The Sound and the Fury Chapter 4 (April Eighth, 1928)

Now is when we, the AP Literature students who read ever so carefully and lost sleep over the meaning over Faulkner's words until class the next day and toiled through this novel and pulled our hair out in fury (ok, maybe a small exaggeration), move our thinking cap tassels from right to left because we have officially crossed this roller coaster of a story. Cue the sigh of relief. 

The last and final chapter of this book begins through the eyes of a black woman, Dilsey, in which she starts goes through a routine day of cooking, cleaning, preaching the good Lord's name, and such. She is, after all, the servant of the house, an important point to bear in mind because it signifies how she has seen both the beginning and end of the Compson house in all her years of service to them, shown in her quote, "I seed de beginning, en now I sees de endin" (Finally, good riddens hallelujah). 

Immediately from the start of this chapter, a stark contrast is present in comparison to all other chapters of the book: this chapter is taken from the perspective, if you will, from a black woman, instead of a white male, and is narrated through third person instead of first person. The effect that is achieved by Faulkner doing so is providing the reader with a more panoramic, sweeping view of the Compson family through someone not of direct Compson blood, relaying an objective narration to view the plight of the family in it's actuality. Faulkner also makes Dilsey such a character that instead of having Benjy's or Quentin's or Jason's sense of time in either through the past, present, or future, she is persistent towards the concept of eternity, demonstrative of her strong Christian morals. This chapter is a fresh perspective and is symbolic in the sense that Dilsey represents another view of Southern culture; instead of becoming swallowed by it's ideals (like how Quentin was wholly consumed by the idea of honor, for instance), she maintains her center and stays grounded, making her the redeemer of the family to an extent. She constitutes a reversal of the traditional Southern society because she is conceived as a savior and in an honorable light notwithstanding that she is black and a woman (Southerners have ideas on women and blacks differently, as seen by Jason). 

Overall, Faulkner provided the reader with some good mind benders and twisted the idea of the South to a derogatory, disintegrating one. This is evident in the conclusion of the last chapter as Benjy is taken off his usual route, which makes him "bellow" (bit seriously, when is this kid not bellowing 24/7? He should not see The Notebook), and breaks to pieces his idea of familiarity and regularity; in this small episode, order is destroyed in Benjy's mind, but in the broader scope, order is also destroyed in the Compson family name. Being familiar with the Christian culture, one knows that after an end, there is usually a "resurrection" or "redemption" of sorts, which role is assumed by Dilsey in this chapter. 

And with that, the Sound and the Fury is done in a flurry. Thank you (This is the part where I drop the mic and exit the stage).    

-LBugL