Light in August by William Faulkner
Light in August, a novel written by the well-known author, William Faulkner, can definitely be interpreted in many ways. However, one fairly obvious prospective is through a religious standpoint. It is difficult, nearly impossible, to construe Light in August without noting the Christian parallels. Faulkner gives us proof that a Christian symbolic interpretation is valid. Certain facts of these parallels are inescapable and there are many guideposts to this idea.
For instance, there is Joe Christmas, one of the main characters in the novel. His initials are J.C., which can be an acronym for the name Jesus Christ. There is the fact of his uncertain paternity and his appearance at the orphanage on Christmas day, as well. Joe is approximately thirty-three years of age at his lynching; This event is prepared for throughout Light in August by Faulkner’s constant use of the word crucifixion.
Also, there are many more convincing Christian symbolisms that seem to have lead readers to believe that William Faulkner arranged his events and directed his themes to parallel the twenty-one chapters of the St. John Gospel. These religious symbols, however, stray from the text of Light in August and seek to unify the novel through biblical allusions alone. They attempt to answer the questions of how Light in August functions as a work of literature by avoiding the novel itself. Because of this, they each fall short of being an exact interpretation of the novel. Still, the Christian parallels cannot be ignored and must function for some firm purpose in this novel.
If Light in August has enough surfaces corresponding to warrant the claim of a direct parallel in both theme and action to the Gospel of John, then where is the crucifix, the most important symbol of Christianity? This significant tool should be in a book with such religious relevance. The important symbol was not left out, however; they were only distorted to a degree. Faulkner may have been giving a clue to the way in which he distorted the crucifix. For example, wood imagery is relevant in this case. There are several wood mills: Doane’s Mill, and then the planing mill in Jefferson. Lena asks Byron Bunch, “Is there another planing mill?” Byron replies, “No, ma’am. There are some sawmills, a right smart of them, though”. Faulkner may have been alerting his audie...
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...not been a part of Christmas’ “wooden world”, now rides with a furniture repairman. Typically, Lena’s narration does not call attention to poles or posts of any kind. It is only after Christmas is dead that Lena notices the cross-like images. This would seem to suggest not only that she is perhaps a Virgin Mary figure carrying a Christ figure inside her, but also that she herself is the resurrect “life” after Christ’s (Christmas’) crucifixion. It seems highly possible in a novel that distorts the Crucifix that the process of Christ’s death and resurrection could also be distorted. Ironically, however, Lena exists at the same time with Christmas, but never meets him because within the context of the New Testament, resurrection comes only after death. In turn, Lena and Christmas never meet because it would be illogical for the Virgin Mary figure to meet her baby while she is carrying her baby.
All of these characters’ narrations, which can appear incoherent, are, connected through the distorted image of the wooden cross. The posts and other symbols link Christmas and the Testaments together. Light in August functions as a fluid novel though structured distortion of the Gospels.
The depictions include: the properties of God, manners of longing of God, manners of knowing, the gifts of God, degrees of bliss, properties of the hazelnut, three wounds in her life, the virtues of Mary, the means to come to heaven, the aspects of the “fiend.” All of this language is celebratory. George Tavard’s article “The Christology of the Mystics” notes the pattern found within Julian’s visions or “shewings”: “ They follow in the main, the sequence of the Passion: (1) crowning with thorns, (2) the discoloring of Christ’s face, (3) the creation, (4) the flagellation, (5) Christ’s victory over the “Fiend,” (6) the heavenly reward, (7) God’s goodness, (8) the death of Christ, (9) the relation of
and in front of the whole school during spirit week and international week, without a bit of apprehension. Gaining this confidence was and is the key to victories in dance competitions. Confidence and my familiarity with a variety of dance forms such as hip-hop, jazz, and several Indian classical dances can be credited to my winning first place in a memorable competition, where, for the first time, my two friends and I choreographed the dance piece that we performed. This experience also helped as the same friends and I had 2 weeks to choreograph, perfect, and perform alongside a famous Indian singer as he sang live. These values specifically pushed me advance further into the art form, and were also extremely useful outside of the dance
Carolyn Howard-Johnson uses literary devices such as personification and imagery, in the passage Milk Glass, to convey the narrator values Christmas time and the milk glass.
Of all religious holidays that have been adopted by secularists, one of the most popular would be Christmas, originally meant to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ. With the exact date of Jesus' birth unknown during ancient times, Christmas was initially assigned to January 6th, but was changed to December 25th under the influence of the winter solstice (Nothaft 903). Peculiarly however, is the universal celebration of Christmas al...
