To be honest and a little bit blunt, I'm really glad that first section is over and done with. It was really hard to read. Also, that first section was like 75 pages of dense material. I hope that my first blog post is enough word count wise.
The second section is told from the perspective of Quentin Compson and of course it's not making any sense right from the start. Where is Quentin? He is definitely not in the South. And judging by the title, we've also gone back 18 years in time. Cool. Anyway, at first Quentin has what I would consider a comprehensive stream of consciousness. Also known as the kind of stream that I like. (Thank you Faulkner.) However, it quickly jumps into the same pattern that happened during April Seventh, 1928 where Benji rapidly moves from reality to memory. Oh, sidenote, I figured out that Quentin is at a boarding school of some sort.
Quentin has a lot on his mind. There is something going on in regards to church and incest. Two things that don't really go well with each other. (Maybe that's Faulkner's point?) It seems like Quentin is overwhelmed mentally, which is the stem of his neurotic stream of consciousness process. When I picture Quentin in my mind, I think about a slender, meek boy with pasty white skin and dark hair that talks really fast and in run-on sentences.(Again, maybe that's Faulkner's point?)
I think that in the midst of all these memories floating around Quentin's head, that he is traveling. Where he is going, I haven't figured that out yet. Throughout all this, Quentin is thinking about Caddy's marriage to Herbert Head. Apparently according the Quentin, he's not a very nice guy. *insert expletives here* He seems worried about Caddy's well being, and also concerned about her sex life. Kind of creepy because it's her brother, but whatever floats your boat, Faulkner.
Quentin meets a girl in a bakery while he is out and about. He is accused of kidnapping, (I can only imagine what that did o his already neurotic state of mind). Quentin's friends follow him to the police station. He's pays the fine and is released so it's all good in the end.
Benji and Quentin are alike in the sense that neither of these two characters does a proficient job of getting their points across.
End of section 2. Phew. Faulkner, you are no cake walk.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
The Sound and the Fury: April Seventh, 1928
The book is divided into four perspectives. Four perspectives = four blog posts, I guess.
April Seventh, 1928 is told in first person from the perspective of Benji Compson, the youngest son of the Compson family. Benji is severely retarded and is being watched by a boy named Luster and today is his thirty-third birthday. Luster takes Benji to the golf course so that he can fetch golf balls and hopefully get a quarter because he lost one earlier. On the way to the golf course, Benji gets caught on a nail.
Enter stream of consciousness.
The story then goes off track to a memory that Benji has about his older sister Caddy and himself. Many Christmases ago, Benji got stuck on that needle and she helped him get unstuck. I think it's still Christmas and in the memory, Benji's mother Mrs. Compson is arguing with her brother, Uncle Maury, about whether she should let Benji out of the house due to the cold winter weather. Mrs. Compson eventually lets them out of the house. The story then returns to the present tense in 1928 for like a sentence until something else that Luster and Benji come across reminds Benji of another memory.
More stream of consciousness. Great.
This memory is about a trip the Compson family makes in a carriage to go somewhere that I can't figure out. It seems like Dilsey likes to yell at another servant named T.P.
Back to the regular story. Benji is crying and I don't know why. Back to more past memories.
Caddy asks Benji if he would like to hold the letter they need to deliver to Mrs. Patterson from Uncle Maury. Once they arrive at the Patterson house, Caddy tries to climb the fence in order to deliver the letter to Mrs. Patterson. However, Mr. Patterson intercepts the letter before Mrs. Patterson does. Something bad is happening because Benji is crying and he runs away down the hill.
At this point, I must insert my own thoughts. I have NO IDEA what is going on. Stream of consciousness is such a difficult thing to master. Anyways, poor Benji! I'm assuming that these memories are from his childhood. He gets thrown around so much because he is a young age. Benji rarely has actions or thoughts of his own, he's constantly jumping between events that involve other people in the story.
I think we are now back in the present though. Luster and Benji go to look for golf balls in the stream nearby. Luster tells Benji to "hush up and git in that water" so that he can look underwater. (Poor Benji, he really does get bossed around.) This reminds Benji of a memory he has. Wow, big surprise Faulkner, really.
