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The Sound and the Fury (Norton Critical Editions)

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In case you are one of the unlucky few that has not read THE SOUND AND THE FURY, let me tell you that you are missing one of literature's most prized works. As an English major, I have come across many "famous" novels that left me wondering what the author had to do (wink, wink) to get his/her novel well known. However, this novel is definitely not one of those.

In short, Faulkner's novel is about the Compson family, composed of a mentally disabled son (Benjy) , a sexual daughter (Caddy) and granddaughter (Quentin), a suicidal son (Quentin-yes, 2 Quentins!), an uncaring and greedy son (Jason) , a drunken father, a nutty mother, and a caring servant (Dilsey) and her family. The book itself is divided into four sections-one written by Benjy, one written by Quentin (the son), one by Jason, and one by Dilsey. Faulkner incorporates a HUGE amount of symbolism in this novel (something I love). However, what makes this novel famous are Faulkner's writing techniques. The first section by Benjy is pretty darn confusing, for Benjy is mentally retarded. Benjy's thoughts cover many time lengths and flash back and forth between times without any notice or any indication. The reader must figure out when something occurs. Often, only one paragraph may take place in time A, then it will switch to time B for a page, time C for a sentence, time B for 3 pages, and so on. Mostly what triggers these time changes are words. For example, Benjy is outside and hears a golfer call to his caddie (this occurs in time A). The word "caddie" triggers a thought about Caddy, his sister, and he thinks about a time in time G when somebody called out "Caddy" and so on. It sounds pretty confusing; that's because it is. Quentin's section is composed of stream-of-consciousness, something Faulkner is famous for using. Here, you are given Quentin's thoughts only. It's pretty intense to read. The last two sections are written more normally.

This book is pretty hard, I will admit. I wouldn't read it as my first Faulkner. I'd try AS I LAY DYING or SANCTUARY. I suggest getting a buddy to read it, too, so you can sort things out together or (if you must....) pick up the Cliffs Notes on it. However, don't not read this novel just because it's tough. I assure you that this book is filled with so much character depth and fascinating storyline that you won't be sorry. : )

I wanted to read the novel for two reasons: first, it was ranked No.6 in the "100 Best Books" list recently published by Random House; and second because, like Faulkner who was raised in Mississippi in the first quarter of this century, I was raised there in the second quarter, and was anxious to know how Faulkner treated with the condition of the rural South, specifically Mississippi and its people.

I found the book rewarding. The troubles of Faulkner's central characters could have applied to people anywhere , which lends to the novel the universality of a true literary work. And his treatment of the black heroine Dilsey, who remained faithful both to her own beliefs and to her decadent white employers should conjure up real nostalgia for many natives of the Old South.

Faulkner's text of The Sound and the Fury occupies less than half the pages in the book. The remainder includes Backgrounds, Appendices, Cultural and Historical Contexts, and Criticism of both Faulkner and the novel. The novel as it was originally published in 1929, without benefit of these addendum, would no doubt have lost most readers because of the disjointed and incoherent technique Faulkner used in writing the first two of the four sections of the novel.

Faulkner's Appendix, published sixteen years after the original novel, and included in this edition, sheds a great deal of light on an otherwise dark text, and if read first would enable a reader to understand at least something the first time around. Faulkner himself noted that "I should have done this(the Appendix) when I wrote the book", and recommended that it appear first in the 1946 edition. I hope it did.

Without the explanatory addendum in this edition, I wouldn't have known what Faulkner was talking about most of the time. Thanks to editor David Minter for making Faulkner's work more understandable; but I disagree with Minter when he suggests that "...the place to begin is with the novel itself..."; I recommend beginning with Faulkner's Appendix. That way you may not have to read the novel two or three times to grasp some of its meaning.

This book is confusing and difficult to read at first. You have to ride it like you would a "rapid river"-- just hang on, get what you can, and go back a second or third time. It might be helpful to read the background information AFTER you've read the story at least once.

Now, does this sound like too much work? Well, it isn't. Once you've done the reading, you'll realize that there is real genius at work in this text. The prose is strongly crafted, and the story that Faulkner relates is one that cannot be forgotten. You will want to read the rest of the Compton's stories-- Absalom! Absalom! is one, and you'll never think of those big gorgeous moss covered southern mansions the same way again.

