That Evening Sun, a Review

620 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Evolution of gender roles throughout literature books

William Faulkner is often considered to be the greatest writer in the America history. His fame rests largely on his novels, especially for his closely examination of the southern culture. "That evening sun" is a good example of it. The story opens as a reminiscence of Jefferson. Quentin Compson, one of Faulkner's most memorable characters, narrates the story. Then, the time is approximately the turn of the century. The main character Nancy, a black washerwoman who takes in laundry from white people, is firstly introduced here. The narrator mentions her husband, Jesus, who looks like scared. Because Dilsey was sick, Nancy had to cook for Mr.Campson, Mrs. Campson and their children, Quentin, Caddy and Jason. One day, Nancy was drunk and she asked for her payment from thee . Although, he hadn't paid her for a long time, he beat her without pity and forced her get into the jail .After that, Nancy was impregnated with a white man's child. Because of that, Jesus left her. Nancy always felt that Jesus must be back to murder her. She feared greatly. She was afraid of returning home alone, but Mrs. Campson didn't want a black person live with them. Also, she was very sensitive about each little movement. Sometimes even nearly became crazy for fear, but the officers can do nothing for her. She bagged the accompany of people, and tried various methods to achieve the purpose: telling interesting story to the children, making popcorn, though she was not concentrate on it, as the voice didn't belong to her. Facing that, Caddy, the middle children of Campson, liked Nancy and even could sense her fear; however, she was too young to understand what is frightening Nancy. Compared with her, Jason, as the youngest, was much more childish. He ... ... middle of paper ... ...he cannot help shaking and making the sound. To her, the actions like the way which can help her to pour out little nervous and less the rapid rate of her heart. In this case, any physical injure or pain was nothing. But in the contrast, these southerners were merely indifference to the crippling fears of one of their black employees. Even though the three children tried to do some favor for her, they couldn't fully understand what she was experiencing and how to help her to reduce the pain. At the end of story, all the people left Nancy. Only she was alone in the cabin and murmured, "I just a nigger. It ain't a fault of mine." The whole story is just like the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" which is also base on the blue culture. Finally, the misunderstood black man died. After the evening sun, I don't know what Nancy' density is. I hope she can be otherwise.

Show More
Related

  • race and motherhood

    720 Words  | 2 Pages

    Faulkner’s language depicts the inherent discrepancies in the value placed on the roles of Caroline and Dilsey. The formal tone of the narrators in addressing Caroline as “Mrs. Compson or mother infers her social stature. In contrast, Dilsey, is referred to as mammy or by her first name. Informally, mammy means mother. However, in the south, its connotation is the derogatory, racially prejudiced definition of a black woman working as a servant for a white family, nurturing the family’s children. When addressing Dilsey, Caroline often “called, without inflection or emphasis or haste, as though she were not listening for a reply at all” (267). Caroline’s sense of entitlement is evident in her expectation that Dilsey would respond immediately. Similarly, any need or desire in the Compson house appears to be Dilsey’s responsibility. Caroline follows Jason up to the stairs, calling his name, but “then she saw Dilsey and she quit calling him and began to call Dilsey instead” (280). Calling her name shifts the obligation from Caroline to Dilsey thereby making her a scapegoat for the family’s problems. (the scapegoat seems like a stretch for this example).

    Read More

  • Characters in Sarny, A Life Remembered

    1306 Words  | 3 Pages

    The characters in this story are some very interesting people. They each lead their own way of life, and have their own interests at heart. Some of the main characters in this novel are: Sarny, Lucy, Miss Laura, Bartlett, Stanley, and Sarny's two children Little Delie, and Tyler. Sarny is the central character in this book. She is clever and knows exactly what to even in the worst of times. She is very emotional though, and can break down and cry when the slightest of things happens. This is perhaps from what she has experienced as a slave earlier on in her life. Sarny is fond of teaching people, as a friend named Nightjohn once taught her. Lucy is Sarny's close friend. She is also quite wise, but is a bit too optimistic at times. She never stops smiling and is very friendly. However, she does help Sarny find her lost children. Miss Laura is a middle-aged woman who lives a very luxurious life. She gives Sarny and Lucy a place to live and offers them employment. She also finds Sarny's children for her. Bartlett works for Miss Laura as well. He is a quiet and patient man who is helpful and quite kind. He was however castrated as a young slave boy, and cannot have children. Stanley is Sarny's second husband, for her first died from being worked to death on the plantation. Stanley is a gentle, big, fun-loving man, but is not intimidated by anything. This leads him to his death when he gets mad at a white man, and is confronted by the Ku Klux Klan. Little Delie and Tyler are Sarny's lost children. After she recovers them, and they grow up, Little Delie starts to like business, while Tyler wants to become a doctor.

