AP English: Literature and Composition

Name

Major Works Data Sheet

Title: Light in August
Author: William Faulkner
Date of Publication: 1932
Genre: Southern modernist fiction (Shmoop)
Historical information about the period of publication:

The Great Depression struck the nation in 1929;

therefore, the 30s were a time of widespread poverty
and unemployment.

Prohibition was in effect in U.S. between 1920 and

1933. At the time the novel is set, the illegal alcohol
trade was very prominent. Much of society was
starting to push for the repeal of prohibition.

The Civil War occurred between 1861 and 1865,

ending in the abolition of slavery with the 13th
amendment. However, racial tensions persisted for at
least another hundred years. In the 1930s, there was
still widespread segregation and racism, including Jim
Crow laws in effect throughout the South.

Biographical information about the author: Faulkners background

begins with the civil war hero, his great-grandfather, Colonel William
Falkner (Faulkners namesake). Stories of the Colonel haunted
Faulkner throughout his childhood, and they reappear in his novels
(Hightowers stories). Faulkners grandfather and father were involved
in the railroad business and politics. His father became the business
manager at the University of Mississippi (Mercer; William).
Faulkner was born in 1897 and lived in Mississippi his entire life,
the majority spent in Oxford. He quit his schooling at age 15, though
he always was interested in literature and poetry. After a brief time in
the Canadian air force, odd jobs in New Orleans and NYC, Faulkner
published his first novel Soldiers Pay in 1926. This was followed by
four unsuccessful novels between 1926 and 1931. However, Faulkner
made his break in 1931 with Sanctuary, which carried him all the
way to Hollywood to be a scriptwriter (Mercer; William).
Faulkner faced hardships, including marital issues, alcoholism, and
the loss of a brother. Yet he gained critical acclaim in 1949 when he
won the Nobel Peace Prize for Literature. Today his works are studied
in classrooms nationwide (Mercer; William).
Characteristics of the genre:

Told from multiple perspectives

Uses stream of consciousness

Regional dialect

Many characteristics of Southern society

Storylines told simultaneously, not chronologically

(Shmoop)

Plot summary:
The story of Light in August opens on Lena Grove, a young, pregnant woman, as she journeys from Alabama to Mississippi in search
of the father of her child, Lucas Burch. When Lena arrives, she finds a man with a similar name, Byron Bunch, instead of Burch. Bunch
puts Lena up in a cabin and cares for her until she delivers the child. In the meantime, Joe Christmas is on the run because of a murder he
committed. As the novel progresses, the reader learns of Christmas life.
Christmas is born to a woman named Millie, whose parents are Doc and Mrs. Hines. Due to Docs neglect, Millie dies in childbirth.
Christmas is placed in an orphanage, where he is scrutinized daily by Doc; although unaware the man is his grandfather. He becomes
accustomed to the strict life of the orphanage with its strict regulations and punishments. Once, he eats toothpaste against the rules of the
orphanage and is unknowingly witnessing the dietician having sexual relations with the intern when Christmas is discovered by the
dietician. Instead of receiving punishment, Christmas was first bribed, and then sent to live with a foster family, the McEacherns. Despite
Mr. McEacherns strict religious regime, Christmas secretly develops a relationship with a local prostitute, Bobby. Conflict ensues when
Mr. McEachern learns what has been happening and he winds up dead, struck by Christmas.
After the murder, Christmas is forced to flee, and ends up in Jefferson, Mississippi. He lives on the property of, and develops a
relationship with, Joanna Burden. Soon, he develops a business selling whiskey with Burch (under the alias Joe Brown). Eventually,
Christmas feels trapped by Joanna and resents her attempts to control and change him. Overcome with rage, he kills her. He flees town
with the authorities on his tail but is captured shortly in Mottstown. Hes imprisoned, and after seeing his grandparents for the first time in
his memory, he makes one final attempt at escape to Hightowers home. However, he is followed and killed by Percy Grimm.
Gail Hightower is a social recluse in the town. Obsessed with his family history and his grandfathers legacy, he neglects his wife and
his duties behind the pulpit. This leads to his wifes affair followed by suicide in Memphis, isolating Hightower from the community. At
the end of the novel, Hightower realizes his mistakes and comes to terms with his guilt and regret.
The story ends similarly to the way in which it began, with Lena on the road, narrated through the perspective of a stranger. This time,
however, she is travelling with her baby and Byron Bunch, although she claims to still be searching for Lucas Burch. Burch is along for
the ride because he loves her despite the fact that she has not accepted him yet. Lena is simply travelling down the road, and through life.

