April 8, 1928

I found this final chapter to be somewhat refreshing, mostly because of its straightforwardness, but also because Dilsey helps bring clarity to the story. The confusion that Benjy, Quentin, and even Jason present is paralleled to this last chapter, where everything is quite clear. I think that Faulkner organized the book this way in order to represent all of the strife the Compson family endures because of their fixation with the "Old South." Faulkner is trying to say that the root of all of their problems is representative of how corrupt this idea of the "Old South" is.

For instance, Benjy is constantly being berated by his mother, Jason, and even Luster because of his disability. The fact that he cannot eat or even dress by himself at the age of thirty does not fit into what is socially acceptable. Mrs. Compson constantly pities herself for having to give birth to a son that can't take care of himself. Dilly sees this cruelty that the Compson family, and everyone else, imposes onto Benjy. When her kids tell her that people are criticizing the fact that she brings Benjy to an African American church, she says, "Tell um de good Lawd don't keep whether he bright er not. Dont nobody but white trash keer dat." She recognizes the corruption in society as a whole.
Benjy is often troubled by his family, especially when there are disagreements. He misses Caddie, the only person that actually cares about him and looks out for him. Whenever he moans or cries, he is showing that whatever is happening is not right. The sounds he made "might have been all time and injustice and sorrow become vocal for an instant by a conjunction of planets."
Quentin's disorienting point of view can also be representative of society's corruption. He is so negatively affected by the Compson family's self-importance that it leads him to commit suicide. Throughout the chapter, his thoughts become more and more perplexing. The values of the "Old South" are very important to him, and eventually this obsession leads to his death.
Jason's evil behavior and personality is the embodiment of the outdated, crooked values. His character often clashes with both Caddie and Quentin, who are women who don't fit into what is acceptable. Perhaps these two women are symbols of a more modern society, where non-traditional actions and beliefs are acceptable. When talking about Quentin, Jason says, "Like I say you can't do anything with a woman like that, if she's got it in her. If it's in her blood, you can't do a nothing with her. The only thing you can do is to get rid of her, let her go on and live with her own sort." He is unwilling to accept anything or anyone that obstructs his social standing. When Quentin finally runs away, she is breaking away from the pressures the Compson family had haunted her and themselves with. 

The fact that this chapter is on Easter Sunday is not insignificant. Perhaps this represents the revival that the Compson family experiences. Their social standing has finally seen its downfall, and there is room for a new type of behavior to exist. Dilsey says," I seed de beginning, en now I sees de endin."

April Sixth,1928

While reading this chapter, I found it constantly difficult to fathom how it's possible for Jason to be such a selfish and apathetic person. The opening line of the chapter is a perfect example of his character. While describing Quentin, he says, "Once a bitch always a bitch, what I say." His inability to see past peoples' imperfections is seen throughout the book. Quentin, in particular, is instantly seen as a hassle to him because she is a bastard child. He justifies his mistreatment of her with the fact that she was born out of wedlock. His stream of consciousness shows that he actually believes his cruel actions towards her are acceptable. He also has trouble with seeing Benjy as an actual human being. He despises Benjy's disability and thinks that he soils the Compson's reputation. In addition to Benjy and Quentin, he also refuses to look past Caddie's infertility. Is the bitterness he shows towards these characters purely out of spite? It seems that he can't look past his own misfortunes to understand others'.
Throughout the chapter, it is obvious that Jason actually takes pleasure in chastising others. He shows no sympathy to anyone in his family. His scheme to steal the money from Quentin that Caddie sends to her is a prime example of this. When Luster asks him for a ticket to go see the minstrel show, he burns it in front of him instead of giving it to him. Him doing this is the epitome of inhumanity. There is no reason for this action other than to torture Luster. He also takes advantage of his mother's blind love for him. The fact that she cares about him does not stop him from slowly fooling her and taking her money. He has no compassion for anyone in his life. His focus is on his social standing, and he is offended by anyone or anything that soils it. He doesn't see people as human beings, but merely as puppets whose only purposes are to increase his individual gain.
I found myself constantly wondering how Jason came to be so pessimistic and hateful. Is it the self-pity? Or was he mistreated by his family? It seems to me that his character is inherently evil, since his cruelty started at such a young age. There is a particular scene in which Caddie yells at Jason for cutting up Benjy's dolls. Perhaps no one was ever able to look out for him and raise him to be kind and loving.
Whatever it is, Jason's personality is disturbing. I wonder why Faulkner makes out Jason to be such an awful person. Perhaps it is to highlight the compassion and strength that Caddie holds. This would explain why Jason and Caddie constantly don't get along during this chapter and in others. Although it was difficult to read Jason's narrative, it gave me a better insight into other character's actions and stories, the most important being Caddie.

