The Narrative Technique of Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom!

2148 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Absalom william faulkner narrative techniques

The Narrative Technique of Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom!

Guilt should be viewed through the eyes of more than one person,

southern or otherwise. William Faulkner filters the story, Absalom, Absalom!,

through several minds providing the reader with a dilution of its representation.

Miss Rosa, frustrated, lonely, mad, is unable to answer her own questions

concerning Sutpen's motivation. Mr. Compson sees much of the evil and the

illusion of romanticism of the evil that turned Southern ladies into ghosts.

Charles Bon and Henry Sutpen are evaluated for their motives through Quentin

Compson and Shreve McCannon. Quentin attempt to evade his awareness, Shreve the

outsider (with Quentin's help) reconstructs the story and understands the

meaning of Thomas Sutpen's life. In the novel Absalom, Absalom!, a multiple

consciousness technique is used to reassess the process of historical

reconstruction by the narrators.

Chapter one is the scene in which Miss Rosa tells Quentin about the

early days in Sutpen's life. It's here that Rosa explains to Quentin why she

wanted to visit old mansion on this day. She is the one narrator that is unable

to view Sutpen objectively. The first chapter serves as merely an introduction

to the history of Sutpen based on what Miss Rosa heard as a child and her brief

personal experiences.

The narration of Absalom, Absalom!, can be considered a coded activity.

Faulkner creates the complex narration beginning at chapter 2. It ironic that

one of Faulkner's greatest novels is one in which the author only appears as the

teller of the story in one brief section; The details of the hero's arrival,

Thomas Sutpen, i...

... middle of paper ...

...orical knowledge (Connelly 12).

Works Cited

Aswell, Duncan. “The Puzzling Design of Absalom, Absalom!” Muhlenfeld 93-108

Bloom, Harold, ed. Absalom, Absalom! Modern Critical Interpretations. New

York: Chelsea. 1987.

Connelly, Don. “The History and Truth in Absalom, Absalom!” Northwestern

University, 1991.

Faulkner, William. Absalom, Absalom! New York: Vintage, 1972

Levins, Lynn. “The Four Narrative Perspectives in Absalom, Absalom!” Austin: U

of Texas, 1971.

Muhlenfeld, Elizabeth, ed. William Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom!: A Critical

Casebook. New York: Garland, 1984.

Rollyson, Carl. “The Re-creation of the Past in Absalom, Absalom!” Mississippi

Quarterly 29 (1976): 361-74

Searle Leroy. “Opening the Door: Truth in Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom!”

Unpublished essay. N.d.

Show More
Related

  • Alicia My Story, Book Summary

    1341 Words  | 3 Pages

    about a way that she could go to Eretz Island, Israel where she could be safe. She left her

    Read More

  • The Nature Of Time In William Faulkner's A Rose For Emily

    1834 Words  | 4 Pages

    William Faulkner is widely considered to be one of the great American authors of the twentieth century. Although his greatest works are identified with a particular region and time (Mississippi in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries), the themes he explores are universal. He was also an extremely accomplished writer in a technical sense. Novels such as The Sound and the Fury and Absalom, Absalom! Feature bold experimentation with shifts in time and narrative. Several of his short stories are favorites of anthologists, including "A Rose for Emily." This strange story of love, obsession, and death is a favorite among both readers and critics. The narrator, speaking for the town of Jefferson in Faulkner 's fictional Yoknapatawpha

    Read More

  • William Faulkner’s An Odor of Verbena – An Act of Courage

    1561 Words  | 4 Pages

    William Faulkner’s short story "An Odor of Verbena" is the tale of a young, Southern man, Baynard Sartoris, who must come to terms with his father’s sudden (but not entirely unexpected) murder. Because this murder takes place in the decade following the Civil War, young Baynard is faced with the South’s ancient honorary code. This code dictates that, as the only son of his father, he must avenge this death. Should Baynard fail to retaliate on his father’s behalf by confronting the murderer, Redmond, who once was his father’s business partner, both Baynard and his family would lose face within their community.

    Read More

  • Disjointed Characters of Faulkner's Light in August

    1451 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the novel, A Light in August, William Faulkner introduces us to a wide range of characters of various backgrounds and personalities.  Common to all of them is the fact that each is type cast into a certain role in the novel and in society. Lena is the poor, white trash southern girl who serves to weave the story together. Hightower is the fanatic preacher who is the dark, shameful secret of Jefferson. Joanna Burden is the middle-aged maiden from the north who is often accused of being a “nigger-lover”. And Joe Christmas is the epitome of an outsider. None of them are conventional, everyday people. They are all in some way disjointed from society; they do not fit in with the crowd. That is what makes them intriguing and that is why Faulkner documents their story.

    Read More

  • Japan: Past Actions, Current Influence

    1321 Words  | 3 Pages

    The five aspects which we will examine that create Japan’s culture are: political, economic, military, social, and religious. We will take a look at some of the general facts and information about Japan and its history, more specifically, the events that led the country to its involvement in World War II. After reading this, it is my hope that many will have a better understanding of a foreign country they may not know much about.

