The Conflicts And The Wounds In Life

William Faulkner (1897-1962) is a well-known American modern novelist in the world. In the 1920s in the United States appeared "Southern Literature" and Faulkner is the representative. Faulkner creates an epic series of novels which are based on the stories of his home and people in his family.The Sound and the Fury is one of William Faulkner’s classic works. Its creative writing style, complex and diverse characterization and profound themes make the novel the best one as well as the most obscure one. (Taojie,2004:P354) In the United States this novel is one of compulsory reading materials for college students. The novel describes the decline of the Compson family in the Southern America. Faulkner devotes an entire chapter to delicately portray the eldest son, Quentin’s extremely confused, conflicted and melancholy inner world, which makes many readers pity for this sensitive, clever young man deeply and begin to understand his loneliness and sorrow.Thinking of more and more college students’suicidal incidents in China today the author begins to focus on Quentin, a college student from Harvard one hundred years ago whom William Faulkner created in his novel and re-approaches William Faulkner as well as this novel from this new angle. The author makes another interpretation of this so-called "obscure work" through analyzing Quentin’s personality, the inner conflicts and his broken family relationship, which makes the author have a further understanding of this novel as well as human nature.This paper falls into five chapters.Chapter one briefly introduces William Faulkner and his life, his work the Sound and the Fury and its research in China and abroad. It also introduces Sigmund Freud and his theory of personality.Chapter two applies Freud’s theory to analyze Quentin’s personality development and points out that the unbalanced relationship among his Id, Ego and Super-ego or Quentin’s conflicted personality is the internal factor of his tragedy. In this chapter Quentin’s inner conflicts are explored through his impulsive, oppressed Id, weak Ego and extremely powerful Super-ego.Chapter three analyzes Quentin’s broken family relationship and points out that the abnormal family relationship is the external factor for Quentin’s tragedy. This chapter analyzes the absent parents, indifferent brothers and it is this abnormal family relationship that influences the development of Quentin’s healthy personality one hand and pushes Quentin into sadness, despair and ruin on the other hand.Chapter four discusses Quentin’s tragic fate and the salvation. William Faulkner thinks that Dilsey, from the lowest society is the salvation for the whole tragedy. Dilsey is the soul figure in the novel, whose virtues such as love, courage, responsibility and endurance are what the Compson family are missing and these virtues are all from her firm and simple faith.Chapter five is the conclusion of this paper. Conflicted personality and broken family relationship both lead to Quentin’s tragedy. However the missing of faith for modern people is the key cause for this tragedy. The final salvation for people is perhaps the establishment of real faith.