......... .lO.

.......... 11.

.......... .12.

......... -13.

......... .14.

......... -15.

......... .16.

.... . ..... 17.

......... -18.

. . . . . . . . . . 19.

Mr. Compson -has been taken to his bed, unable to cope with

t h e a v a l a n c h e o f c a l a m i t i e s w h i c h h a s o v e r w h e l m e d t h e

family.

Eighteen years of the invalid life make Mr. Compson a decided

l i a b i l i t y w h e n s h e r i s e s f r o m h e r b e d t o r e n d e r a f e e b l e

protest against the latest catast rdphe.

On June2, 1910 Quentin drowns himself in the Charles River

at Cambridge, and Caddy marries the banker Herbert Head.

It is only Quentin, among all the other members, that is

sent to study at Combridge as the the only one capable of

being educated and of retrieving the family respectability.

Quentin’s father had given him a watch formerly belonging

to the grandfather and with it the advice that no battle is

ever won, ever fought in fact, and that ‘victory is an illusion

of philosophers and fools.’

At present Quentin is in a state of complete frustration.

He has taken with him not only the watch and the advice,

but also a haunting sense of guilt about his sister Caddy.

Caddy had had an affair with Dalton Ames, and when she

told Benjy that she was going to have a child, in a frenzy

he attacked the muscular Ames, to his own utter defeat.

Having known the truth, the Compson family moved quickly

to secure a father for the child: a boy, and an advantageous

marriage had been successful.

A s e n s e o f f u t i l i t y a n d g u i l t , a k n o w l e d g e t h a t h e c o u l d

never realize the family ambitions, and grief over Caddy’s

approaching marriage were too much for him, Benjy there-

fore prepared to commit suicide.

Quentin, unlike Jason, is hard, practical, unscrupulous, mean-

spirited, and determined to win back the family reputation

at any cost.

1 3 8 EN 372 (HI

.......... 20.

......... .21.

. . . ...*... 22.

._._._.... 23.

____.__._. 24.

. ...*..... 25.

. . . . . . . . . . 26.

......... -27.

.......... 28.

.._._... ..29.

. . . . . . . . . . 30.

Quentin is an extrovert, trying to forget Benjy’s death and

to bury the past.

Fourteen years have elapsed since the death of Quentin and

the marriage of Caddy.. Jason’s character reveals itself in

the world bitch.

Herbert Head, upon the’ arrival too soon of Caddy’s baby,

nullified the promise for a post for Jason and turned Caddy

o u t .

Caddy disappeared from Jefferson, but sent money regularly

to the Compson for her daughter’s support.

The money, sent by Caddy, Jason has been secreting under

the floor in his room. Though he hates Miss Quentin, he

tries to salvage self-respect by making her go to school.

LVild and undisciplined, unloved by the Compsons, Miss Quen-

tin, now a girl in her teens, becomes enamored of a show-

man in a traveling company temporarily in Jefferson. Jason,

therefore, keeps her locked in her room.

On April 8, 1928, suspicious of Quentin breaking his window,

Jason rushes upstairs only to find Miss Quentin and her lover

gone.

Making a mad dash by car, Jason locates the show troupe,

but Miss Quentin and Benjy are not with it.

Jason, returning to Jefferson, a r r i v e s i n t i m e t o s e e t h e

f a m i l y c a r r i a g e d r i v e n b y L u s t e r c a r e e n i n g u p t h e s t r e e t

with Miss Quentin taking an airing in the back seat.

In a blind rage, Jason strikes the Negro-Luster and Miss

Quentin, and turns the horse towards home.

The Sound and the Fury is mainly concerned with the deterio-

ration of a family and of the American North.

E N 372 (HI 1 3 9*

. . . . . . . . . . 31. One basic fact concerning the novel that most of the inter-

pretations touch upon is that’ the novel dramatizes a deterio-

from the past to the present.

