Faulkners image of women
Faulkners image of womenThe Women of Yoknapatawpha County
Faulkner's intrinsic portrayal of his characters using his signature "stream of consciousness" style left much room for discussion on the true nature of his characters, however his portrayal of women was obviously that of despair as the female characters never transcended their lowly confinement. Caddy Compson was a victim of the disfunctional family, whose attempt to reject it landed her even worse off. Addie Bundren was also a victim, a victim of an indolent husband and the backwoods culture that Faulkner so heavily criticized. Temple Drake was the hapless victim of the kidnapping in Sanctuary; her inability to combat her fate reaffirms a woman's position in Yoknapatawpha. The pages of The Sound and The Fury, As I Lay Dying, and Sanctuary tell the tales of sorrow, struggle, and ultimately defeat for the three women.
Caddy's role is the veritable centerpiece of The Sound and the Fury, her destruction is symbolizes the destruction of the Compson Family. Despair marked her life. In an early age she assumed the responsibility of being a mother to Benjy. "She put the bottle down and came and put her arms around me. 'You mustn't cry. Caddy's not going away. See here.' She took up the bottle and took the stopper out and held it to my nose" (The Sound and the Fury 51). A caring maternal figure to Benjy, Caddy herself was confined in the chill of solitude. As she grows older, she saw the deranged complaints of her mother and the drunken cynical father. Caddy wanted to escape from this deranged family, escape from society, and most importantly herself. It was her own gentile heart that she was trying to disapprove of so that in an insane world she might seem more in control. Her sexual maturity was no more than a protest against the world that had done her wrong. She told Quentin that "when they touched me, I died" (The Sound and The Fury 58). Caddy's transformation caused the great disturbance in the world. Benjy was even further lost. Her growth and sexuality became Quentin's ultimate downfall. Jason was so furious about losing his job as a result of Caddy's pregnancy that he never over came and carries the rage on to Miss Quentin. Caddy represents the destruction of herself and the Compson Family. She is responsible for all the sound and the fury. Not only was she not able to escape from her despairs, she made everything worse. Through all the chaos Caddy emerged bruised and battered.
Addie Bundren escaped to Anse to find companionship in life; the word "love" that she found had no meaning. She had always seen herself as being completely alone in the world. Her own parents didn't love her and she had no one to call family. "So I took Anse. And when I knew that...
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