This memory is about a time when Quentin, Caddy, Jason, and himself are all playing in the stream. Caddy gets her clothes dirty and when they are walking back to the house, they see Roskus. This activates another memory Benji has.
The pattern of memories that make Benji upset and start to cry continues for the rest of this first section of the novel. I think this pattern is well addressed above this paragraph. Faulkner definitely does not have any care for chronology. There is a consistent bouncing between the past memories and the present story. Since Benji is so incompetent, it makes the section even more difficult to understand. One thing Faulkner really bases an emphasis on is the way Benji connects his memories to feelings. Benji seems like a very deep and sensitive individual, but people don't get that because he is severely retarded.
Faulkner, I'm so confused. On to the next one. (Section, that is.)
April Seventh, 1928 is told in first person from the perspective of Benji Compson, the youngest son of the Compson family. Benji is severely retarded and is being watched by a boy named Luster and today is his thirty-third birthday. Luster takes Benji to the golf course so that he can fetch golf balls and hopefully get a quarter because he lost one earlier. On the way to the golf course, Benji gets caught on a nail.
Enter stream of consciousness.
The story then goes off track to a memory that Benji has about his older sister Caddy and himself. Many Christmases ago, Benji got stuck on that needle and she helped him get unstuck. I think it's still Christmas and in the memory, Benji's mother Mrs. Compson is arguing with her brother, Uncle Maury, about whether she should let Benji out of the house due to the cold winter weather. Mrs. Compson eventually lets them out of the house. The story then returns to the present tense in 1928 for like a sentence until something else that Luster and Benji come across reminds Benji of another memory.
More stream of consciousness. Great.
This memory is about a trip the Compson family makes in a carriage to go somewhere that I can't figure out. It seems like Dilsey likes to yell at another servant named T.P.
Back to the regular story. Benji is crying and I don't know why. Back to more past memories.
Caddy asks Benji if he would like to hold the letter they need to deliver to Mrs. Patterson from Uncle Maury. Once they arrive at the Patterson house, Caddy tries to climb the fence in order to deliver the letter to Mrs. Patterson. However, Mr. Patterson intercepts the letter before Mrs. Patterson does. Something bad is happening because Benji is crying and he runs away down the hill.
At this point, I must insert my own thoughts. I have NO IDEA what is going on. Stream of consciousness is such a difficult thing to master. Anyways, poor Benji! I'm assuming that these memories are from his childhood. He gets thrown around so much because he is a young age. Benji rarely has actions or thoughts of his own, he's constantly jumping between events that involve other people in the story.
I think we are now back in the present though. Luster and Benji go to look for golf balls in the stream nearby. Luster tells Benji to "hush up and git in that water" so that he can look underwater. (Poor Benji, he really does get bossed around.) This reminds Benji of a memory he has. Wow, big surprise Faulkner, really.
This memory is about a time when Quentin, Caddy, Jason, and himself are all playing in the stream. Caddy gets her clothes dirty and when they are walking back to the house, they see Roskus. This activates another memory Benji has.
The pattern of memories that make Benji upset and start to cry continues for the rest of this first section of the novel. I think this pattern is well addressed above this paragraph. Faulkner definitely does not have any care for chronology. There is a consistent bouncing between the past memories and the present story. Since Benji is so incompetent, it makes the section even more difficult to understand. One thing Faulkner really bases an emphasis on is the way Benji connects his memories to feelings. Benji seems like a very deep and sensitive individual, but people don't get that because he is severely retarded.
Faulkner, I'm so confused. On to the next one. (Section, that is.)
The Sound and the Fury: A Backcover Pre-Analysis
Upon doing multiple Google searches about the different types of narratives like linear vs. nonlinear and the different types of perspectives that books are written in, I came across a book called The Sound and the Fury.
The back cover reads: "One of the greatest novels of the twentieth century, The Sound and the Fury is the tragedy of the Compson family, featuring some of the most memorable characters in American literature: beautiful, rebellious Caddy; the manchild Benjy; haunted, neurotic Quentin; jason, the brutal cynic; and Dilsey, their black servant."