. .._._.... 32. A tragic sense of loss in the novel is so predominant and

pervasive in each section and in almost every scene that it

c a n b e c o n s i d e r e d t h e b a s i c t h e m e o f t h e n o v e l - a t h e m e

similar to that of T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land.”

. . . . . . . . . . 33. By and large, both T.S. Eliot and William Faulkner present

m o d e r n m a n a s a s e l f - c e n t e r e d b e i n g i n a s o c i e t y w h e r e

commerical values have replaced humanistic values.

. . . . . . . . . . 34. Besides, both T.S. Eliot and William Faulkner use the past

to reveal, by contrast, the sterility of the present.

. . . ..-.... 35. By juxtaposing the childhood of the Compson brothers with

their present existence, William Faulkner develops the theme

of deterioration and ioss.

. . . . . . . . . . 36. At one point, Quentin recalls that he asked his sister. Caddy

if the doctor had checked her for insanity. Caddy had said ~

she needed no assurance.

. . . . . . . . . . 37. Q u e n t i n t r i e s t o t a k e t h e l i t t l e g i r l h o m e , b u t h e c a n n o t

find her house; nor can she find it. He gives her a dollar

and kisses her before going away.

. . . . . . . . . . 38. Quentin turns and sees the little girl coming up the road.

He then recalls a promiscuity experience with a girl, Natalie,

of whom Caddy disapproved in spite of her own behavior.

. . . . . . . . . 39. The little girl continues to follow Quentin, who remembers

t h a t h e t r i e d t o p r o v o k e C a d d y t o m o r e j e a l o u s y a b o u t

Natalie; he kissed Caddy hard before setting her free.

. . ...*... 40. Quentin and the little girl watch the boys swimming naked.

H e r e m e m b e r s h i m s e l f a n d L o r r a i n e l y i n g i n t h e g r a s s ,

muddy, himself bleeding from her scratch.

1 4 0 EN 372 (H)

. . . .._.... 41. While watching the boys swimming, Quentin sees two men

and a boy running up to him. The younger strikes Quentin,

the elder man, a sheriff, arrests Quentin for kidnapping the

little girl.

.i . . . . . . . . 42.

. . . . . . . . . 43.

All of them go to town where they meet Mrs. Bland, Gerald,

Shreve, Spoade, and two girls.

Quentin is made to pay one dollar to the little girl’s brother

and six to the judge.

. . .._..... 44. While in Mrs. Bland’s car, Quentin remembers Caddy’s asking

him if he had ever had a sexual experience.

*......... 45. Q u e n t i n a l s o r e m e m b e r s t h a t h e t r i e d t o p e r s u a d e C a d d y

that it was really he who had slept with her all those times,

not the other m’en.

_... _ __... 46. Quentin asked Caddy if she loved him, but she violently re-

coiled from the idea.

. . . . .._... 47. Quentin recalls ,the episode in which Caddy had come home

after having been with a man; Benjy had moaned and tried

to push her into the bedroom.

. . . . . . . . . . 48. Caddy had run to the creek, where Quentin found her letting

the water flow over her breast.

. . . ..---.. 49. Quentin asked Caddy whether the man had forced her. “Yes.”

She hated him, but would do it again.

. . . . . . . . . 50. Quentin had lied about his own experiences, put a knife to

Caddy’s throat and suggested a suicide pact. She agreed,

so he murdered her.

. .._...... 51. Quentin remembers the day he met Dalton Ames, and threa-

tened him with death if he stayed in town.w.

. . . . . . . . . . 52. During the fight between Dalton Ames and Quentin, Ames

easily held Quentin, then brought out a pistol and carelessly

shot some bark floating on the water.

EN 372 (HI 1 4 1

. . . . . . . . . . 53. Quentin has a fight with Gorald Bland- who reminds him of

Ames-after asking Gerald if he has a sister.

. . .._..... 54. Gerald easily thrashes Quentin and Spoade and Shreve wipe

the blood off Quentin.