Brewer, Nadine. "Christ, Satan, and Southern Protestantism in O'Connor's Fiction." Flannery O'Connor Bulletin 14 (1985): 103-111. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Janet Witalec. Vol. 132. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Literature Resource Center. Web. 25 Nov. 2013
The typical idea of a dancer is that they are tall, slender, full of energy, and lucky because they dance with all of the “stars”. Much of this is true, however, what many people do not think of are the many hardships that a dancer goes through in order to achieve their high status in the dance world. It takes much hard work and determination along with good direction to become a dancer. However, nothing good comes without a price. Dancers often times have many pressures put on them which can lead to physical and emotional damages. These damages occur through the pressures from the media, parents, teammates, and the stereotype that society has placed on dancers.
One of my visions as a psychology practitioner scholar is becoming a clinical counselor. My purpose in psychology is to help people understand their life in a clear distinct way. I specifically want to target children and, help them grow and be more than they have the potential to be. I want to focus on the child development of children based on their environment. I want to be able understand children react the way they do in certain situations. Children have a way of not being able to express themselves fully so being able to help them understand their emotions.
- - -. "Won't You Celebrate With Me." 1993. The Book of Light. Comp. Clifton. Port Townsend: Copper Canyon Press, 1993. 25. Print.
The image enforces the meaning of Christmas being lost, and that the people need to be aware of this now sacrilegious, laic time. The source displays the change from sacred Australia, which was a time of religion, to a more secular period. The source presents the contemporary cultural values of Australians today, often disassociating themselves from holy, divine objects, places or people. Losing their sacred connectedness to God or their purpose with religion. Taking Christ out of the equation presents how Jesus has been neglected by those supposed Christians of the modern day, who have forgotten the sole meaning of Christmas and their religion. This image imposes a reinforced message through an image presenting secularism of contemporary Australian Christmas with the words “missing”, and “what Jesus has become”. The view of Source 3 displays that anything of great importance in the religious sense, including Jesus, in temporal culture which exists in Australia is lost.
Bloomfield, Morton W. New Literary History. Winter ed. N.p.: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1972. Print. Vol. 2 of Allegory as Interpretation. 3 vols. First.
Brown, Raymond. A Crucified Christ in Holy Week: Essays on the Four Gospel Passion Narratives. Collegeville, Minnesota: The Liturgical Press, 1986.
Another key factor in the overall story represented has faded, which is one of the lamps or incense holders beneath Christ. The positions of the stories in the apse show the importance of the figures represented in the images. Christ's placement at the center of the apse holding a book with his left hand provides a direct relationship to the Bible. His right hand held up in blessing illustrates his divine power towards the people, who receive the sacrament on the altar below him. Christ is also surrounded by stars, which represent the heavens and his own divine nature....
I have always been fascinated by the many arts. Around September of last year, I discovered a show that had to do with dancing and singing, which caused me to have a slight interest in the former. In November, my best friend showed me a band that is talented in dancing, and this group has fueled my curiosity. Furthermore, I have already taken a few steps towards learning their dances. I aspire to accomplish the ability to dance because of this group, I am trying to learn the choreography to their songs, and I want to perform in front of people who enjoy watching others dance.
Palumbo, Donald. "The Concept of God in Faulkner's "Light in August," "The Sound and the Fury," "As I Lay Dying" and "Absalom, Absalom!"" The South Central Bulletin 39.4 (1979): 142-46. JSTOR. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.
As Jackie Joyner Kersee once said, “The rewards are going to come, but my happiness is just loving the sport and having fun performing” (“Sports Quotes,” 2013). Sports play a major role in entertainment all across the world. Sports can range from driving in NASCAR to playing in the NBA (Careers in Pro Sports, 1999). Sports usually involve teamwork and is fun for everyone. Although sports are supposed to be fun, there is natural competition. Being a feminine art, dance is considered to be just about anything other than a sport. Dancers are trained to the height of their ability, just like other athletes in other sports. Even though the dancer might not perform with their whole dance studio on stage at the same time, the dancers are all apart of the same team. Dancing is not an easy sport to participate in, so if you are looking for a sport that does not require practice then you might want to look into a different sport. There are hour-long practices, healthy diets, and several routines to remember. Normally, if someone is convinced that dance is not a sport, they have not fully engaged or experienced dance. In order to better understand dance, it is important to understand the history of dance, the competition of dance, and the comparison of dance to other sports.