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Page 2

Describe the authors style:

1. Uses varied perspectives from different characters,
memories, and time periods.
2. Uses stream of consciousness, and includes different
levels of consciousness. Conscious thoughts are in
quotations and subconscious thoughts are in italics
without grammatical stops.
3. Combines words to create one complex noun.
4. Uses oxymoron
5. Uses understatements, litotes, and figurative language.

An example that demonstrates the style:

1. The difference in each chapter as far as who the
novel is focusing on.
2. Shell have the lamp this time, he thought,
thinking if I were to look now, I would see the
light under the door as his hand swung up and
back, thinking now she has almost reached the
door Potatoes, he said at last, with judicial
finality (Faulkner 238)
3. pinkwomansmelling (122).
4. frictionsmooth (180)
5. But there are more things in heaven and earth
too than truth, he thinks, paraphrases, quietly,
not quizzical, not humorous; not unquizzical
and not humorless too (479)

Memorable Quotes
Quote
1. He went on, passing still between the
homes of the white people, from the street
lamp to street lamp, the heavy shadows of
oak and maple leaves sliding the scraps of
black velvet across his white shirt. Nothing
can look quite as lonely as a big man going
along an empty street. Yet though he was
not large, not tall, he contrived somehow to
look more lonely than a lone telephone
pole in the middle of a desert. In the wide
empty, shadowbrooded street he looked
like a phantom, a spirit, strayed out of its
own world, and lost. (Faulkner 114)
2 . the Grand Jury was preparing
behind locked doors to take the life of a
man whom few of them had ever seen to
know, for having taken the life of a woman
whom even fewer of them had known to
see. (Faulkner 262)
3. Thinking of Mrs. Eachern and the rope,
and of the waitress whom he had never
told where the money came from which he
gave her, and now of his present mistress
and the whiskey, he could almost believe
that it was not to make money that he sold
the whiskey but because he was dooned to
conceal always something from the women
who surrounded him. (Faulkner 262)
4. Memory believes before knowing
remembers.
Believes
longer
than
recollects, longer than knowing even
wonders. ( Faulkner 119)

Significance
1.This quote expresses Joes inner conflict of his mixed ancestry (scraps
of black velvet across his white shirt). The two sides of him are waging
wars inside of his head as he attempts to cling to one. At this moment, he
is within a white community and looks extremely alone. He does not
belong. He is not a big man but is entirely isolated and separated from
the people from the people who populate the house that he passes.
Throughout the novel, Joe is trying to find himself and his identity.
2. There was a disconnect and inhumane element of society and this
quote showed it to its fullest extent. It provides an example of the
ostracizing of those outside community whether physically or
psychologically. The close knit community planned and succeeded in
lynching a man they dont know for killing a woman they know even less
about. Its ironic and emphasizes the indifferent cruelty that comes with
the strict moral traditions within a society.
3. This quote summarizes Joe Christmas feeling toward women. He
distrusts them because of his experiences with them in the past. He
despises them and seems to view them as a sort of inconvenience. A
desire for control is clear in his life, which is shown by his need to
conceal his full emotions from the women in his life.
4. The quote represents ones subconscious life. The characters may not
remember it, but it still affects them. The sentances are confusing
because it is difficult to go back in the past and figure it out (Mercer).
The idea of the past affecting the present is dominant in the novel as the
characters struggle to escape from the binds and consequences of past
actions.

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Page 3
Characters

Name

Joe Christmas

Lena Grove

Role in the Story

Protagonist,
shows issues of
southern society
and way of
thinking at the
time
Helps unify the
novel, Searching
for baby-daddy
Joe Brown

Gail Hightower

Ex-reverend,
Moral protagonist
Living his
grandfathers life

Bryon Bunch

Mill worker, In
love with Lena
and Helps her

Joe Brown (aka

Lucas Burch)

Father of Lenas
baby, reason for
Lenas walk

Joanna Burden

Lover of Joe
Christmas,
Yankee

Bobbie

Prostitute, Joes
girlfriend

Simon
McEachern

Joes adopted
father

Mrs. McEachern

Joes adopted
mother

Significance

Compared by some critics as

Christ-like, but he doesnt act like
Christ
Struggles with his personal
identity or the lack thereof
Black vs White
Male vs Female Animosity
Brings unifying element
throughout the novel
Adds a positive counterpart to Joe
Christmas

Acts as the voice of reason

Represents the fact that the past
never is left behind; no such thing
as a fresh start

He shows defiance of societys

sayings by releasing his
inhibitions and going for Lena

He represents running from ones

problems, corruption, cheating,
lying, and poor decision making
Messes with Joes life and
emotion
Outcast of society
Adds to Joes childhood
corruption
Forces Joe into a religious
environment, which he rejects
Makes Joe violent
Only truly loving or caring
woman in Joes life