    Read More

  • Writers of the 1920's

    483 Words  | 1 Pages

    The 1920's had many influential writers in literature. While reaching this time period it is almost certain that the names William Faulkner, Earnest Hemingway, and F. Scott Fitzgerald will be found. Each of the writers has their own personal style of writing and each one of the lives has influenced what they write about to even the way they each portray their literature.

    Read More

  • Barn Burning

    972 Words  | 2 Pages

    Faulkner opens the story, “Barn Burning” in a southern courthouse room of the during the Civil War reconstruction era, also a time of social, cultural, and economic instability. At this point in the story the main characters, Abner (Ab) and his son, Colonel Sartoris Snopes (Sarty) are introduced. Ab is on trial for the malicious burning of a barn that was owned by a wealthy local farmer.

    Read More

  • The Importance of Family Tradition in the Film, William Faulkner: A Life on Paper

    512 Words  | 2 Pages

    William Faulkner’s life was defined by his inability to conduct himself as a true Southern gentleman. He never achieved affluence, strength, chivalry or honor. Therefore, the myth of Southern masculinity eluded him. Faulkner shied away from violence, he never proved himself in battle. He was not a hard worker, nor was he an excellent family man. Seemingly worst of all, he did not follow in the footsteps of his father and the “Old Colonel.” The code of Southern gentility highly praises family tradition. As a born and bred Southerner I can attest to this fact. Every man in my family for ten generations has been a plumber. It is the utmost honor for a man to follow his father’s example. Faulkner, unfortunately, was incapable of really living like his father. Therefore, I believe Faulkner’s collective failures are rooted in the fact that he could not live up to the standards set by the men in his family.

    Read More

  • Kindred

    397 Words  | 1 Pages

    Meanwhile, you can hear the noise of the whip clutching against the back of Alice’s father. He forces himself to stay quiet under this unbelievable pain and humiliation in front of his family. His face shows the pain and he is sweating but still no sound, until he breaks down and starts to beg for forgiveness. After a while, the white man who happens to be a patroller stops whipping him and with the help of the other patrollers he unties him from the tree and turns him around and ties his hands in front of him.

    Read More

  • Commentary of Sun and Shadow by Ray Bradbury

    1049 Words  | 3 Pages

    As members of a first-world nation, we are disrespectfully quick to point out the flaws and downfalls of impecunious societies and use the societies like mere scenery, even though we walk together on this earth. In “Sun and Shadow," Ray Bradbury manipulates Ricardo to convey to the reader the impertinence from outsiders and the responses from Ricardo and his fellow townspeople. A photographer is encountered doing a photo shoot on Ricardo’s property, and Ricardo becomes unhappy with his presence and angrily tells him to leave. After Ricardo’s increasingly sharp comments and attitudes augment, the photographer becomes satirical and facetious, poking fun at the lifestyle in which Ricardo lives. The short-tempered townsman reveals his defiance through actions projected towards the photographer. Through the use of characterization, Bradbury defines the fine societal line between Ricardo, the penurious dweller of the village, the inconsiderate photographer, and the sympathetic townspeople.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Sunshine By Lynn Freed

    1071 Words  | 3 Pages

    Violent acts in literature function as more than just physical action in that they often tell the audience something. For example, the motives and desires of the perpetrator are generally revealed during the fight. Truly great works use these violent acts to indicate a theme. One such example is “Sunshine” by Lynn Freed. In this short story, Julian de Jong, a man whose wealth allows him to evade punishment for raping children, finds a young girl in a pile of leaves. This man tames the girl with the help of his maids and earns her trust only to force himself on her at the end. De Jong and the child fight with the girl emerging as the victor. In this crucial scene, it is shown that Freed wishes to criticize the villagers’ morality in allowing

    Read More

  • Symbolism in James Baldwin's Sonny's Blues

    1244 Words  | 3 Pages

    At several points in the story, Baldwin emphasizes the quickness at which Harlem residents fall to the pull of evil. The children of Harlem are de...

