Light In August By Faulkner
"...a man's future is inherent in that man..."
Faulkner's Light in August is a metaphor. In fact it is many metaphors, almost infinitely many. It is a jumble of allusions, themes, portraits, all of them uniquely important, many of them totally unrelated. In fact no 20th century writer has even approached the sheer quantity of symbolism Faulkner packed into every page, with, perhaps, the exception of James Joyce who went so far as to surpass Faulkner in this regard. So obviously it would be foolish to attempt to trace every line, follow every branch to its root, one could spend a lifetime dissecting the book in this manner. Fortunately, in the midst of this menagerie of wonders, there are ...
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motives. One gets a definite feel for her character, and settles into her narrative, but as soon as this happens, the book switches gears, turning instead to a vague character, Joe Christmas. With little introduction, or warning, the book reels into Joe's past, catching the reader totally unaware and throwing off the entire continuity of the book. Faulkner's desire for unity and coherence in the pattern is not as strong as is his desire for truth to individual response (Reed, p.123). Thus Lena is a frame, she serves only to accentuate Christmas's story, by contrast. Faulkner demands the reader follow, and realize this.
So we now see Christmas's childhood. From the beginning, Christmas is two things. One, he is a totally clean slate in that he has no idea whatsoever of his past, his origins. He is neither predestined to good nor evil, simply born. By this same token, Christmas is left confused. Because he has no idea of his origins, he has no idea of self, even to the extent of not ...
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Light In August By Faulkner. (2007, December 2). Retrieved November 19, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Light-In-August-By-Faulkner/75198
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"Light In August By Faulkner." Essayworld.com. December 2, 2007. Accessed November 19, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Light-In-August-By-Faulkner/75198.
"Light In August By Faulkner." Essayworld.com. December 2, 2007. Accessed November 19, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Light-In-August-By-Faulkner/75198.
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