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Summary: The greatest novel
Review: This isn't just Faulkner's best work or the best novel in American letters. This is the greatest novel ever written in any century or place
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Summary: COFFIN BOOK
Review: Is it possible that there is a better book than this? I have just requested in my will to be buried with two novels on either side of my body to carry with me into eternity..."The Sound and the Fury" and "East of Eden". But why are you wasting your time reading my opinion, go get the book!
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Summary: Greatness in a cover
Review: "The Sound and the Fury" is one of the most satisfying novels I have ever read and by far Faulkner's greatest achievement. William Faulkner has always claimed that the book was a simple story mainly about Caddy. This may strike as somewhat odd since she has no designated chapter for her narration. Without having a chapter of her own to share her own thoughts, the author has used the opinions and thoughts of the other characters, her brothers Benjy, Quentin, and Jason, to reveal her personality and integrity to the reader. With Benjy's section coming first in the book and his objective nature, we see first hand that Caddy is a good person at heart, for she is the only family member who shows compassion toward Benjy in their youths and she is who Benjy cries for later on in their lives. Quentin is solely obsessed with Caddy and her loss of innocence. He dreads the day when the memory of her sins no longer impact his life. For, to Quentin, when the past is meaningless, so is life, and in the end he commits suicide. Through Jason's treatment of Caddy, the reader sees how self-centered and childish Jason really is. He is the only Compson child who recieves love from their mother, but is the only one who does not need it. Caddy's promiscuity is simply a rebellious act against the loveless parents that she had growing up. Dilsey seems to be the only bit of glue holding the family together, but even she can't keep the family in the order it needs. She says she's seen the beginning and she's seen the end, signifying the family's final tragic crumble. This novel is a beautiful portrayal of the Compson family and their tragic fall. It shows what family life needs to survive and what happens when those elements are not present. A MUST READ!
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Summary: Disappointingly Obtuse
Review: This was my third Faulkner read...following Sancuary and Light in August. I must say that I don't see why this book gets the praise it gets. The first quarter is told from the point of view of a retarded (mentally deficient?) brother in the family....and it is therefore completely unintelligible. The second quarter is from an almost equally mentally disturbed brother in the same family....and it is just barely understandable. The third part starts to explain some of what happened in the first two parts...along with furthering the story of the family's downfall. Actually the third part is pretty good....it might almost be worth it to skip to it and forget the first two....then go back and read them. Now that I think of it that would actually be the best thing to do. Read the last two sections first, then go back and read the first two sections. The fourth section completes the story from the point of view of the black servant. Now the tale is that Faulkner wanted to tell the story of a little girl with dirty underwear who climbed a tree to see inside her house. He tried it one way and it didn't work so he kept on trying. This book has been given high praise for it's use of the stream of consciousness type of writing. For my part I think it is just needlessly difficult....I guess some people like that sort of thing but as far as good writing I don't think it is. It's a literary gimick and just because you use it doesn't make you a great writer. Faulkner is great for so many other works but not this one. Read it at your own risk....and keep lots of cigarettes close at hand. As far as WF goes I plan to read the Snopes trilogy next.....and fully expect to enjoy it. And maybe one day i'll re-read the first two sections of fury....one day when i am old, feable, and really have nothing else to do.
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Summary: Don't be dissuaded by readers who don't get it
Review: Yes, this book is difficult. Yes, you should read it more than once. But don't let the readers who weren't willing to invest the time in it keep you from reading it. Some have dismissed this novel as inaccessible, but there is much in this novel to reward the serious reader. It's not hype. Faulkner introduces in this book a groundbreaking, complex narrative style, and this book influenced many later American writers. I was amazed at the genius of the construction. That alone makes the book worth reading. It's a work of art. But it's not for everyone -- if you don't enjoy mentally challenging books, it's not for you. But if you're like me, and you like books that challenge you, and you like seeing writers experiment with language and structure, this is a satisfying read.
Rating: 
Summary: Sounds like fury to me . . .
Review: I frequently found myself in awe of Faulkner's immense skill as a writer, that he can create something like this. THE SOUND AND THE FURY is divided into four parts, each of which consist of different narrators. The first part is told by, Benjy, a mentally retarded 33 year old. His tale best exemplifies Faulkner's title as his narrative is simply a whole lot of sound and a whole lot of fury. The way Faulkner incorporates Shakespeare's quote from Hamlet into this novel is brilliant. The quote speaks of a "tale told by an idiot", which is exactly how the story begins. But there's really too much to go into-you simply have to read this great novel. I was at times reminded of McCrae with his brilliant bringing together of ideas-they way he did in his BARK OF THE DOGWOOD (a book that owes much to Faulkner.) But SOUND/FURY goes much deeper and will probably remain one of the major classics of the past century. Also recommended: McCrae's CHILDREN'S CORNER
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Summary: I Will Let Others...
Review: ...explain the plot, the characters, wax philosophical, etc. I just want to say this: if you have any inclination towards the "literary" form of fiction, as opposed to those fictions that you simply read as an absorbing entertainment to kill time between work and social engagements, please give this one a go.
