What is wrong with Jason? Racism + the South - The Sound and the Fury Chapter 3 and 4 Analysis

[@TheCodeXCantina]

The Sound and The Fury In-Depth Playlist: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m5zTinych6ykgdk TABLE OF CONTENTS: 0:00 Introductions 2:39 Definitions 5:37 Traditions and Heritage 12:18 Racism and Control

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Thanks for watching!

[@user-cc4ks4ps7h]

I've just finished watching your series of videos about this book and it's been a journey! I've read this book for my literature class in uni and I struggled to put some of my insights in words, so thanks for such a detailed analysis. Also as a person from Russia, I didn't know enough of the historical background so all the information given was incredibly helpful to understand the context of the book and the motives of the characters better

[@Rajathon]

I see a lot of these points and they make a ton of sense. It was fun reading this with you guys.

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Anytime bud, looking forward to more future collabs!

[@HannahsBooks]

I am so pleased to see y’all approach Faulkner with such a clear focus history and cultural memory. Structural racism was still overwhelming in the New South, and understanding that is key to understanding Faulkner. Thanks. I just read Gorra’s The Saddest Words about Faulkner, history, and race-and it is fascinating-and very related to what y’all are talking about. (I still have not gotten my Faulkner videos up-but I hope I will eventually...)

[@TheCodeXCantina]

I wish I was as clear-headed as this comment makes me sound! Such an interesting era and concept. Wow, that's good to hear about the new book. If only I were smart enough to be an ARC reader too! :D

[@munnaf]

Thanks for these. Discovering Faulkner through these videos has been so fun. His themes are very relevant in today's climate. I enjoyed Dilsey's chapter a lot, as if it was a summary of the book. The sermon at the church was filled with so much symbolism and recalled much of the themes that Faulkner touched on throughout the book. Dilsey couldn't stop crying after the sermon. Almost as if she, like the reader, saw the Compson's and their symbolism in the sermon. At one point she holds Benjy's knee. Benjy too was described to be calmer at the church and starts bellowing again when returning home. And the preacher would keep referring to the congregation as brothers and sisters (similar to the main characters in the book), and kept repeating "the blood of the lamb". So much clarity after deciphering the first two chapters through your videos. Thanks for that. But I wonder why Faulkner made the preacher's appearance to be so deformed or "monkey-like"? What set off Benjy in the end when he starts bellowing?

[@TheCodeXCantina]

I was tempted to go into a religious breakdown specific video. I'll save that for a future endeavor. The descriptions are very deliberate. It reminded me a bit of Absalom, Absalom! where he spends more times on this side of things and he compares them to greek masks. They are meant to pull an emotion out of you and he talks a bit about sometimes the masks we are become who we are, or at least from a subjective experience. I think he explores this idea a bit more there but he likes to reuse motifs throughout his works. Same thing for the last part. He uses a last-character-standing lamenting or wailing at the end to almost signify the last line of individuals inheriting the world at the end, but not to be themselves so much as representatives of an entire subsection of society is my take on it. I've also read some scholars views of the glass bottles and the cemetery visit that made a lot of sense, but I unfortunately have forgotten what their breakdown of that was! It was brilliant if you can ever find that article.

[@munnaf]

@@TheCodeXCantina I think if readers follow along with your videos, they will be well equipped to tackle the religious symbolism themselves. Not covering the religious symbolism may have been a good call. It is a topic which may easier for most readers. You guys did a great job of outlining the previous chapters. By the time I reached the Dilsey's section the double meanings and hidden themes were much clearer to see. Haven't dug into Absalom, Absalom! yet (in the middle of Go Down, Moses at the moment). But looking forward to it! Not to mention that Barn Burning has gotten me interested in the Snopes trilogy. Keep up the great work!

[@rbrinks5]

Great job guys! Just finished this book for the first time. Very thankful for your videos which have helped me make sense of quite a bit.

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Our pleasure! Hope you enjoyed the book

[@BookishTexan]

"Water bottling Mrs. Compson" I think I'm going to start using that as a euphemism for stuff. Another brilliant video.

[@TheCodeXCantina]

I've been "water bottled" before. It was amazing.

[@lorn6294]

Enjoyed these discussions, thanks!

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Thanks for listening along!

