapter is messy. I didn't really know what to expect going into it, but I found myself as confused by Quentin as I did by Benjy. The degenerative syntax in Quentin's chapter reflects his degenerative state of mind. Quentin uses punctuation lackadaisically; he gives entire accounts of events with no punctuation at all. What makes his chapter so hard to read, though, is the way he switches speakers. We discussed this in class a little bit. He will go from saying something in his own voice to repeating something another character said as if he said it himself. The only way to determine a change in speaker in several instances is to look for a change in pronoun.

So far, both narrators have been somewhat mentally off. Benjy is mentally retarted, and Quentin is mentally unstable. My question is why did Faulkner choose such mentally unreliable (or, better put, undecipherable) narrators? They are not unreliable like the governess in Turn of the Screw, but they are unreliable in their perception of reality. Events are confusing to readers because they are confusing to the characters. I think Faulkner wants us to experience the events as a character in the story--it's like he is giving us a lens into the life of the Compson family, so far through two very confused people. We might not like what we see (especially the incestuous innuendo), but that is the point. Faulkner wants us to feel emotion. For me, the confusion builds up a sense of anxiety; I anticipate some sort of clarity in upcoming chapters, although so far there has been no relief from the dense, intense passages. One thing I know for sure is that Faulkner intended this novel to be read very closely. It takes work to read this one.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that being so confused is kind of eerie. The fact that Faulkner leaves us confused for so long is even eerier, almost as if it is better to be confused than to have clarity. Ignorance is bliss I suppose. I don't know. It's just how I have felt so far. I'm looking forward to some sort of resolution.

April 7, 1928

Hello everyone. I have to admit reading the first chapter stressed me out a bit. I was trying to keep a running timeline in my head, but every paragraph seems to be in a different timeframe. Eventually I realized that the timeframe doesn't matter. I remembered a famous Faulkner quote, "The past is never dead. It's not even the past". In the context of The Sound and the Fury, this notion is extremely important. I feel that Faulkner wants us to abandon concern about time and realize that the real human experience--the experience we have everyday--includes past, present, and future. We don't focus solely on what is in front of us, we draw from past experiences and look forward to new ones. I think disorienting the reader is Faulkner's way of forcing us to abandon the confines of a timeline. That being said, there is a distinct timeline. Faulkner just wants us to realize that it's not what we should be focusing on.

As a mentally handicapped person, Benjy proves to be a very effective narrator. The word narrator is not quite accurate, actually. It is more like we are seeing things from Benjy's perspective in his chapter; we get to be in his mind, seeing what he sees, and hearing what he hears--the reader gets to experience what it's like to be Benjy. The word effective is not quite accurate either, he is a confusing narrator, but that is functionally effective because it seems to be Faulkner's intent. There is a lot of dialogue in the first chapter, but it doesn't come from Benjy. He is addressed almost as a child--and often as a baby--by those around him. The date April 7th is significant coupled with Benjy's age as an allusion to Easter and Jesus. It evokes a sense of anticipation for me; what will the symbolic Easter be for the Compsons? The disorientation of the first chapter adds more to the sense of anticipation as I wait for some sort of explanation or sense to come from it all.

From Benjy's perspective, the Compsons don't seem like the friendliest people. Caddy is the most friendly, although she is bossy. The servants are quite harsh to Benjy. He cries a lot, and he is ridiculed for it. I feel bad for Benjy, and I feel confused as Benjy. I'm not entirely sure what his symbolic role is, but I am eager to discover what it is.

William Faulkner Research

I am intrigued by William Faulkner. He comes from the glorified Southern class of the 20th century. He is an incredibly driven and somewhat eccentric individual. He joined the RAF during WWII when he was unable to join the U.S. Air Force due to his height. To join the RAF he had to lie, and when he returned from service he lavishly exaggerated his adventures. I like to think of Faulkner as a "great exaggerator".

His life could be a great novel itself. He dealt with heartbreak, failure, success, and was a bit of an oddball. He notoriously resigned from a position as postmaster of his university. He lost his love Estelle to another man, and he failed as a poet. But, he found great success in writing novels. I thought it was interesting that he even made it to Hollywood as a writer for a portion of his career. I was also fascinated by his interaction with W. E. B. Du Bois and his condemnation of segregation.

It makes sense that The Sound and the Fury  is so dense because Faulkner's life was so dense. When a person has a lot of experiences (including both failure and success), I think it makes that person have more to say. Faulkner is part scoundrel and part gentlemen. I like his inclination to exaggeration; exaggeration is an essential ability for a writer.