. . . . . . . . . . 55. Q u e n t i n h a r d l y (got a c h a n c e t o r e a l l y s t r i k e a b l o w a t

Gerald. ’

. . . . . . . :..56. Quentin’s day, June 2, 1911, is a record of defeats and humi-

liations.

. . . . . . . . . . 57. Quentin walks to the streetcar. Passing by the reiver, he

thinks how the reflections remind him of Caddy’s playing

in front of the mirror.

. ..* I . . . . . 58. Quentin goes to his room, hearing his watch tick, cleans off

his clothes, thinks agains of his mother, and burns all his

love letters with the cleaning fluid.

. . . . . . . . . . 59. A quarter of an hour to live, Quentin recalls his father’s

cynicism, remembering how he had admitted to his father

that the talk of murdur was a fantasy.

. . . . . . . . . 60. His father had said that Quentin would even forget that he

‘ h a d e v e r f e l t a n y a n g u i s h e d j e a l o u s y a n d a d v i s e d h i m t o

save his pennies for a vacation in Paris.

. . . . . . . . . 61. Quentin puts his clothes back on, opens his grip, brushes

his teeth and replaces the toothbrush. He uses Shreve’s

brush to clean his hat.

. . . . . . . . . . 62. Miss Quentin, who is about 17 years old, has been playing

hooky and running around with the traveling ‘show people.

. . . . ..__.. 63. With his mother’s reluctant approval, Jason leaves to discip-

line Quentin and goes so far as to take off his belt. Dilsey

stops him.

. . . . . . . . . 64. Jason receives a letter from Caddy, enclosing a check. Caddy

42 EN 372 (H)

. . . ..-...- 65.

. . .._.. . ..66.

. . . . . . . . . . 67.

. . .._..._. 68.

. . . . . . . . . . 69.

. . . . . . . . ..?O.

. .._ . . . . . 71.

_..._._... 72.

. . . .._.... 73.

. . . . . . . . . . 74.

a s k s t o b e toId t h a t h e r d a u g h t e r h a s r e c e i v e d t h e e x t r a

money and an Easter dress.

If she does not receive the information, Caddy will arrive

herself. She wants him to send a telegram.

Jason sends one telegram, saying all goes well. Later, he

spends all money in plantation.

Jason receives a letter from Lorraine, his wife in Memphis.

IHe b u r n s i t a f t e r w a r d s a n d r e m e m b e r s t h a t h e t o l d h e r

never to call him on the telephone.

There is also a letter to Quentin from Caddy and one from

Uncle Maury, who is asking for some food.

Jason remembers a past episode in which Caddy, having fur-

tively attended her mother’s funeral, asked him to let her

see her child.

To fulfill the purpose; Caddy paid Jason $300 for the pri-

viledge; he had showed the baby to Caddy as he drove by

q u i c k l y i n a c a r r i a g e , l i t e r a l l y h o l d i n g u p h i s e n d o f t h e

bargain.

Jason feels that he has gotten some revenge for losing the

job in Herbert Head’s bank by doing this to Caddy.

Caddy visits the store the next day. Jason insists she leave

town. When Jason returns home he knows Caddy has visited:

Benj,y is screaming and petting Caddy’s slipper.

If Caddy comes. again, Jason warns Dilsey, he will send Benjy

to the insane asylum and let the entire Jefferson household

fall apart.

For the last time, Caddy shows up, asking Jason to be good

to her daughter, Quentin. S h e p r o m i s e s t o i n c r e a s e t h e

amount of her monthly checks.

EN 372 (H) 143

.

. . . . . . . . . . 75. At the store, Jason reads Caddy’s letter to Quentin, who

had been sent $50 in it.

. . . . . . . . . . 76. As a result, Jason is angry because the money order is made

out to Quentin and he cannot cash it without endorsement,

whereas checks previously sent to his father involved no such

p r o b l e m .

..: . . . . . . . 77. i Benjy enters, asks for Caddy’s mail, takes the letter when

Jason waits on a customer, but immediately loses it to Jason

again.