With apologies for the colloquial language... this (The Sound and the Fury) is the most beautiful book I've read. I recommend the critical edition because the criticism is first-rate (and is much better ;) than the criticism in some of the other Norton critical editions...).

I will not discuss the story because I assume anyone looking for this edition of the book knows something of the novel. I will say that I think this edition is the best I have ever read and I enjoyed it immensely. I read the commentary and reviews with as much interest as I did the novel itself. The editor did a good job assembling an all star cast to review the book and provide background information.
Anyone interested in this novel, first time readers or fans of the book, should own this copy. It was fabulous from beginning to end. Make sure to read all the articles and reviews, you will not be disappointed.

The Sound and the Fury, which I just had to read for school, is a daunting novel to a first time reader. Its stream-of-consciousness style, random chronology, and unusual format makes it difficult to understand the first time around. However, this Norton critical edition is an immense help, as it includes an appendix, notes from the author, essays, and critical reviews on the novel. These greatly help a confused reader to understand the plot and keep reading. The critical reviews and essays are a fascinating read after finishing the book, as they provide new and interesting insights. This book is a tremendous help to unlock an amazing and brilliant book, which might scare people off without the help. Its like an authoritative, intelligent, thorough cliff's notes included at the end of the book. The novel itself is not tampered with, the essays and appendices are additional after the end of the novel. highly highly recommended.

This is perhaps the most difficult novel written that's worth the time to read. I'd STRONGLY suggest you buy Volpe's book on Faulkner's NovelsA Reader's Guide to William Faulkner: The Novels (Reader's Guides) to read along with it first. Volpe breaks down the points at which a different character takes over the narrative. After that, try it yourself, but Volpe is the best guide for the person new to Faulkner's harder(hardest)work. The Norton Edition has a great deal of helpful critical material which, though not in Volpe's ballpark, is very helpful. Buy this edition, but don't forget the Volpe on Faulkner's novel.

I read The Sound and the Fury last year for my English research paper. I'm glad I forced myself to read it and not get discouraged by the incredibly difficult first chapter. I wouldn't recommend this if you have trouble reading complex literature but the time I put into the work was well worth it and the criticisms and supplimental material in the Norton edition were very helpful...

Besides the already amazing text of The Sound and the Fury, Faulkner's letters, interviews, and the critical articles make this an invaluable edition to any Faulkner scholar. Noel Polk's editing of the novel itself shines, its presented exactly as Faulkner intended. I highly recommend this edition if you would like to understand this cryptic work better.

My comments are not meant to expound on the story but on using the story in class to talk about the nature of imitation. I might point out that there is a wonderful web page version of the novel here: http://www.usask.ca/english/faulkner/. It was put together, as you can read on the site, by a group of graduate students using the web to accomplish what Faulkner intended a printed version to be like using various colors in the text. Visiting the page and seeing how this works helps use the novel. Regarding the novel as imitation: what is being imitated is stream of consciousness. Do we really think this way? It seems to me that we do not normally think this way or at least do not pay attention to all of the aspects of our perceptions as we go through an experience. What the book does is draw our attention, the focus of our attention, to much of the things we perceive without paying attention to them. (Hence the color scheme that was meant to indicate what part of our attention a specific line represents.) One immediate result of this is a feeling of confusion that results in a headache. We do not normally think this way and so it creates stress. As you become used to it from reading several hours or more you put the book down and note that you continue to think this way! It can be very annoying since paying attention to all of the things in our awareness distracts us or keeps us from having the focus necessary to accomplish much that we normally manage without much effort. Does the novel, the technique of having a stream of consciousness, imitate the way our consciousness works or part of how it works? It seems certain that while we are aware, at least peripherally, of much of what this technique draws our attention to, the deliberate effort to keep so much only peripheral is essential to our ability to concentrate.

So this is a very interesting study to analyze how our consciousness works. With that in mind it does not occur to me that Joyce or Woolf would do any better or worse as tools for this effort.

Since however in Fury one of the main characters we are privileged to share minds with is mentally ill or retarded, there is an added dimension to the experience and confusion. How well does Faulkner do this? I suppose we will never know.