Page Four
THE H E N N E T T BANNER
OCTOBER, 1952
Ute MantU zy^fCartlyn Whaley
The Stylistic (Qualities of
William Faulkner
By Juanita Bryant
Finding the short stories of Mr.
Faulkner such an excellent source
of wisdom and enjoyment, I regret
not having become familiar with his
talents long before this assignment.
Having read completely only two
short stories, “Go Down Moses” and
“The Old People,” it is upon these
that I base my criticism.
The most striking aspect of the*
two stories was the seemingly inter
minable sentences, the repetition, and
the author’s tendency to be obscure.
I feel that it is the combination of
these characterisics that have led
critics to refer to Faulkner as a mas
ter of a specific style. This style is
projected in such a manner that the
reader seems to be constantly caught
in and drawn along as if in a cur
rent. Harvey Breit, whose criticism
of William Faulkner was found in
The Atlantic Monthly, feels too, that
this stylistic triumph is similar to an
imagestream. The reason for th(J
length and elaborateness of the sen
tence structure and the steady liter-
ative emphasis, is that the reader
must be powerfully hypnotized in
ward and downward to that image
stream.
After reading “The Old People.”
I was puzzled as to whether his skill
in writing made the reader work. In
his short stories, I feel it is his skill
that fires one’s imagination, and thd
reward which the reader receives
at the completion of a story is well
worth the trouble. Mr. Breit is on
the opinion that in our increasingly
specialized and complex world easy
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writers are inadequate. Therefore the( |
question is not whether Faulkner is |
difficult, but whether, in submitting j
to his imaginative order, one is re- ,
paid by an experience that is valu
able.
Mr. Faulkner’s brilliant, passages
describing men, animals, or lands- j
capes, such penetrating, even grotes
que characterizations were prevalent
in both stories. He has his descrip
tion occurring quite frequently, often,
the same ones repeated, to give em->
phasis.
Mr. Faulkner’s stories, those that
I read especially, deal with social
and moral themes most often in a
southern locality. It was with some
admiration that I observed that hate,
prejudice, and degradation were
either entirely missing or certainly
were not dominant factors in his pre-.
sentation of a story. In the story of
“Go Down Moses,” the whites on
whom the story centered were people
of good will and the Negro was char
acterized as a figure of immense dig^
nity. This treatment of a difficult
and current problem gives the reader.
the impression that this author isl'
capable to presenting an objectional
view of life in America. The auth-
.orative critic considers Faulkner’s
talent a participative one. This la
because he is writing from within hi9
people, from within their dilemmas
and aspirations. Mr. Faulkner ap-
pears to be morally and humanly
associated with the world of affairs.
The contacts he makes are no doubt
responsible for the mature ideas pro
jected in his writings. Faulkner’s
stories are expressions of truth, with
out being true, and reality, although
they may not bo read.
It was my opinion, before I had
fully digested the stories that any
are in Mr. Faulkner’s work was
formless. I believe it was the fact
that I had just become acquainted
with his lengthy, intricate sentencn
f-tructure. I found that the critic,
Mr. Breit was quite explicit in hi.'J
defense of a statement of this sort
aigainst M^-. Faulkner. He stated
I that the charge of formlessness
against Faulkner is the offspring of
the alarmingly rich detail and muni
ficence of the parts. The totality
tends to vanish in the lavishness oj
the parts. It is a little like climbing
a mountain. There are all sorts of
hazards on the way and instanton-
oous rewards. When one makes tha
j final ascent the view is all that one
! hoped for, more than he thought it
' would be. The view justifies the
difficult ascent, it was made pos
sible only through the climb.
I I feel that William Faulkner i3
a superb storyteller. He can be a
deep and continuous source of wis
dom. To read Faulkner’s work is to
; learn from him because he sees
I situations as they affect human be-
, ings. Mr. Breit states that this writer
helps us to remember and to under
stand the human situation in its
particularity; thus in its universal
ity. He helps us to become more
human.