.......Well, the first thing I thought of when I read the back cover of this book was the movie "Girl, Interrupted" because it also contains the same eccentric memorable characters in the same capacity. Caddy would be Lisa, Benjy would be Polly, Quentin would be Daisy, Jason would be Susanna, and Dilsey would be Nurse Valerie. The context of The Sound and the Fury is probably completely different, but I just wanted to share my initial impression based upon the back cover.
Anyway back to Google. Google told me that The Sound and the Fury was written by William Faulkner. Well, you might be able to figure out my next questions. Who is William Faulkner? and What is The Sound and the Fury all about anyway?
William Cuthbert Faulkner (September 25, 1897 — July 6, 1962)
Born in Mississippi and died in Ole' Miss. On a scale of influential writers, Faulkner would be at Mark Twain's level. Faulkner wrote novels, short stories, poetry, and even the occasional play. He was published as early as 1919 but was most active during the 1920s and 1930s. Faulkner kept a low profile until he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Well, there goes his privacy.
He spent almost his entire life in Mississippi and that influence of Southern culture is said to be reflected greatly in his works of literature. Faulkner published 13 novels and a multitude of short stories. Other iconic novels by Faulkner include As I Lay Dying, Light in August, and Absalom! Absalom! Faulkner wrote with the style of the Romantic era with Gothic tones mixed in. Also, Faulkner was a huge fan of the "stream of consciousness" method in his writing.
Fantastic, another James Joyce-esque novel. *insert sarcasm here, please* I'm not really excited about that whole idea because I was not a fan of "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man". However, the idea behind the story in The Sound and the Fury is what is keeping me interested.
Onto my second question.
The Sound and the Fury (1929)
The novel centers around the Compson family and is set in the fictional Yoknapatawhpha County. The plot deals with the family's struggle to come to terms with the separation of their family and a loss of their high reputation. Also, the plot is told from four different perspectives. (This is the part that is keeping me interested.) The first is from Benji, the second from Quentin, the third from Jason, and the last section has a third person omniscient perspective (<--- midterm vocab, yeah!). The last section also apparently primarly focuses on the servant named Dilsey.
My thoughts? Although I am not looking forward to some more "stream of consciousness", I am hoping that William Faulkner will change my perspective on it. I mean, he did win a Nobel Prize after all. I love stories told from different perspectives, they are really interesting to me and always bring to light something new that another person's perspective never would have picked up on. This makes me wonder how the book will be set up thematically. Will all the perspectives have continuous themes, or will the themes be more specialized towards the perspective in which we are reading? We shall see!
Going After Cacciato: 7-16
Cacciato is still leading Paul Berlin and the rest of the third squad through the southeast area of Asia. Along the way they have picked up and lost people. More importantly, they have met a group of three women on the read to Delhi, India. They call themselves refugees from the war. One in particular, Paul Berlin has taken a fancy to. Her name is Sarkin Aung Wan. The squad decides to take her with them. While in transit, the squad falls into a hole that was a crack in the road. Down and further down they tumbled which many people believe is a reference to Alice in Wonderland.
Once at the bottom, they meet Li Van Hgoc a major from the 48th Vietcong Battalion. He explains to them that he has been stuck there for years and now they are trapped there with him. Sarkin Aung Wan comes up with a brilliant idea, "The way in is the way out," she said. "We have fallen into a hole. Now we must fall out." (O'Brien 98) The squad saddles up and Sarkin Aung Wan leads them through the terros of the darkness.
The miagery of this journey is important. O'Brien includes almost every symbol that is feared by both men and women; bats, rodents, snakes, cobwebs, blindness, unbearable heat and cold, etc. This journey through the tunnels to the light above can be compared to the Vietnam War. Soldiers endure multiple hardships and they know that in the world outside the war, there is a better life. This is why they escape, or try to.
Meanwhile, there are the two other sections that I think I figured out. The chapters that are not "The Observation Tower" or the "Going After Cacciato" are focused on past experiences from the mind of Paul Berlin. When these chapters are put together as a whole, they act as the memoir section of Paul Berlin's time during the war so far. Some chapters are happy, for example, in one they talk about basketball. In others they can be depressing, like the chapter in which the third squad plots the death of Lieutenant Sidney. When put together with the "Going After Cacciato" plotline, they balance each other out really well.
