After reading the first chapter of The Sound and the Fury, I think I am starting to understand why Faulkner started off the book with Benjy's version of the story.  Although it is really confusing, and can be tedious to read, Faulkner made a point by letting the 'idiot' begin the story.  Faulkner wanted to show that time is not just a chronological, linear thing.  When people tell stories, they remember experiences that happened at many different points in their lives.  A person is made up of their experiences and memories, and that is how Benjy tells his story.  His family is also a part of this because each of them remember different parts of their history, and each has a different take on the story.  The Sound and the Fury shows the effect that time has on memories and stories.  Because of this, Benjy is chosen to begin the story, because his account most accurately shows how people reflect on their lives and decisions.

Benjy has the lowest social status of the Compson family.  His point of view reflects the underdog, or the person who is always last in terms of importance.  This, along with his literal interpretations of everything, make his story the most factual, because he has no reputation to uphold.  He has nothing to lose, and so his actions come straight from his emotions.  He doesn't think through the results of his actions, giving him a clearer view of what is going on.

Benjy is also very dependent, and he is extremely nostalgic.  Faulkner uses Benjy's character to show that families cling to the past, relishing old, good memories.  Families are more willing to think about what used to be, than to adapt to current problems.  Faulkner also ties this in with the South in general.  He wrote this keeping in mind the problems the South faced after the Civil War.  It took many years for Southern culture to accept the challenges that it faced, and to abandon traditional ways of life that could no longer exist.  Benjy's character can represent this habit of clinging to the past, as he clings to his old memories of Caddy and his childhood.

Although I will have to read through the rest of the book to find out exactly what role Benjy will fill, I know that he has a symbolic role.  He is the age of Christ at his crucifixion, which would seem to point to some sacrifice that Benjy must perform.  I have some ideas about how this will (or has, if I missed it!) happened, but I can't be sure until I have read a slightly more coherent version of the family history.

My favorite part of Benjy's chapter was his description of his childhood in the South.  I loved hearing the parts about the adventures that he, Caddy, Jason, and Quentin had as little children.  I also find it very interesting to see the relationship between Versh, T.P., Luster, Dilsey and the Comptons.  The white children know that they have control of every situation, but they also hold respect and fear for Dilsey, who isn't afraid to punish them for the bad things they have done.  The power struggle that seems to happen between the two groups is an interesting element of the Southern culture in the time period.

 

My research on William Faulkner helped me discover some important information about his life.  He was born on September 25, 1897 in New Albany Mississippi.  He had four brothers.  Although he was clearly brilliant, he did not have interest in a formal education, and he dropped out of high school.  This did not stop him from attending The University of Mississippi, where his work started to get published in magazines and college newspapers.  He attempted to get into the US Air force, but was rejected because he was too short at five feet six inches.  Later, he was accepted into the Canadian Royal Air force as a cadet.  In the next years of his life he traveled frequently and published many works, including As I Lay Dying, The Sound and the Fury, Sanctuary, Absalom, Absalom!, and others.  Among his awards and achievements are two Pulitzer Prizes, the Nobel Prize for Literature (1949), and the National Institute's Gold Medal for Fiction (1962).