Adjectives

Mysterious,
Angry, Nomadic,
Dangerous,
Corrupt

Determined,
empowered,
manipulative,
happy, survivor
Moral,
Dignified, Wise,
Strong, Brave,
Past-oriented
Routine, Moral,
Honest,
Hardworking
Liar, Corrupt,
Cheater
Crazy, Isolated,
Morally in a
grey area
Immoral,
Corrupt, Selfish
Harsh, Christian
extremist,
Hateful, Violent
Kind, Warm,
Fair, Loving

Around the 1930s in Jefferson, Mississippi

A period where African Americans were harshly
discriminated against and kept separate from whites in
public facilities
Strong community ties are present that lead to isolation
of outsiders and heavy pressure to conform to the
accepted culture and way of life
The past lives on in the community- several characters
cannot escape past events that affect their everyday life
Close to nature
Suspicious of outsiders because they are not very
knowledgeable of foreign places or people (leads to
prejudice)
Spans throughout a week and a half in the present and
28 years in the past
Locations: town, planning mill, Burden estate,
Hightower home
More physical distance = more psychological distance
(Mercer)
Symbols

The opening scene of Light in August introduces the audience

to Lena and her apparent naivet as well as her ability to
manipulate those around her to do as she pleases. Lena is a
central character to the novel as she is the sole woman who
broke free from the constraints of society. The opening scene
shows her personality as well as the first glimpse into her
background. She tells everyone she can about her dilemma of
finding the babys father because shes convinced he will
support her. Faulkner stated that his reason for writing the
novel was to focus on the role of women and breaking away
from tradition. The reader sees this in the opening scene.
Significance of the ending/closing scene
The final scene of Light in August is from the point of view of
a furniture repairer and dealer who picks up Byron and Lena.
The fresh perspective aligns with the theme of skewed
perceptions as the man views Byron as small and weak
(Mercer). The reader sees the relationship between Byron and
Lena from the eyes of a man who has nothing to do with either.
In addition, his description provides humor as he shares it with
his wife, which was in short supply throughout the novel.
Faulkner introduces this new narrator and the reader sees the
conclusion of the novel through his perceptions of it. Finally,
with the conclusion of the relationship between Byron and
Lena, it is obvious that Lena truly broke free. She had not been
looking for Lucas, but had wanted to get away before she
settled down with Byron.

Circles and wheelscannot be escaped, circle of

life(Lena and Joe Christmas), Hightowers wheel of
faces shows that everyone is connected and interrelated
Windowsoften present in the novel such as Lena and
Joe Christmas escaping through them; provide a means
of escape as well as a representation of
isolation(Hightower)
Old AP Questions
Mirror imagerepresents the public and private image
#13 (1982) In great literature, no scene of violence exists for its own
of people; the perceptions of the individual and the
sake. Choose a work of literary merit that confronts the reader or
community are reflections of each other
audience with a scene or scenes of violence and explain how this
contributes to the meaning of the complete work.
Roads: both lead to action and cause isolation,
#26 (1995) Writers often highlight the values of a culture or a society
characters may try to run but the roads are circular and
by using characters who are alienated because of gender, race, class, or
end up where they started
creed. Choose a play or novel in which such a character plays a
Shadows/ghostsrepresents aspects of the past that the significant role and show how that characters alienation reveals the
characters cannot escape
surrounding societys assumptions and moral values.
Possible Themes
Reality is different than ones perceptionseveral characters introduced through rumors and speculation or have to deal
with misperceptions (Joe Christmas, Hightower)
Mans relationship to the communityclose-knit ties of the community are obvious and bind it together, leaving
outsiders isolated
Isolationseveral characters are isolated from the community for differences including race and life choices (Lena,
Hightower, Joanna Burden, Joe Christmas)
Consequences of blind adherence to religionresults in brutality such as McEacherns treatment of Joe; religion binds
society together because it creates common moral standards (which in turn lead to the tight community)
Racismin accordance with the time period, African Americans are looked down upon in the novel; on many occasions,
it is obvious they are not equal, Joe Christmas seems ashamed of his mixed ancestry
Inhumanity between menviolence is extremely prevalent in the novel; from Joe Christmas murdering Joanna Burden to
the lynching of Joe Christmas, Light in August showcases several incidents of fairly unmotivated cruelty between people
Past in the presentnearly everyone is tied to the past as it affects everything in the present; they cannot escape past
actions or previously formed perceptions and it constantly forms their personalities; they cannot find peace without
coming to terms with past actions
Male/Female interactionthe idea of the relationship between men and women and the opinions of each by the other are
prevalent in the novel