"The Observation Tower" post still continues to address abstract aspects of life. Paul Berlin thinks a lot about his fellow soldiers or what it would be like to go home. He thinks about his past, present, and future.
Once at the bottom, they meet Li Van Hgoc a major from the 48th Vietcong Battalion. He explains to them that he has been stuck there for years and now they are trapped there with him. Sarkin Aung Wan comes up with a brilliant idea, "The way in is the way out," she said. "We have fallen into a hole. Now we must fall out." (O'Brien 98) The squad saddles up and Sarkin Aung Wan leads them through the terros of the darkness.
The miagery of this journey is important. O'Brien includes almost every symbol that is feared by both men and women; bats, rodents, snakes, cobwebs, blindness, unbearable heat and cold, etc. This journey through the tunnels to the light above can be compared to the Vietnam War. Soldiers endure multiple hardships and they know that in the world outside the war, there is a better life. This is why they escape, or try to.
Meanwhile, there are the two other sections that I think I figured out. The chapters that are not "The Observation Tower" or the "Going After Cacciato" are focused on past experiences from the mind of Paul Berlin. When these chapters are put together as a whole, they act as the memoir section of Paul Berlin's time during the war so far. Some chapters are happy, for example, in one they talk about basketball. In others they can be depressing, like the chapter in which the third squad plots the death of Lieutenant Sidney. When put together with the "Going After Cacciato" plotline, they balance each other out really well.
"The Observation Tower" post still continues to address abstract aspects of life. Paul Berlin thinks a lot about his fellow soldiers or what it would be like to go home. He thinks about his past, present, and future.
Going After Cacciato: 1-6
In the first chapter of Going After Cacciato, the main plot is established very quickly. A young, new member of the army and the third squad named Cacciato has gone AWOL (Absent With Out Leave). Lieutenant Corson orders the third squard to go after Cacciato.
The squad then embarks on a game of "cat and mouse" with Cacciato through the mountains of Vietnam. Every time they get close to Cacciato, he miraculously slips out of their grasp. The story is told from the perspective of Paul Berlin.
The next chapter is called "The Observation Tower". It is a short chapter, only three and a half pages long. I think that the story has either gone ahead to the future or has gone back in time. Also, even though the tense has changed, it feels as though time has come to a stand still while up in the tower.
The book continues to jump back and forth between the :"Going After Cacciato: story and the smaller :"The Observation Tower" story/stories. Somehow, "The Observation Tower" stories are relating to the "Going After Cacciato" story. They seem more philosophical. In these chapters, they also center around Paul Berlin and his time spent on watch late at night. Up there Paul Berlin contemplates the questions in life that were unanswered. The imagery in these are usually vivd, Paul Berlin seems to get his points across through nature.
So now we have two separate plot lines; one in the present, and one in the past or future. I hae no idea which it is yet. Then, O"Brien throws in another chapter/plot line. Unrelated to the "Going After Cacciato" story and unrelated to "The Observation Tower". These chapters appear to have happened in the past. They almost act as flashbacks for Paul Berlin.
It's getting a little confusing trying to keep track of the different stories and characters. We'll see what happens from here.
The squad then embarks on a game of "cat and mouse" with Cacciato through the mountains of Vietnam. Every time they get close to Cacciato, he miraculously slips out of their grasp. The story is told from the perspective of Paul Berlin.
The next chapter is called "The Observation Tower". It is a short chapter, only three and a half pages long. I think that the story has either gone ahead to the future or has gone back in time. Also, even though the tense has changed, it feels as though time has come to a stand still while up in the tower.
The book continues to jump back and forth between the :"Going After Cacciato: story and the smaller :"The Observation Tower" story/stories. Somehow, "The Observation Tower" stories are relating to the "Going After Cacciato" story. They seem more philosophical. In these chapters, they also center around Paul Berlin and his time spent on watch late at night. Up there Paul Berlin contemplates the questions in life that were unanswered. The imagery in these are usually vivd, Paul Berlin seems to get his points across through nature.