[@Manfred-nj8vz]

About the ending of the novel and its possible meaning I suggest this video from 49:19 kzbin.info/www/bejne/ep3FfJ2pndlgZ7M. Here is what Professor Wai Chee Dimock says about the ending of 'The Sound and the Fury': «What went wrong initially with the ride is that Luster, for some reason, had forgotten that they’re supposed to go to the right of the monument. He makes Queenie go to the left, and so everything is going past Benjy in the wrong order. And because Benjy cannot stand anything happening in the wrong order, nothing will stop him from bellowing. So this is a very interesting reversal on Faulkner’s part. He has granted to Luster a lot of knowledge - he knows Quentin very well - but for some reason, he doesn’t know Benjy as well as he should on this one occasion. It takes Jason to demonstrate his knowledge of his own brother, Benjy. He doesn’t love Benjy, but he knows Benjy very well. He knows that it would have to be to the right of the monument, and he’s able to correct that mistake. So after all we’ve seen - Jason’s terrible problems with the automobile - at the very end of 'The Sound and the Fury', Faulkner is able to resurrect Jason into a much happier fate. The automobile is gone. It’s back to the world of horses and carriages, a 19th-century world still lingering on and to some extent accommodating Jason even in the 20th century. It’s not a pretty sight. It’s not a non-violent world. Jason is still hitting Luster. He’s breaking Ben’s flower. So none of the obnoxious things about Jason have gone away. He hasn’t turned into a sweet person. He’s still a monster. But while he remains a monster, Faulkner has made his world one that he can live in and that he can be a hero of sorts in this very one brief moment. He can be the person who comes to the rescue and set everything back onto the right track, literally. So this is a way in which the very ending of 'The Sound and the Fury' is in fact an Easter Sunday story about resurrection.»

[@jayarrington240]

I love Faulkner's drunken genius, everything is so painfully discombobulated, like life.

[@TheCodeXCantina]

😂 very true

[@Ferrari1504]

Some of the best characters in all of literature for me. Great video. This novel demands another reading, you guys discussed some great points that i haven't considered two reads in. What significance does the fourth section have to you given it occurs on easter sunday? Krypto's historical context is as usual on point and illuminates a deeper layer to the book that i had never considered. Last questions: are there good pieces of literary criticism on faulkner that you two would recommend? Would you do a video on some helpful and unhelpful faulkner criticism? Also for some reason the last 2 the sound and the fury videos haven't appeared in your uploaded videos on my phone. Idk whats up with it.

[@TheCodeXCantina]

The dates really align well with a religious analysis. Christ’s passion dates line up with all of them in regards to crucifixion. We didn’t do a religious breakdown this round but may next time we return to the book. There are quite a few books I’d recommend. I think I list a few in the Before you Read Go Down, Moses video. I didn’t do a good job with calling out reads on this book. As for the last two videos, they aren’t public yet. They’ll send out a notification when they are launched. I need to do a few more things and then I’ll launch them!

[@Starscreamlive]

If you want literary criticism on Faulkner and have access to an electronic scholarly database, start by searching Cleanth Brooks, Noel Polk, Robert Penn Warren, and Harold Bloom. All four have written numerous critical pieces on Faulkner.

[@Manfred-nj8vz]

About the ending of the novel and its possible meaning I suggest this video from 49:19 kzbin.info/www/bejne/ep3FfJ2pndlgZ7M. Here is what Professor Wai Chee Dimock says about the ending of 'The Sound and the Fury': «What went wrong initially with the ride is that Luster, for some reason, had forgotten that they’re supposed to go to the right of the monument. He makes Queenie go to the left, and so everything is going past Benjy in the wrong order. And because Benjy cannot stand anything happening in the wrong order, nothing will stop him from bellowing. So this is a very interesting reversal on Faulkner’s part. He has granted to Luster a lot of knowledge - he knows Quentin very well - but for some reason, he doesn’t know Benjy as well as he should on this one occasion. It takes Jason to demonstrate his knowledge of his own brother, Benjy. He doesn’t love Benjy, but he knows Benjy very well. He knows that it would have to be to the right of the monument, and he’s able to correct that mistake. So after all we’ve seen - Jason’s terrible problems with the automobile - at the very end of 'The Sound and the Fury', Faulkner is able to resurrect Jason into a much happier fate. The automobile is gone. It’s back to the world of horses and carriages, a 19th-century world still lingering on and to some extent accommodating Jason even in the 20th century. It’s not a pretty sight. It’s not a non-violent world. Jason is still hitting Luster. He’s breaking Ben’s flower. So none of the obnoxious things about Jason have gone away. He hasn’t turned into a sweet person. He’s still a monster. But while he remains a monster, Faulkner has made his world one that he can live in and that he can be a hero of sorts in this very one brief moment. He can be the person who comes to the rescue and set everything back onto the right track, literally. So this is a way in which the very ending of 'The Sound and the Fury' is in fact an Easter Sunday story about resurrection.»

[@hesterdunlop7948]

Thanks so much . I've loved reading TSATF with everyone . I think Old South Vs New South is the main theme of the book . How would it differ if it was written today ? I think Dilsey and her family would be given voices and I' d love to hear them !

[@TheCodeXCantina]

I think he tries in some of his later novels and struggles a bit imo. So happy to have shared reading this with you. So glad you enjoyed it!