June 2, 1910

While reading Quentin's chapter, I found it to be disorienting and hard to follow. Although his sequence of thoughts was easier than Benjy's, his thoughts were more complex and difficult to comprehend. He himself seemed to be very troubled and unfocused, his thoughts jumping from one memory to another without being complete. His narration is very unclear, revealing his unhealthy state of mind. Knowing that June 2 is the day he commits suicide makes things much more clear and gives an explanation as to why his thoughts are in disarray.
Quentin maintains his own ideals and beliefs throughout the story. He possesses a strong sense of how he thinks people should act, and it is based upon traditional Southern society. He feels the need to defend his family's honor, and especially needs to defend the honor of women. When he finds out about Caddy's promiscuity, he is deeply bothered and hurt by it. However, the fact that he defends her and sacrifices his own honor to protect who the father of Caddy's illegitimate child is reveals his true virtue. He is devastated when his father seems to not be troubled by Caddy's promiscuity. His father says, "men invented virginity not women." (52) He does not believe in these traditional values that Quentin does. I wonder how Quentin has formed such different beliefs than his father after being raised and taught by him.
Throughout the chapter, Quentin is constantly obsessing over time. There is a particular fascination over his watch. He thinks about Jesus Christ and his crucifixion. He says that Jesus "was worn away by a minute clicking of little wheels."(51) Perhaps this is a symbol of how Quentin cannot escape time. I wonder if this could be one of the main forces that cause his death; that he feels the urge to escape this "trap."
Quentin is troubled by several people and several events that have occurred in his life. He feels that he can't run away from the things that have happened. He also feels that he and his family have betrayed their sense of honor, and this bothers him. His thoughts race and switch without even being finished. By the end of the chapter, the ideas in his head are even more incomprehensible. Having a view into his mind shows us how unhealthy he is. It gives us insight into how unhealthy he is and why June 2, 1910 was his last day.

April 7, 1928

While reading this first chapter, I kept asking myself why William Faulkner would make the story, told by Benjy, so confusing and intricate. At first I thought it was just to exemplify the way in which Benjy's mind works by jumping from memory to memory. It was interesting to see the focus Benjy had on senses, like smelling and hearing. By the end of the chapter, I realized that perhaps Faulkner made the first chapter so disorienting to pull the reader in. The passage being so confusing forced me to focus not on just the plot, but on the specific details. These details, like which characters were in each memory, helped me understand what was going on. Paying attention to detail also helped me notice what was actually going on in the story, not just what was on the surface.

One thing that really struck me was the cruelty Benjy receives from his family. Because of his illness,  he is at the bottom in the Compson family. Most are not able to understand or communicate with him. They do not understand the way his mind works and therefor become very frustrated with him. Although his thought process is difficult to comprehend, he is also very matter of fact. His thoughts are not distorted by him wanting to suggest or communicate something that may not be completely true. His innocence is what makes his interpretation of his life and the lives around him so accurate. It shows us that the Compson family has many faults. He doesn't over exaggerate or under exaggerate their actions. For example, when he makes references to Uncle Maury's alcoholism, he gives concrete evidence. This shows that he is not trying to suggest something, but that it is the truth.

Although he may not be able to communicate what he wants, he helps those around him realize what is right and wrong. A perfect example of this is his sister, Caddy, who is the only one that understands why Benjy gets upset and tries to fix it. The fact that he is the same age as Christ was upon Crucifixion is puzzling. Does this suggest that perhaps Benjy is a figure that brings light and hope to the Compson family? Is he some sort of sacrifice that will eventually help the Compson family?

He is very dependent and needs someone to be watching over him all the time. He needs structure and feeds off of the happiness from past memories. This could be a symbol of the idea of how important it is that family ties are strong and faithful. Could his dependence be what holds his family together? To me, Benjy seems to be a symbol that unites people, even in bad situations, and even when they don't want to be united.

Activity #1

Gaining insight into William Faulkner's background and life was very interesting and will certainly help me better understand his writing. First of all, I find it fascinating that he is recognized as a great American writer when he never even graduated high school. This highlights his profound abilities because it shows that he did not need education to make his writing great. Another aspect of his life I found interesting was that he was able to enter the Canadian Air Force, but wasn't able to actually fight before the war ended. I found it funny that he bought an officer's uniform and exaggerated his experience while training. He enjoyed the praise he received from others. This shows something about his character, and I wonder if these aspects of his personality will be revealed in any of his characters in The Sound and the Fury.
It was helpful to learn about his other works of writing compared to The Sound and the Fury. His third novel was based off of his own native county. He described the experience of writing about something familiar and personal, and said that this helped him realize how important it is to take bits and pieces of your own experiences and share them with the world.
It was a shock to me that when Faulkner first wrote this book, he didn't think it was "publishable." His humble attitude is both odd and compelling. I really liked his Nobel Prize speech and the ideas he expresses. The fact that he sees his work not as his own but as the reader's drives me to want to read his book even more. It was interesting to read about his perception of what an author should be. He thinks that the writer must "teach himself that the basest of all things is to be afraid." Writing should confront the truest emotions, and for that to happen, the writer must dig down deep instead of just writing on the surface. He shows that his writing is vulnerable, and although he may not admit this, that is what makes it so great. He says that he "declines to accept the end of man." He believes that man will "prevail" because of the emotion we possess, and we must hold onto this emotion. I find his ideas to be great descriptions of what a writer should be.