No doubt short story enthusiasts
will find Mr. Faulkner to live up tq
the praises of those critics who main
tain that he is the greatest living
American writer.
“Freshmen Once, Seniors Now!’
By Marilyn Whaley
President of The Student Senate
Our Student Senate president hails
from Portland, Oregon. Before-
coming to Bennett, she attended Wil-
liamette University in Salem, Oregon.
While at Salem she served as sec
retary of the Freshman class and
also held an office in her dormitory.
During her junior year at Bennett
she moved from Portland, Oregon
to Raleigh, N. C., where she now
resides.
While at Bennett Marilyn has
participated in many activities. We
shall always remember her in the
role of “Pygmalion” during her soph
omore year. Marilyn has varied in
terests and is quite a versatile indi
vidual.
She is a member of the following
campus organizations: Senior Thea
ter Guild, Sigma Rho Sigma, Social
Science Seminar, Art Club, and the
W.S.C.S. She also serves as president
of Alpha Nu chapter of Kappa Phi
a national methodist girls’ club re
cently organized.
Marilyn plans to do recreational oP
religious work upon finishing Ben
nett. Our Student Senate President
hopes that not a few students but
all of the students will feel the im
portance of the student government
and support it whole-heartedly as
possible. It is your organization and
can be up-held as long as you ex
emplify true school spirit that should
exist on a college campus.
Themes of the Month
THE LONG RIDE
By Shako Yoshikane
All of a sudden, I was awakened
by a loud voice calling. First call
to dinner!” I did not know how long
I had slept, but when I turned my
eyes towards the window, I observ
ed the beauty of various objectsi
within sight, as they reflected the
rays of sunset. I, therefore, assume4
from the position of the sun that
I had slept for about one hour.
As I moved slightly from one sit
ting position to another, I disturbed
the beautiful little candy box
which, to my unawareness, had been
placed beside me. I caught the box
before it fell from my seat and
read the piece of papter which was
attached to it, The contents of the
note read thus; “To the young Jap
anese girl. Good luck.”
This gift reminded me of thQ
earlier part of the same day whenj
I had become homesick and cried,
a kindly settled woman and her hus
band sat behind me, when they heard
my sniffles they jumped up to com
fort me.
“What is wrong?” the lady asked,
“Why are you crying?”
“I am home sick,” I replied. j
“Why?” Where are you from?” ‘
“I came over here from Japan to
study in Greensboro,” I answered.
Her husband, who spoke from be
hind me in a pleasant and assuring
tone remarked, “Oh, that is really
a wonderful thing to hear. You
should not cry so hard. We under
stand things seem somewhat strange
to you now, and you easily become
homesick, but isn’t it a very im
portant idea to think like this, that
SENIOR "SEEN-ICS"
Greetings! And a hearty welcome
to a scene from “Senior Seenics”—a
peep into the life of the Senior Class.
After having seen and talked with
many, members of the senior class, I
have concluded that last summer was
really very well spent. Whether the
student vacationed at the beach, in
the mountains, or at home; whether
she worked, played, or rested, the
senior Bennettite literally kept her
blue book with her at all times and
performed her duties with a cultured
and gracious manner.
After such a summer as this, then,
it is not unusual that this class should
return to school with vim and vital
ity, assuming the leadership due a
class of such distinction without los
ing any of their former simplicity and
graciousness of character.
the globe is round and you are not
going off the globe? Don’t you see?”
I stopped crying to look up into
this philosopher’s face. He seemed so
kind. His wife then patted my cheek
and suggested that I take a nap so
that I could feel better.
I closed my eyes and tried to
sleep, while in my mind I kept re
peating, “ I am not going off the
globe; my family is here with me.”
I felt so grateful to the man for his
kind words, and with them in my
mind, I finally fell asleep.
After I examined the candy box
and its little note, I arose to thank
the couple for their unselfish deed;
but their seats were bare. The couple
had gone without a word while I
was asleep, but they had left behind
them traces of consideration which
I shall always keep in my heart.
Conscience is that still small voice
that tells you you’re going to get
caught.
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