윌리암 포크너의 소설: 문명과 자연의 대립

Abstract

The general conflict between the repressive influence of civilization and the uninhibited freedom of the natural world interested Faulkner from the outset of his career.In The Sound and the Fury, Caddy's natural instincts are inhibited by the entire Compson family, Quentin's by her uncle, Jason, who literally locks her in her room. This general pattern of a young woman's natural instinct to love being inhibited and in some instances perverted by repression and confinement is repeated with certain variations in the characters of Ruby Lamar and Temple Drake in Sanctuary, Lena Gove in Light in August. Parental or societal restrictions placed upon the natural instincts in the natural world create problems and lead to disaster in a significant number of Faulkner's novels.In The Sound and the Fury the abundance of images of restraint in the industrial civilization helps to make a general statement, at times metaphysical, regarding the nature of human existence. In Sanctuary Faulkner uses prisons to suggest the ubiquitous nature of evil and the inefficacy of our modern social institutions. In Light in August the rebellion of Christmas against those people who have authoritarian patterns is easily seen. His rebellion against the society which has twisted his personality is seen in terms of representative associations with other people in the civilized world.The opposition of points of view is the crucial structural element of Faulkner's novels. Faulkner shifts back and forth from members of the family to outsiders, using thought patterns appropriate to each person. The technique of oppositions in Faulkner's novels is broadly this : the conflict between nature and civilization, between freedom and repression.