Yes, it is difficult; but with a little help from your friends here at Amazon (the reviewers) you have plenty of information with which to help you develop a solid foundation for enjoying this story. But be wary: too much information can ruin the enjoyment of discovery to be found here. Only record the information that is necessary for you to expedite your journey into this wonderful world - splay your fingers across your eyes like you used to at Halloween slumber parties with rented horror flicks when you conduct your research.
Those who have suggested that "The Sound and the Fury" is an amazing exercise in style with very little substance are only half right, though everyone is entitled to their opinion. Still, I would say to them: sometimes you hike for hours only to be underwhelmed by the view from your ultimate destination - but the joy of the hike was worth it. By my experience, this book is a revelation both in a technical sense AND in a literary sense. I was held at rapt attention for the extent to which I had to discern the structure of the novel in my brain, all the while feeling the humanity of its characters in my heart.
In my mind, a novel you will either love or hate; no middle ground to be had. And to those that actually did find it mediocre, I would have to say "you are a better man than I."
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Summary: Put forth the effort! This is the greatest book of all time
Review: Every once in a while a novel comes along that stretches you mind. Rarely one comes along that blows your mind away. That is precisely what Faulkner has done in The Sound and the Fury. He blows us away in every single aspect. Never have I read a novel that was so scrutiny put together, every intricate piece of this jigsaw puzzle has been perfectly chiseled, polished, and placed into absolute perfection. It is the most inventive, deep, well thought out novel I have ever read. Faulkner doesn't settle for easy reading here either. This is the also the most complicated novel I have ever read, but it took true genius to make it that way. Faulkner is a master architect of words, images, sounds, and feelings all rolled into one colossal masterpiece. I would suggest getting the Cliff Notes before you proceed, or you will be frustrated and might even throw up your hands in frustration and quit. DON'T QUIT. The brilliancy in this book is that you actually have to think, analyze, and dig in deeper and closer. In this modern age of cheap reading, it is rare to find a book that can challenge and move a reader as profoundly as this novel can. There are layers and layers of hidden symbols, messages, styles, and emotions that you cannot get by reading it the first time.
I will break down the plot as simply as possible, although it is hard to do it justice. I will do the best I can. The focal theme of the story revolves around the fall of the Compsons, which is a prominent family in the south. The Compson family is an overall symbol of the South during the 1920's. The story is told through the point of view of four different characters which make up the four chapters in the book. The book focuses on Caddy, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Compson, and how her actions affect the entire family in one way or another. Caddy is strong willed and rejects everything the Compsons stand for and eventually begins to lead a sexually promiscuous lifestyle. Ultimately, she is banished from her own household due to the actions she has committed. Although she is perhaps the most important element in the story, there is a lot more going on and a lot more issues here than what lies on the surface.
The first chapter is the most brilliant and possibly most confusing chapter of the whole book. It is told by Benjy, who is Caddy's mentally challenged brother. This chapter takes place during one day, the day before Easter (Saturday), 1928. During this day Benjy, who is now 33, is playing with Luster, the grandson of the main slave in charge of the Compson's household. As Benjy's and Luster are playing, different objects he encounters, whether it be a golf ball, a fence, or whatever, will remind him of a past event. We are thrown about inside Benjy's mind. He has no concept of time. As a result, the reader is going to experience over 100 time changes, from one year back to another and so on. There is never an indication of when the time is going to shift, and this will cause great confusion to most readers. You must reread the section to understand what is going on. This section serves as an underlying symbol for the rest of the book. Pay attention to descriptions, repeated words that will later serve as symbols of greater meaning later on. (Most especially the branch scene) Benjy never comments on anything going on around him, he senses, rather than thinks. This section will serve as a framework for the rest of the novel, and should be referred to often in the course of reading your reading.
The second section is told by Quentin, the second of Caddy's brothers. This section is told entirely in the "stream of conscious" technique, which was invented by James Joyce, but is perfected here by Faulkner. He attempts to put on to paper exactly how one might think. As a result, this section is equally confusing in a different sort of way. Random thoughts are jumbled incoherently together to form his character through his thinking. Read this section imagining these are ones thoughts rather that a story. This section takes place in 1910, the day in which a tragedy will happen to Quentin. Pay close attention to the concepts of shadows and time. During this section, Quentin's thoughts are focused on his messed up family. His thoughts mainly focus on his obsession and jealousy of his sister Caddy, and the uncaring attitude of his father.
The third section is told by Jason, Caddy's third and final brother. It takes place the day before Benjy's section, which is the Friday before Easter, 1928. This section is easy to understand, and it is crucial to understanding two earlier, complicated, symbolic chapters. This chapter is not rich in symbols as the other two, but is told in a straight forward manner for a reason. Jason's mind is simple and mean. He cares for no one but himself. He is by far the most evil character in the story. Ironically, he is the only one the mother of the Compson's likes. Notice how he never says a nice thing through the whole chapter. We also come to the realization that they way the parents have treated their children have directly effected how they all have turned out. Also, pay close attention to Quentin, Caddy's daughter. She is now being raised by the Compson's, and is not allowed to see her mom. Ironically, she turns out just like her mom.
