Comment on the
use of Stream of Consciousness Writing Technique in William Faulkner's Novel, The Sound and the Fury.
William
Faulkner's novel, "The Sound and The Fury" takes place in a fictional
region of the South. Furthermore, the story is situated in a time directly
after the Civil War. It is obvious that the loss of the Civil War has had a
profound impact on the psyche of the South and its people. The region not only
lost the war, but their entire way of life as well. In an attempt to capture
the graveness of the situation, Faulkner uses the technique of
"stream-of-consciousness." In doing so, he is able to tell a tale of
the decline of a post-Civil War Southern family through the eyes of the
characters who are experiencing the situation first-hand. The loss of the Civil War completely altered the every day life of the South. The institute of slavery crumbled, but many of its social values remained. It was a confusing time in which blacks were legally emancipated, but socially unequal to whites, still unable to pursue either an education or equal economic opportunities. Due to the loss of slavery as a business, as well as the rapid growth of industry and manufacture, the South lost its place as an economic influence on the nation. Agriculture, the staple of Southern economy, became significantly less lucrative. It became almost impossible for small family farms to continue functioning. Faulkner creates the Compson family to manifest the economic troubles of the South and their effects on the people of the region. The economic degeneration of the family worsens throughout the years, until Mr. Compson is eventually forced to sell the last of his land to fund Caddy's wedding and Quentin's education.
The financial decline of the South had an enormous affect on the morale of the region. As a result of the many troubles that came with the South's loss of the Civil War, families were affected financially, psychologically and socially. As a result of this new sense of chaos, many families turned inward, becoming self-absorbed and losing touch with reality and the rest of the world. The original aristocratic families of the South embodied traditional Southern values. Men were expected to act like courageous, chivalric, strong, gentlemen who defended the honor of their family name. Women were expected to be models of feminine virtue; possessing wholesomeness, refinement and virginity. Family values and faith in God were the groundwork for preserving these beliefs. Faulkner's portrayal of the Compson family blatantly reflects these families, whose once exemplary values have been corrupted, leaving younger generations unequipped to deal with the harshness of the world which surrounds them.