    Read More

  • Free Color Purple Essays: It Was the Worst of Times

    613 Words  | 2 Pages

    This novel was set in the early 1900’s.  During this time, the black people were oppressed by white people.  They were abused and taken advantage of.  Not only were the black people were oppressed but also women were oppressed.  They had little freedom and were unable to be self-sufficient.

    Read More

  • The Royal Hunt Of The Sun: The Conquest Of Peru By Spain

    837 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Royal Hunt of the Sun The Royal Hunt of the Sun is a story mainly based on the conquest of Peru by Spain. Along the way it explores many different sub-themes and ideas. Questions are raised about faith, friendship, leadership, greed and two distinctively different ways of life.

    Read More

  • Book Review Of Half Of A Yellow Sun

    1928 Words  | 4 Pages

    Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s novel Half of a Yellow Sun explores the events that occur prior and during the Nigerian Civil War (Biafran War). In addition, the novel is directed to those of us outside of Nigeria that are unaware of how immensely the war has impacted its people. The author tells the story ingeniously, engaging the reader to the perspectives of the characters and their own specific plot, which is quite intriguing on its own. Moreover, she gently touches on the dark reality of the Biafran War in such a way that it educates the reader, but does not change the feel of the narrative. The impact of the war on her parents served as deep motivation for Adichie to bring forth this type of storytelling (cite this). Her perspective on the effect of the postcolonial identity of Nigeria, which leads into the war, is clearly reflected in one of the protagonists of the novel, Olanna. The trauma endured by her parents and family has led her to construct

    Read More

  • The Sun in The Stranger by Albert Camus

    803 Words  | 2 Pages

    From page fifty-eight to fifty-seven of Albert Camus’s The Stranger he uses the relentless Algerian sun as a motif for the awareness of reality that pursues the main character, Meursault, throughout the passage. When each motif appears in the novel such as this passage, Meursault’s actions change. This exemplifies that the light, heat, and sun trigger him to become debilitated or furious. Albert Camus sets up this motif in the passage to indicate to the reader that this motif shows the major themes of this novel. This motif shows Meursault’s emotion, how the imagery of weaponry affects Meursault’s actions, how the sun is a representation of society, and how the sun weakens Meursault.

    Read More

  • That Evening Sun

    2087 Words  | 5 Pages

    In That Evening Sun, William Faulkner approaches the story through an anecdotal style that gives meaning to the story. The narrator uses the anecdote that happened to him to convey the story’s underlying meaning that people are restricted by social class and race, not realizing this meaning himself at the time. The era of racism pertains to the meaning of the story, discussing the aversion of southern white people to help those different from them, focusing on the restrictions that society has placed on social class and race separation and the desire to maintain the division.

    Read More

  • “The Sun Rising” Analysis

    1276 Words  | 3 Pages

    “The Sun Rising” by John Donne is an aubade all about two lovers getting woken up by the sun when all they want to do is lay in bed all day. The entire poem is the speaker, presumably Donne himself, is talking to the sun and telling him to go away. This poem is broken into three stanzas with a rhyme scheme of ABBACDCDEE. Each of those stanzas represents what Donne is telling the sun to do, which is, to go away, I am stronger than you, and that he and his lover are the center of the world. He uses diction all throughout the poem to emphasize that the sun is not welcome in waking him and is lover and throughout all three stanzas to make his three points and to give the overall points of the poem. There are many metaphors used all through the poem and one overall metaphor.

    Read More

More about That Evening Sun, a Review

Open Document