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anomandrewrake's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I'm really impressed by this, but I'm only giving it four stars because I'm not sure I understand it, and I don't want to call it a masterpiece when I may just be enamored with its status as Great American Literature.
I had no idea what I was in for when I picked this up. I've never read Faulkner before. I've not really read anything stream-of-consciousness before either. This was a wholly new experience for me. I loved the gradual progression from incomprehensible to lucid as the narrator changes over the course of the novel. Benjy's P.O.V., which takes up the first seventy-five pages of the novel, is an impressive artistic achievement. We are trapped inside the head of a person who has little sense of self and no cohesive concept of time.
Speaking of Benjy's section, this book is difficult to read at times. Cruelty, depression, and casual bigotry are centerpieces of this story. Faulkner does a wonderful job of injecting the reader into another person's mind, and the minds he wants to trap us in for The Sound and the Fury are by design some of the most difficult to live in. Maybe that's the key to this whole thing: to take characters that should be entirely Other and force you to understand that you can understand them, you can be them.
I'll likely try more Faulkner later on, and I'll probably reread this one eventually. I hope on reread I can feel more confident in my interpretation.
I had no idea what I was in for when I picked this up. I've never read Faulkner before. I've not really read anything stream-of-consciousness before either. This was a wholly new experience for me. I loved the gradual progression from incomprehensible to lucid as the narrator changes over the course of the novel. Benjy's P.O.V., which takes up the first seventy-five pages of the novel, is an impressive artistic achievement. We are trapped inside the head of a person who has little sense of self and no cohesive concept of time.
Speaking of Benjy's section, this book is difficult to read at times. Cruelty, depression, and casual bigotry are centerpieces of this story. Faulkner does a wonderful job of injecting the reader into another person's mind, and the minds he wants to trap us in for The Sound and the Fury are by design some of the most difficult to live in. Maybe that's the key to this whole thing: to take characters that should be entirely Other and force you to understand that you can understand them, you can be them.
I'll likely try more Faulkner later on, and I'll probably reread this one eventually. I hope on reread I can feel more confident in my interpretation.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs and Ableism
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Racism
Minor: Bullying, Death, and Incest
mattiedancer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Writing: 3.25⭐️/5
How to rate a classic novel that is technically fine but you didn’t enjoy? I wanted the writing to call to me more, but it didn’t. It lept for the page a few times, but they were little hops, too weak to make it too far. I wanted more from it and, despite there being nothing technically wrong, it didn’t sing to me. It’s an incredibly difficult read as well because it displays a stream of consciousness style for certain characters. Again, while I applaud the technical ability it takes to write in that style, nothing jumped out at me.
Characters: 3.5⭐️/5
The majority of characters are horrible people or people who are slowly morphing into horrible people or, perhaps, just people being treated horribly. The characters had moments that gleaned off the page, for better and worse reasons, though, which did in fact make them feel real and horribly vibrant.
Plot: 3.25⭐️/5
Again, the plot is difficult to parse, requiring it to be read slower and with greater intention. I don’t necessarily hate that; however, a book that fixates on the inevitable destruction of a family is hard to love as you watch a few characters fling themselves towards becoming more unredeemable. For some, it could be a necessary story of moral corruption and social decline, and it would be precisely perfect for that.
Who Should Read This Book?
- Fans of classics
- Those looking for a literary challenge with a dark and sombre theme
- Readers wanting to understand the complexities of the southern United States post the Civil War
Content Warnings?
- Abuse, Racial Slurs, Racism, Colonialism, Misogyny, Sexism, Abelism, Suicide, Emotional Abuse, Death, Death of parent, Antisemitism, Alcoholism, Alcohol, substance abuse
Post-Reading Rating: 2.5⭐️/5
I wanted to like it much more than I did. I understand the gist, I get why people think it’s brilliant, but it’s not a story that made me feel anything but sadness and frustration and, though I know that was the point, I didn’t have fun. It may be a book I return to. Maybe I read it at the wrong time.
Final Rating: 3⭐️/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Grief, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Colonisation, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Bullying, Emotional abuse, and Racial slurs
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