Twenty Paces to the Right....OUCH was that a golf ball?!

In the first two sections of The Sound and the Fury, the narrators use certain key indicators that give us insight into the sometimes impenetrable parts of the novel. Benjy and Quentin are both mentally unstable in their own ways. Quentin is severely depressed and Benjy is developmentally challenged. These difficulties make it hard to understand their trains of thought. Luckily for us, both narrators repeat phrases and details that help us follow the complex thought processes of the first two narrators.


Repeated phrases in Benjy’s narrative serve the dual purpose of helping us follow the story as well as revealing his mental state at key moments. Skimming the first pages of Benjy’s narrative is a scary thing as a reader. Horrified thoughts of “hey why is that in italics?!” come to mind. Luckily, we have key phrases to guide us. For example, in the first pages of his section, Benjy’s consciousness switches between the present time and a memory with Caddy. We can discern which time period is which by noting that Luster only appears in the present time, while Caddy is only present in Benjy’s memories. Because Benjy cannot talk or comprehend the things around him, we do not gain much insight into Benjy’s thoughts or emotions through his own voice. Whenever Benjy is upset, however, other people are always telling him to hush or stop moaning, so we know something unsettled him—another indicator. Repeated phrases in Benjy’s narrative also prepare the readers for events later in the novel. The most important of these phrases is “Caddy smelled like trees”. We know that Benjy likes when Caddy smells like trees and always notices when she does since he repeats the phrase whenever he thinks about her. It makes sense to us then, later, when Benjy freaks out when Caddy is wearing perfume. The repeated phrase helps us understand that Benjy associates “his” Caddy with the smell of trees and dislikes Caddy’s changing life. Benjy’s narrative is so convoluted that Faulkner had to give us hints that help us to follow the complex narrative style.


Special indicators also help us follow Quentin’s erratic narrative. In Quentin’s narrative, the indicators are usually repeated phrases that show the things that are tormenting him. Without reading the clues, we would never know why Quentin is driven to suicide. Quentin repeats the phrase “no sister” over and over so we learn that Caddy is one of the things that is weighing on his conscience. He also repeats the phrase “Dalton Ames” endlessly throughout the narrative. When we find out about his confrontation with Dalton Ames later on, we already understand that the experience weighs on Quentin’s mind. He also dwells on the fact that the family sold Benjy’s pasture to pay his Harvard tuition. Because he repeatedly thinks about this fact, we infer that he may feel guilty or spiteful toward his education since it hurts his brother. The plot indicators in Quentin’s narrative help us understand the reasons for Quentin’s depression.


In a complex novel like The Sound and the Fury, authors try to plant key hints that help us understand the plot and characters. Without character indicators, we wouldn’t be able to follow the direction of Benjy’s consciousness. Without repeating phrases, we wouldn’t be able to understand Quentin’s depression. Luckily for us, Faulkner thought to use hints and italics to help us understand and enjoy the complexities of The Sound and the Fury. (573)