. . . . . . . . . . 78. J a s o n g o e s t o t h e t e l e g r a p h o f f i c e f o r t h e s t o c k m a r k e t

reports, angrily upbraids the official for not letting him know

of the rising market, goes home, gives his mother’s Caddy’s

letter with a trumped-up check and sees her burn it.

. . . . . . . . . . 79. Jason goes to the bank to deposit Caddy’s check in hiss

Quentin’s account.

......... .80.

......... .81.

......... .82.

. . . . . . . . . . 83.

. . . . . . . . . . 84.

. . . . . . . . . . 85.

1 4 4 EN 372 (HI

Mrs. Compson believes that Jason is depositing his salary.

At work, Earl accuses Jason of cheating his own brother.

One afternoon, Jason sees Miss Quentin in town in ihe com-

pany of a man with a red tie. I

.At about the same time while seeing Miss Quentin, Jason

receives a message from the bank to tell him that his ac-

count is closed.

Quickly going home, Jason takes some money from his hiding-

place and drives back to town, meeting Miss Quentin and

the man driving in the opposite direction.

Jason turns, follows them, pauses, chases both Miss Quentin

and her lover on foot, hears their car start up, goes back

to his own car and finds every tire flat.

Jason arrives home late. At home Jason, instead of giving

pass to the shvw, drops the passes into the fire.

,

. . . . . . . . . . 86. Jason will not sit down to supper until the family has ar-

. rived. Both Mrs.. Compson and Jason must bow to Quentin’s

imperious demand.

. . . . . . . . . . 87. Dilsey is going to church. From her house she goes to the

main house where Mr. Maury asks for a hot water bottle.

Dilsey gets for him, starts breakfast, and sends Luster to

take care of Benjy.

. . . . . . . . . . 88. Benjy eats in the dining room while all the others use the

kitchen.

. . . . . . . . . . 89. Jason, complaining about the lost money, thinks Luster and

Benjy are responsible.

. . . . . . . . . . 90. Jason decides t’hat Miss Quentin must eat ‘alone, but Dilsey

objects.

. . . . . . . . . . 91. Jason, firm and determined, sends Dilsey up to get Miss

Quentin. There is no answer to Dilsey’s calling.

__.__.._.. 92. Jason, immediately suspicious, leaps up, runs to Miss Quentin’s

room, and attempts to break down the door.

_ . . . ..I... 93. Jason asks Dilsey for her keys; they are refused; he gets

the keys from Mrs. Compson, calling her an ‘old fool.’ The

room is empty and the bed unslept in.

. . . . . . . . . . 94. In a frenzy, Jason returns to his own room and finds that

he has been robbed.

.f_ . . . . . ..95. Jason calls the sheriff and goes directly to the official’s

home, asking him to leave immediately. The sheriff forces

Jason spell out the entire story and asks him for proof of

Quentin’s guilt.

_..__.__._ 96. G e t t i n g n o n e f r o m J a s o n , t h e s h e r i f f i n q u i r e s a b o u t t h e

puzzling presence ,of $3,000 in Jason’s horde, and finally

sends Jason away.

EN 372 (HI 1 4 5

.-*.... :..97. I n t h e h o u s e , L u s t e r t e l l s D i l s e y t h a t h e h a d s e e n M i s s

Quentin leave her room, not only the previous night but at

other times too.

. . .._..... 98. Dilsey goes to church with Luster, Frony, and Benjy. Frony

complains about Benjy’s presence in church; but Dilsey says

that God doesn’t care if Benjy is an idiot.

. . . . . . . . . . 99. Dilsey reacts with great sympathy to the sermon of a visi-

ting minister, who at first sight had seem unimpressive, and

leaves ‘the church w.ith tears in her eyes. She has, she

thinks, seen the beginning and ending.

..*....... 100. Jason, meanwhile has driven to the nearby town, hoping to

find the show and Quentin. Getting there, he asks a stranger

about Quentin’s whereabouts. Receiving n o a n s w e r , h e

accuses the man of holding back the truth and calls him a

liar.

