A tale of sight and smell signifying death : Benjy Compson revisited
- UNCW Author/Contributor (non-UNCW co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Matthew L. Price (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW )
- Web Site: http://library.uncw.edu/
- Advisor
- Mark Boren
Abstract: This essay refutes the long-standing idea that Benjy Compson in Faulkner's The
Sound and the Fury is merely an idiot. Instead of focusing on the issue of his language or
his concept of time, an analysis of his surveillance techniques reveals Benjy’s various
strategies as he exercises his power. The application of Michel Foucault's theories
concerning the powers of the disciplinarian gaze forces a change in the terminology with
which criticism has labeled Benjy. By the end of the essay, a re-conceptualization of
Benjy’s character occurs through a simple change of words: passive to active. This
change opens up new doors of understanding and suggests that Benjy is a highly
manipulative agent of surveillance, instead of the traditional view that he is a simple,
bellowing man-child.
A tale of sight and smell signifying death : Benjy Compson revisited
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Created on 1/1/2009
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Additional Information
- Publication
- Thesis
- A Thesis Submitted to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts
- Language: English
- Date: 2009
- Keywords
- Characters and characteristics in literature, Faulkner William 1897-1962 The sound and the fury--Criticism and interpretation
- Subjects
- Faulkner, William, 1897-1962. The sound and the fury -- Criticism and interpretation
- Characters and characteristics in literature