Finished. Wow- that book was more racy than almost any modern day soap opera! What is it with all of the men in this story having illegitimate children and unexplained wives, etc...? It really doesn't paint a very good picture of the south during this time period.
Is the overall theme of the book racial relations? I'm just not sure what message Faulkner is trying to convey. Of course, there are a lot of family references too. Thomas Sutpen is a cruel man and everything he touched seemed to disintegrate: his children, his mistresses, his "wives", his house, his slaves, and especially himself. One of the saddest parts of the book for me was when he goes to see Milly and tells her its a shame she wasn't a mare so he could give her a stable. The book had many depressing elements.
The relationship between Charles and Henry is an interesting one. Why did Henry kill Charles? Did he really not want him marrying his sister- for which there are many legitimate reasons? Was he overcome with jealousy or embarrassment at finding out this was actually his brother? How could he kill his own brother- so many questions.
I had not read the commentary part- however, I was looking in the back of my book and stumbled across the list of characters and their relationships to one another and that is how I learned of Thomas' connection to Charles. This was shocking considering that he wanted to marry Judith. The ending was a bit confusing for me- especially when I was listening to it. So does Quentin hate the south or not?
It seems like quite a few of these books have been and are based in the south- it kind of makes you want to visit there. Maybe someday we can plan a trip together. :) I liked the book overall (the story was great) but it did seem like the narrators were winded in places, making it hard to listen to. Did you ever find the longest sentence? I'm wondering which one it is.
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