146

.EN 372 (H)

.

PART THREE. Put a check mark (/) in front of the meaning (a, b,c,

or d) which best fits the numbered word or phrase accor-

ding to the story.

1 . They were hitting little, across the pasture. I went back along the

fence to where the flag was. It flapped on the bright grass and the

trees.

a) fluttered

b) created

c) motivated

d) d i ed

2. L.er’s go down to the branch and find that quarter before them niggers

f i n d i t .

a) urchins

b) Negroes

c) beggars

d) mischievous boys

3 . W a i t a m i n u t e . You sn,agged o n t h a t n a i l a g a i n . Can’t you never

crawl through here without snagging on that nail.

a) arresting

b) jumping

c) crouching

d) being caught

4. I know, I know. You must keep your strength up. I’ll m a k e y o u a

toddy.a) a drink mixed with hot water, sugar, and usually spices

b) taki la

c) w i n e

d) whisky

5 . She opened the gate and came in and stooped down. Caddy smelled

like leaves?

EN 372 (H) 1 4 7

a) part of a tree

b) fresh and pure

c) bent the body down

d) s e x y

6. Can’t you shut up that moaning and slobbering, Luster said. Ain’t you

shamed of yourself making all this racket.

a) anger

b) temptation

c) noisy confusion

d) nonsense

7. Do you want to get that damn loony to bawling in the middle of the

square. Drive on, T.P. .

a) dirty

b) lousy

c) impressive

d) crazy

8. Me. You reckon I be found anywhere with him, time he start bellering.

a) bellowing

b) talking

c) dozing

d) crying

9. He said he was going to tell on Caddy and Quentin, and then Quentin

and Caddy- began to splash water at Versh. He got behind a bush.

a) ordering

b) rebuking severely

c) corn manding

d) comforting

10. When Quentin came back Versh stopped and hollered that he was going

to tell. Caddy told him that if he wouldn’t tell, they’d let him come

bat k.

a ) haulted

b) crawled

1 4 8 EN 372 (HI

c) shouted

d) dismissed

11. Caddy was all wet and muddy behind, and I started to cry and she

came and squatted in the water.

a) swam

b) played

c) bathed

d) sat on the heels

12. Let him tell. I don’t give a cuss. Carry Maury up the hill, Versh.

a) curse

b) co in

c) cylinder

d) toy

13. He’ll make a wart on you. The frog hopped away.

a) scratch

b) small, hard growrh on the skin

c) hurt

d) d a m n

14. Quentin was coming slow. His shirt was a white blur.

a) print

b) impression

c) blot

d) d i r t

15. Don’t you come pestering at me boy. I got to get supper for all

them folks soon as you all get done eating.

a) teasing

b) quarreling

c) attacking

d) bothering

16. The calf was in the pig pen. It nuzzled at the wire, bawling.

a) rubbing with its nose

b) raising its tail

EN 372 (HI 1 4 9

c) pushing against with its thigh

d) lying down

17. Dont need no trance. Aint the sign of it laying right there on that

bed. Aint the sign of it been here for folks to see fifteen years now.

a) a condition of forgetfulness

b) a condition unable to predict its result

c) a condition of great mental concentration

d) a state of oblivion

18. Luster had some spools and he and Quentin fought and Quentin had

the spools.

a) toys

b) paper dolls

c) dollars

d) cylinciers

19. Maury says he’s going to shoot the scoundrel. I told him he’d better

not mention it to Patterson before hand.

a) villain

b) knave

c) ruffian

d) hooligan

20. If you begrudge Maury your fool, why aren’t you man enough to say

so to his face. To ridicule him before the children, behind his back.

a) showed dissatisfaction

b) showed pleasure

c) responded

d) collided

1 5 0 EN 372 (HI

21. I admire Maury. He is invaluable to my own sense of racial superio-

rity. I wouldn’t swap Maury for a matched team.

a) swoon

b) sympathize

c) t e a r

d) exchange by barter

2 . Of course. Bad health is the primary reason for all life. Created

by disease, within putrefaction, into decay. Versh.