The fourth and final section is told in narrative form by Faulkner. It takes place on Easter Sunday, 1928. The main character of this section is Dilsey. Dilsey is the main slave, and the only one that can restore any order to the disorder found in the Compson family. She is the one bright spot amid the darkness. This section serves as an unbiased view of how things really are, and it gives no easy answers or solutions. This section simply and honestly tells us things the way they are.
I again strongly suggest you buy the Cliff notes or the novel will become overwhelming.
The characters in The Sound and the Fury are among the most complex in all of literature. The story is so honest, unflinching, and unsentimental that it outlines perfectly the horrors in life. You could read this book a hundred times and get something new out of it with each read. Faulkner intended all the symbolism that occurs in this novel which makes it even more breathtaking. The shifting from one style to the next in each of the four chapters would make this book a masterpiece. Faulkner does not stop there, however; he goes on to create the deepest novels ever written. I could write an entire novel just about this novel. If you don't like it, you haven't put forth the effort to understand it. Anyone who puts forth the effort will be rewarded. I have read a lot of books in my lifetime, many classics as well. Yet, I have never found one quite like this. It could mean so many different things to different people. It meant everything to me. Study it, and be prepared for the reading experience of a lifetime. This is the greatest novel I have ever read.
Grade: A
Rating:
Summary: The great American novel
Review: This is arguably the greatest American novel of the twentieth century. The story of the Compson family in decline is narrated in the consciousnesses of three members of the family, the idiot Benjy, the dreaming time- haunted and honor - haunted Quentin, the practical wily, resentful business - son Jason. And the story concludes with Faulkner's great epilogue in which he tells us more of Dilsey the black- mother- substitute center who holds the family together. The decline of the South and the rise of a new industrial society is one central theme, as is the relation of blacks and whites in the old South. But more than this this is the story of the human heart in conflict with itself, of a family driven by lust and ambition and greed and all the basic human feelings. And the story is told with the power of Faulkner's self- invented Latinate stream- of - consciousness prose meaning that whatever he learned from Joyce he took it into himself and made it into a rambling record of a magnificent mind's disquistions on the neverending and yet ending paradoxical and impossible lust of poor Quentin for Caddy and for the sheer senseless sounding on a golf course of an idiot hit- hit and the manipulations of a finagling brother robbed and all in all though it may seem to be confusion its not that at all because ultimately in control of all the master Faulkner makes us understand that it is a tale and it is at least in part told by an idiot and it is certainly full of sound and fury and it does of course signify nothing though in this very work by its greatness that nothing too is made not and in the end who knows it may after all signifiy the light of American literature as it turns and turns from 1928 on to the lesser works more urban works perhaps in some way more meaningful works which will come after and by others. And yet not yes no.
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Summary: Powerful and haunting
Review: I avoided Faulkner for almost 15 years because of his fearsome reputation for dense, often opaque prose. But I got on a Southern fiction kick this summer and knew that he was there waiting, like a huge mountain towering over the landscape. I decided to finally give him a try and for some reason chose The Sound and the Fury first.
I was initially more than a little leery of reading a story told partly from the perspective of a mentally retarded man, fearing that it would be maudlin or unbearably precious. I was unprepared for the kaleidoscope of sensation, the vignettes of childhood half-snatched out of the confusion of Benjy's understanding, the sadness of how Benjy is passed around from person to person, a burden to everyone except Caddy. Benjy's section *is* disorienting--it's meant to be that way. Toward the end of it as Benjy jumps from one memory of fire to another, your head will be spinning. But how many authors have been able to take you inside the mind of someone otherwise unreachable to 99% of us?
Or the mind of a suicidal neurotic? Quentin's section is just as challenging, but somewhere in his encounters with Caddy at the branch and in his devastating conversations with his father, who has checked out of life via alcohol, lies the heart of this book. Jason's section, too, is a tour de force. I think some people underrate his part of the story, since the narrative becomes more straightforward here, but it's just as claustrophobic and strangled as Quentin's. I have a family member who resembles Jason, not in his sadistic tendencies, but in his attempts to control life by breaking it down into units of dollars, checks and stocks, and this section was painful to read because of that. Jason is surely as obsessive over money as Quentin ever is with time. Some read Dilsey's section as a ray of hope--I think she does gain perspective on the disintegration of the Compson family, but part of that perspective is that she's powerless to change its sad, slow slide into nothing.
This is a powerful, gutwrenching book whose story and characters will haunt you long after you've turned the last page. Other books you read subsequently will pale in comparison to this dark, heartbreaking tale of loss and despair. I can't recommend it highly enough. One last thing: I'm waiting for the author who'll write a book from the perspective of Caddy after she marries and leaves home. I'm surprised no one's attempted it before, a la Jean Rhys in the Wide Sargasso Sea, or others who have written prequels or sequels to the lives of famous characters.
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