StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...

William Faulkner correlated with his Light in August - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
Light in August is among the most optimistic masterpiece of Faulkner, enclosed in the evils of racial extravaganza that one might consider it as a mirror to the organic society. Such a mirror whose reflection can overwhelm the diligence of Faulkner's work, outcome of the sensitivity towards South dilemmas of the then era…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER91% of users find it useful
William Faulkner correlated with his Light in August
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "William Faulkner correlated with his Light in August"

Download file to see previous pages

The story "Light in August" was first named by Faulkner as the "Dark House" and was officially published on October 9, 1932. It is considered that the origin of the "Dark House" was due to the frustration Faulkner felt within himself after the death of his beloved daughter; nothing stopped Faulkner from going wild because of her daughter's death. It was Faulkner's depression that his creation of "Joe Christmas" revolves around identity framed provocatively in terms of displaced persons in a culture that set an exceedingly high premium upon everyone having a place and staying in it according to race, sex, and class.

Joe Christmas was a child born of a white mother but who could never know his race because no one really knew whether his father was black or white. In the end Joe Christmas was sacrificed, and his death represents something of compensation for the social sins of others. One feels that he found his place in dying for their salvation, as he always remained skeptical about his identity. (Williamson, 1993). Faulkner portrays a white man whose "black blood" has in effect been imposed on him by external forces.

Nothing in Joe's appearance indicates that he is anything but white, to the point where he is able throughout the novel to move easily in white society without anyone suspecting him as black. Even at the barbershop where he is given close attention to his face and hair, possessing all physical signs of Negro origins, easily detectable, no one recognizes him as the "nigger murderer" carrying a price on his head. Despite of having physical features of a nigger, people don't consider and accept him as a nigger of that town and it often happens that Joe is referred to as "Joe, the white nigger" an obvious oxymoron in the 1930s South.

In Robert Penn Warren's words,"Faulkner here undercuts the official history and mythology of a whole society by indicating that the 'nigger' is a creation of the white man." (Singal J., 1997)Joe, the son of a sinful Southern white girl and a carnival dark man, possibly a Mexican considers his father to be partially black, or he might not have been black at all. The crucial factor was that neither Joe nor anyone else could ever know with certainty whether he was black or white in a society in which everything began with that definition.

Faulkner has created Joe Christmas as a hostile vagrant, a person who remains unsure of him and who tries to find out his racial identity. Faulkner has made Christmas a disputed and lonely character who, has been viewed as an intense example of modern urban estrangement. He is constantly seeking his identity and always negate the society for the rules the society possesses. He depicts the picture of an all-alone isolated personality who is expecting the society to change for him. At times Joe is wearing dress, white shirt with black pants, which suggests his internal division.

And this divided character may even symbolize the racial conflict of the South as a whole. Faulkner has painted Joe in such a manner right from his infancy to adolescence, that it is clear that

...Download file to see next pages Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“William Faulkner correlated with his Light in August Essay”, n.d.)
William Faulkner correlated with his Light in August Essay. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1504322-william-faulkner-correlated-with-his-light-in-august
(William Faulkner Correlated With His Light in August Essay)
William Faulkner Correlated With His Light in August Essay. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1504322-william-faulkner-correlated-with-his-light-in-august.
“William Faulkner Correlated With His Light in August Essay”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1504322-william-faulkner-correlated-with-his-light-in-august.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF William Faulkner correlated with his Light in August

William Faulkners Barn Burning

For instance, he knew that his initiative will ruin his future life with his family.... In the paper “william faulkner's Barn Burning” the author analyzes the short story named as Barn Burning by the renowned writer william faulkner who makes use of the narrator to unveil the reason behind the problems faced by the protagonist and its end result.... hellip; The author states that the protagonist tries to save his family from the troubles created by his father....
3 Pages (750 words) Book Report/Review

William Faulkners Biography

william faulkner is undoubtedly one of the most influential novelists in American history.... (Amazon, 2006) william faulkner was Murray Faulkner and Maud Faulkner's first born child.... hellip; his influences, content of wok and other details of his life will be examined in the subsequent portions of the essay.... Most of his life revolved around Mississippi where he spent his earliest years in New Albany and then later moved to Oxford (the towns were all located in Mississippi)....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay

Hair. William Faulkner

The narrative voice is that of an observer, a man of the same sort of social and educational level as the other participants in the story, who questions the characters, and picks up odd pieces of information in his life as a traveling salesman.... hellip; his language is convincingly that of the South of the early twentieth century.... He uses local expressions - "they told me he had done picked out the apartment" (138) - which makes his voice and persona familiar....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

William Faulkners Changing World of the South

william faulkner (1897-1962) is one of America's most highlighted and most unlikely authors.... Rather than giving the black man a… dence he didn't enjoy in those times, Faulkner illustrated how these constraints existed under the surface in the realm of ideas just as the black man physically existed only in the shadows regardless of his own light.... his creation of the mythical Yoknapatawpha County, along with all the people in it, painted a precise picture of what life was like in the turn of the century American south....
14 Pages (3500 words) Essay

The Life and Works of William Faulkner

his father was a railroad worker, but he was given his name after his grandfather W.... However, it did not take long before he started experiencing boredom in his studies while in grade six.... He was some sort of a misfit all through his life due to his notorious nature, and the tendency of inventing his life stories.... While still young, William became in contact with two particular individuals who he thought would be important in his life: E....
5 Pages (1250 words) Research Paper

Light in August by William Faulkner and Fate

This paper "light in august by William Faulkner and Fate" focuses on William Faulkner - one of the 20th century most influential writers.... The writer sets the light in august novel in the context of the 1930's difficult economic times that also entailed significant racial segregation.... nbsp; light in august by William Faulkner and Fate William Faulkner is one of the 20th century most influential writers.... The writer sets the light in august novel in the context of the 1930's difficult economic times that also entailed significant racial segregation....
2 Pages (500 words) Assignment

Racism in Light in August

The author states that racial politics is a core thematic concern in the novel "light in august".... hellip; When william faulkner begins his narration of Lena Grove's ordeal, nothing in the juvenile plot indicates racism.... It is essential, however, to highlight that Faulkner sets his book in the 1930's Southern America.... Faulkner traces Joe's problems back to his childhood.... It is notable that he possesses despicable beginnings that play a fundamental role in his death....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

William Faulkner - Dry September

The paper "william faulkner - Dry September" concerns william faulkner's short story Dry September.... hellip; It is difficult to ignore the sense of dubiety that pervades the story, from the uncertainty of the light to the ambiguity that surrounds Miss Minnie's accusations.... It is difficult to ignore the sense of dubiety that pervades the story, from the uncertainty of the light to the ambiguity that surrounds Miss Minnie's accusations....
17 Pages (4250 words) Literature review
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us