So now we have two separate plot lines; one in the present, and one in the past or future. I hae no idea which it is yet. Then, O"Brien throws in another chapter/plot line. Unrelated to the "Going After Cacciato" story and unrelated to "The Observation Tower". These chapters appear to have happened in the past. They almost act as flashbacks for Paul Berlin.
It's getting a little confusing trying to keep track of the different stories and characters. We'll see what happens from here.
Going After Cacciato: A Back Cover Analysis
Conveniently, the novel Going After Cacciato by Tim O'Brien fits perfectly with my exploration of narratives and perspectives. Obviously I'm going to use it in my project.
The back cover reads, "So wrote the New York Times of Tim O'Brien's now classic novel of Vietnam. Winner of the 1979 National Book Award, Going After Cacciato captures the peculiar mixture of horror and hallucination that marked this strangest of wars. In a blend of reality and fantasy, this novel tells the story of a young soldier who one day lays down his rifle and sets off on a quixotic journey from the jungles of Indochina to the streets of Paris. In its memorable evocation of men both fleeing from and meeting the demands of battle, Going After Cacciato stands as much more than just a great war novel. Ultimately it's about the forces of fear and heroism that do battle in the hearts of us all."
The story is told from the perspective of a soldier named Paul Berlin, but also includes multiple characters that are continuously in the novel from start to finish. Tim O'Brien conveys his war stories through three different mediums. There is the "Going After Cacciato" story, the "The Observation Tower" stories, and stories from Paul Berlin's past all by different chapters.
Since this this novel has such a unique structure, it is only fitting that I use it in my independent reading project. Although there are multiple sequences in the story, it maintains common themes. It addresses the puzzling line between what is reality vs. fantasy and also addresses the topic of desertion through it's nonlinear narrative.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Entering the Narrative Jungle
This blog is dedicated to my 2nd semester independent reading project in Mr. Cook's AP English Literature and Composition class at Gloucester High School.
Prior to the 2nd semester, the class was instructed to choose a theme and read books according to that theme. The theme could have been an author study, a character study, or a study that you've created. My group chose to do an author study on Italo Calvino and were recommended to read If on a winter's night a traveler.
My initial thoughts on Calvino before reading If on a winter's night a traveler were largely shaped by our summer reading assignment of Invisible Cities by Calvino. I really enjoyed that book and was looking forward to reading the story recommended to me and the other members of my group.
The thing that grabbed my attention the most in If on a winter's night a traveler, was that the structure of this story is obviously not traditional. This made me want to explore narratives and perspectives as a whole and led me to my thesis. Why do authors setup books and stories in the manner that they do? Why do authors choose to give the reader of the story the "eyeglasses or lens" from one character but not another?
There is a lot going on in books which is why I compare to it as a jungle. In my project, I hope to explore the differences under the large umbrella of narratives and perspectives through reading multiple books both of nonfiction and of fiction. Since I am a visual learner, I also hope to compare and contrast narratives through watching film.
I look forward to my expedition through the narrative jungle. Stay tuned.
Prior to the 2nd semester, the class was instructed to choose a theme and read books according to that theme. The theme could have been an author study, a character study, or a study that you've created. My group chose to do an author study on Italo Calvino and were recommended to read If on a winter's night a traveler.
My initial thoughts on Calvino before reading If on a winter's night a traveler were largely shaped by our summer reading assignment of Invisible Cities by Calvino. I really enjoyed that book and was looking forward to reading the story recommended to me and the other members of my group.
The thing that grabbed my attention the most in If on a winter's night a traveler, was that the structure of this story is obviously not traditional. This made me want to explore narratives and perspectives as a whole and led me to my thesis. Why do authors setup books and stories in the manner that they do? Why do authors choose to give the reader of the story the "eyeglasses or lens" from one character but not another?
There is a lot going on in books which is why I compare to it as a jungle. In my project, I hope to explore the differences under the large umbrella of narratives and perspectives through reading multiple books both of nonfiction and of fiction. Since I am a visual learner, I also hope to compare and contrast narratives through watching film.
I look forward to my expedition through the narrative jungle. Stay tuned.
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