    Read More

  • Solving the Foreclosure Crisis

    1081 Words  | 3 Pages

    Not since the Great Depression of 1929 has America experienced such economic chaos, job and housing loss. Perhaps housing loss was not as wide-spread then since there were fewer homeowners. The government supposedly put in measures designed not to let those on Wall Street cause the same thing to happen again. Yet, here we are some eighty years later in the same situation. It seems that history keeps repeating itself. The question is why? The answer is greed. Unfortunately, the question "how can we stop it from happening again"? cannot be answered in one definitive statement. Of course the solution to preventing home foreclosures is "prevention," which in itself comes with a lot of variables.

    Read More

  • Faulkner The Quintessential Southern Writer

    1185 Words  | 3 Pages

    As a child, Faulkner was well aware of his family background, especially the notoriety of his great-grandfather who had moved to the Mississippi Delta from Tennessee in 1841 (Zane). William Clark Faulkner was a Civil War Colonel, a lawyer, a planter, a politician, a railroad entrepreneur, and a best-selling novelist best known for The White Rose of Memphis. He died in the streets of Ripley, Mississippi, where a former business partner he had forced out of his railroad gunned him down (Padgett). While Faulkner had never met his great-grandfather, he was a powerful influence. When his third grade teacher asked what he wanted to be when he grew up, the young William replied “I want to be a writer like my great-granddaddy”(Padgett).

    Read More

  • Comparing William Faulkner's Short Stories, A Rose for Emily and Dry September

    1905 Words  | 4 Pages

    Brooks, Cleanth. "William Faulkner: Visions of Good and Evil." Faulkner, New Perspectives. Ed. Richard H. Brodhead. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey : Prentice-Hall, 1983.

    Read More

  • Free Essay: Alienation and Isolation in William Faulkner's A Rose for Emily

    838 Words  | 2 Pages

    Faulkner's theme of alienation comes up many times in his writing. In the book The Major Years, Melvin Backman states that Faulkner was reaching for a more decent life and more decent people in the midst of evil. He was reaching for love, innocence, simplicity, and strength, but he also knew that these things were being hidden by reality. "With Faulkner, as with all men, the personal condition underlay and shaped his view of the human condition" (Backman, p.183).

    Read More

  • Individualism and Collectivist Cultures

    1078 Words  | 3 Pages

    Geographical determinism: the geography of Japan has a great influence on the development of many of the country’s customs and cultural values. People had to live close together in communities. Concept of harmony became an important factor.pg 9-10

    Read More

  • Fixing the Housing Market

    999 Words  | 2 Pages

    The government, as of now, has fallen into a bad routine: Throw some money at it and make it go away. These are short-term fixes to a long-term problem. By looking at this on a strictly monetary scale, we are not forced to look at our own accountability. We as Americans have developed this notion that the government should take care of us somewhere along the lines. More government is not the answer. To me, this is the easy way out. Besides, do we really want the government so involved in aspects of our lives they have no business being a part of?

    Read More

  • Japanese Identity

    3661 Words  | 8 Pages

    Throughout its history, Japan has striven to define its national identity not by its own means, but by those predefined by foreign, and most recently, Western powers. Despite legends of the island archipelago being created by the sun goddess Amaterasu, Japan seems to have consistently maintained a indecisive self-image with respect to its neighbors. In the past, China had represented the pinnacle of culture and technology and had tremendously influenced other surrounding countries in Asia and in the world. Indeed, Japan owes its written language to imported and adapted Chinese characters. Without question, China remained for a long time the most influential force upon Japan. However, island nation maintained a rather precarious self-identity: How could a country like Japan, which was supposedly created by the gods and therefore a divine nation, consider itself the apex of the world, given China’s tremendous influence and power? Could Japan truly consider itself the greatest land in the world if China, or Chugoku in Japanese, literally meant “the central country?” For this reason, Japan never truly accepted a position of “belonging” to Asia. That is, despite a considerable amount of imported culture, Japan was still somehow inherently different from other Asian countries.

    Read More

  • Teen Drivers Research Paper

    1591 Words  | 4 Pages

    As expected, most if not all teens will disagree with that. But there are some safe teen drivers that are thrown into the bad teen driving category just because they are a teenager that drives. If there are some good teen drivers, then do all teens really need more drivers education? Samantha Williams is a senior at Winchester Community High School that has an answer to this question. “I do consider myself to be a safe driver. I’m always aware of my surroundings when I’m driving, and I always stay away from any distractions” (Question 1). She is intentionally aware of her surroundings and stays focused while driving. The government should not make more regulations and rules for all teen drivers when there are many teen drivers like Samantha on the roads. There are even some adults that believe not all teen drivers are bad drivers. Gregory explains, “ The teen driving issues are not about age and maturity as they are about making good choices and demonstrating exceptional behavior, whether they start that driving experience at 16, 17, or 18” (1). Many teens and parents seem to think the government has not made the best decisions recently when it comes to

    Read More

  • The Wonders of Japan

    1575 Words  | 4 Pages

    Japan has many wonders that the general public does not know of. Most Americans only know about the past wars of Japan, therefore they don’t know the true history of the people that life there. Several wonders of Japan include its History, Government, Geography and Topography, Cultural Customs and Economy and Trade.

    Read More

  • Critical Analysis Of Orientalism

    1350 Words  | 3 Pages

    Japan is a fascinating multifaceted culture, on one hand it is filled with many traditions dating back thousands of years and yet is a society with continually changing fads,

    Read More

More about The Narrative Technique of Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom!

Open Document