a) chief

b) obligatory

c) past oral

d) sinister

3 . “All right.” Caddy said. She snuggled her head beside mine on the

pillow.

a) hung

b) n e s t l e d

c) pushed

d) collapsed

24. “Getting Quentin all riled up.” Dilsey said. “Why cant you keep him

away from her. Dont you know she dont like him where she at.”

a) tamed

b) wild

c) i r r i t a t e d

d) careful

25. How can I lie there, with him bawling down here. Benjamin. Hush

this minute.

a) talking

b) murmuring

c) dozing

d) weeping noisily

___-_____--__----------

EN 372 (HI 151

PART FOUR. Answer the following questions in good English.-.

1 . Describe one of the following characters in detail. Use information

in the book to support your answer.

Benjamin C a d d yQuent in Jason

2. What is the real reason that Mrs. Campson does not allow Caddy to

carry Benjy and to sleep with him? Explain.

152 EN 372 (H)

3. Quite often Benjy says that Caddy smells like trees. What does it

mean? Explain.

4. How does the clock have a great effect on Quentin’s life? And how

does he feel when he ask.ed the time from the jeweller?

E N 3 7 2 (HI 1 5 3

5. Why did Quentin tell his own’father that he had committed incest with

Caddy? Did his father believe him? Why?

6. What did Jason do with Caddy’s money? What happened to that money

at last?

1 5 4 EN 372 (H)

7. What happened to Quentin at the end of the story? Do you think it

justifiable? Explain.

8. Between Hester Prynne and Caddy, which one do you feel more sympa-

thetic? Explain.

,

EN 372 (H) 1 5 5

9. What happened to Miss Quentin at the end of the story? Do you

blame her for her behavior or do you agree on her action? Explain.

10. Why does Jason always nurse a grudge on Caddy? Explain. Do you

think he has a right to? why?

1 5 6 EN 372 (HI

11. Write a short essay on Fatulkner’s use of the stream-of-consciousness

technique in The Sound and the Fury.

12. Faulkner’s complexity does not bypass humor. Find examples of his

comic writing and his b.lwdiness in this novel. How do they relate

to the characters involved in the comic situations?

EN 372 (HI 1 5 7

. ,13. Write an eisay developing the differences in style between each section

of the novel. How do the differences tie in with the personality of

the main protagonist in the first three sections?

14. What is Faulkner’s attitude towards the Negro? Is it possible to

make any general statement? Prove your answer by referring to the

passages involved.

1 5 8 EN 372 (HI

15. Faulkner’s use of theme-words (water, watch, time...) are vividly

shown in the novel. Find two more such words and explain their

function in the relevant passages and sections.

16. “It i s . . . i n s u f f i c i e n t t o say...that F a u l k n e r i s a t r a d i t i o n a l m o r a l i s t

drawing his creative strength from the Southern myth; the truth is

that he writes in opposition to his tradition as well as in acceptance,

that he struggles with the Southern myth even as he acknowledges

and celebrates it.” Write an essay on this statement by Irving Howe.

EN 372 (H) 159

17. In which section of Tiie Sound and the Fury does Faulkner communicate

to the reader the greatest number of concrete and sensory impres-

sions? Is there any special reason for finding these impressions there?

18. In his Nobel Prize address, Faulkner said, “I believe that man will

n o t m e r e l y e n d u r e ; h e w i l l p r e v a i l . ” D o e s t h i s s t a t e m e n t s e e m

relevant to the themes of this novel? Discuss in detail.1

1 6 0 EN 372 (HI

19. “This organic quality of Faulkner’s style, sustaining through essentially

poetic devices an orchestration of meaning, makes it impossible to

judge him adequately by brief quotation.” (Warren Beck). Discuss

this statement, with special attention to the concept of “orchestration.”

20. What have you gained after having read this novel? Do you consider

Faulkner one of the greatest writers? Explain fully.

EN 372 (HI 161