Biographical Influences Essay Of William Faulkner Essay, Research Paper

Biographical Influences Essay

William Faulkner was a quite man who rarely spoke to anyone. Although he did not graduate High School, Faulkner had an innate ability to remember even the slightest detail of things he heard. The past has always played a role in the telling of most of his stories. However, before we can understand his style of writing, it is important to understand what influences played an important role in his writings. William Faulkner was heavily influenced by his culture, love of his family, and passion for hunting to produce some of his most compelling stories.

Many people how the culture of the South and Southern history has shaped and influenced Faulkner’s works. I have examined this theory by looking at an important figure in Faulkner’s life, the “Old Colonel,” Faulkner’s great-grandfather. Although the “Old Colonel,” William Clark Faulkner, died eight years before the author was born, his legacy seemed powerful Faulkner’s mind. The man was not only a Civil War officer, but also a successful planter, businessman, lawyer, even author! Killed tragically in a gun battle, the legend surrounding great-grandfather must have fueled Faulkner’s interest in the Old South, in distant family ties reaching back through the generations, and in his own dreams of becoming a famous writer.

Faulkner grew up in Oxford, Mississippi where he remained except for brief trips to New Orleans, some youthful wanderings, and a few years in the Royal Air Force. After a promising start as a student, Faulkner began to lose interest and to do poorly in school when he entered his teens. It was at this time that he began to write poetry and short stories. In high school, he was more interested in sports and extracurricular activities than in his studies. The pattern of his writing’s was based upon what he saw in Oxford or remembered from his childhood; or scraps of family tradition, or in stories told by men in overalls, squatting on their heels while they passed around a fruit jar of corn liquor. All of his stories can be linked together to tell one big story of how he saw his family life, and how time has changed the South. The characters in most of his stories reflect upon real life people whom he shared his love for as a child and as an adult.

As a young boy, Faulkner would go hunting with friends. One of his favorite places to go was The Mississippi Delta. These hunting grounds provided a background for some of William Faulkner’s stories (Watkins 25). During his outings with another hunters, Faulkner would often sit and listen to the stories told by others. It was strongly felt that from listening to other’s around the campfire, he got the background for the story of Ike McCaslin and the Bear. This story expresses the great sadness of change and the terrible sorrow of the loss of the wilderness to modern times. Over time flooding, extreme levels of snow, and high water began to change the wilderness and after time it became civilized.

Time and place have been important in Faulkner’s works. If they were removed, we can’t imagine what his fiction would be like. Much of the excellence in his works was derived from Oxford and Lafayette County and their traditions, and the past. Nearly all of Faulkner’s fictional works have as their setting this imaginary place, which Faulkner weaved not only from his own experiences growing up in Oxford, Mississippi, but also from the rich culture of his great-grandfather, the love of his family, and his desire for hunting.

Cullen John B. Old Times in the Faulkner Country. Louisiana State University Press. 1975.

The Mississippi Writer’s Page. The University of Mississippi. 06 Feb. 2001 *http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/english/ms-writers/dir/faulkner_william/bib.html*.