[@TheNerdyNarrative]

It's so interesting how these old authors incorporated things of the times in the actions and thoughts of their characters. There's a certain beauty to it that I don't see in our books of today.

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Or do we just not see the things that are specific to this era that maybe future generations will see?

[@TheNerdyNarrative]

@@TheCodeXCantina .....I think you just called me old..... Hmmm. We need to research this theory, I think it'd be interesting to know.

[@montanagal6958]

Literally grew up in the South, went to high school with a guy who wore the Confederate Uniform protesting how we won the war! The old south still lives today despite being stripped of funds.

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Wow! Thanks for sharing

[@swasserberger1]

This book about neither racism nor power, nor gender. It is about the role the past should have in our lives. Something bad has happened in the Compson family (i.e. to Caddy). Instead of just telling us what happened, Faulkner shows its effect on her brothers. Quentin is so mired in the past that he can’t escape it. Jason is so cut off from his past that he’s barely human. And Benji is so disabled he can not even differentiate between past and present. That’s why time shifts in his narrative; Faulkner is expressing the raw emotion without any ability to understand or intellectualize it. They are not “obsessed” with Caddy. They just love their sister and are traumatized. One could extrapolate from all this a message about how America should and should not deal with its slave-owning past, but we shouldn’t start with fashionable assumptions that the book must be about race or gender. That just diminishes the greatness and universality of this book.

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Thanks for sharing

[@kevinkeller8519]

Agreed. Much of the old south new south and racism/feminism analysis is awkwardly forced. It’s primarily about time, absurdism, and character study. The setting is certainly a racist old south, emerging. But it’s about the reader, YOU. Your struggles. Identifying with the inner grumbling and asshole voices in your own head, same as Holden Caulfield. That’s what makes it universal. It’s not about hating on the character-though you may. That this one is racist or that one puts on a pedestal too much the virtue of womenhood, or man’s role of being the earner/keeper, although all of that is certainly enlightening and interesting, and a study of time and place and setting. It’s too easy to sit back and judge and feel superior to them. It’s about time over and over. How it passes, an illusion, how to abide. Ask not for whom the bell tolls…

[@tipurajput2994]

Some key points you show on slide

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Thanks for the feedback

[@QuestLegacy]

Just here for the education. I have no quips to add

[@TheCodeXCantina]

👍

[@windsofmarchjourneyperrytr2823]

FL Wright, please see the Johnson Wax building. It leaked. Badly. Very arrogant man. They actually had 5 gallon buckets on their desks.

[@tipurajput2994]

Whatever you say in lecture you should show on ppt slide

[@TheCodeXCantina]

I'll see what I can do for the future Faulkner books

[@Ozgipsy]

Slavery itself was a total non-crime in the global context. It’s the segregation that scars Americas soul.

[@bighardbooks770]

1:55 _Sooooooo_ the main character is ...: *Benjy???*

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Who could hate Benjy?

[@bighardbooks770]

@@TheCodeXCantina ill be back to this 😍😉😋

[@windsofmarchjourneyperrytr2823]

I like your videos, however. I'd like to see a perspective of the themes from people who were old enough to have lived it, maybe during segregation? And extreme sexism. I know men who will tell women, "oh, it's not that bad" and they don't live it and never have. Which isn't much different from the original sexism, rather than trying to relate and understand. I mean, even a female today isn't going to fully comprehend being a woman earlier on. You can get to be an adult, and not know it's still pretty much no big deal to beat up your wife or girlfriend. It wasn't even illegal in many ststes until fairly recently. You "couldn't" rape your wife/girlfriend. That a husband could sign for a 2nd mortgage against his partner's wishes. That she couldn't have a house, or credit card or even a bank account (not sure about that last one) in her name alone. So, you could get a divorce. But you'd have major, major problems. In fact, the Catholics were running unwed mother's homes well into the 1980s (Saw it firsthand). Today, most young people I know got pregnant first. I'm curious why people think Caddy was a ho.

[@Starscreamlive]

Here we definitely see the sins of the father passed down to future generations. The once high and mighty Compson line has come to an end with three completely useless males. Benjy has no way to contribute to society, and Jason is too much of a failure and an @$$hole to make any contribution. The only one who had any potential was Quentin, but he was so obsessed with his own thoughts and philosophy that he became utterly useless too. Off topic thought/question: I wonder if Jason was based at least somewhat off of William Faulkner's father, who was known to be an @$$hole to a lot of people (it seems most of the male Faulkners/Falkners shared this trait) and a failure at numerous business ventures.

[@TheCodeXCantina]

Maud made a claim that it was. But Phil Stone complained he knew someone that was just like Jason too. I think we know more people like Jason than we think in this world...