The Sound and the Fury 433ing there. No wonder Caddy and her daughter must
each seek their escape, and as far from Jefferson as
possible. No wonder Quentin must take his own
life. Of all the characters, only Dilsey, the family’s
servant, seems to have coping tools. When she cries
during the Easter service, her tears feel like a natural
and much needed release. When Dilsey says “I seed
de first and de last,” she indicates her ability to hope,
to have courage and love, and endure in a world
filled with constant and pervasive loss.
Elizabeth Cornell
love in The Sound and the Fury
Love is a powerful and destructive force that threads
through William Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury.
One focus of love in the novel is Caddy Comp-
son. Her brother, Benjy, is frequently flooded with
memories of his exiled sister. He remembers that,
of all the Compsons, Caddy conveyed the most
compassion, understanding, and love for him during
his childhood. He depended on her gentle care and
words: “You’ve got your Caddy” she often reassured
him. Unlike the rest of the family, Caddy enjoyed
playing with him and taking care of him. For exam-
ple, she made sure he wore gloves on a cold day. Yet
even with his limited mental faculties, Benjy could
sense when Caddy’s love for him was threatened.
He cried at the sight of her muddy drawers, which
may be read as representing her developing sexuality.
Later, he became upset at the smell of her perfume,
which can be understood as representing the loss of
her virginity. At Caddy’s wedding, he bellowed at
the sight of her veil. In each instance, Caddy was
there to comfort him. Following her exile, however,
in the present time of the book, Benjy is left only
with memories of her. Thus, whenever he hears
the word “caddy” echoing from the golf course next
door, it reminds him of her and causes him to bel-
low. Since Caddy is no longer there to soothe him,
his consolation comes in substitute love objects, such
as a slipper or a flower. Benjy’s obsession over his
absent sister’s love becomes a destructive force in his
life because he is unable to accept solace or love from
anyone else, even from the family’s compassionate
and loving servant, Dilsey.
Quentin’s love for his sister is no less deep than
Benjy’s, but more conflicted and complex. Quentin
cannot bear that his sister might love anyone but
him, and his chivalric attempts to defend her honor
fail. Thus, the loss of her virginity, and her later mar-
riage to Herbert, whom Quentin knows she marries
only because she is pregnant by another man, affect
him deeply. He loves Caddy so much that he wishes
the “world would roar away” and leave them alone
together. At one point, Quentin pretends he has
committed incest with her, but his father knows he
is lying. Quentin cannot bear, as his father points
out, to think that someday his memories of Caddy
will fade and that his love for her might ebb. The
keen pain Quentin feels about his sister’s circum-
stances keeps his love and memories fresh. But
Quentin knows his father’s words bear truth. Suicide
is the only way Quentin can stop time and prevent
his love for her from diminishing, as well as escape
the guilt from his incestuous feelings toward her.
Jason, whom Faulkner considered his most evil
character, is clearly not Caddy’s most loving brother.
Jason’s bitterness over Caddy’s absence is taken out
on her teen-aged daughter, Quentin, for whom he
is responsible. Each month, Jason brings his mother
a fake copy of the check Caddy sends to support
Quentin, which Mrs. Compson burns. Jason secretly
cashes the check and keeps the money. Caddy’s
money functions as a substitute for the love she has
withheld from him. Jason’s actions also attempt to
deprive Caddy of her daughter’s love, just as Caddy
deprived him. By leading his niece, Quentin, to
think she is supported by him, Jason believes he is
entitled to her loyalty and obedience, if not her love.
But Jason’s selfish, vindictive behavior ultimately
backfires, causing Quentin to despise him and run
away with the stolen money.
However, love is not an entirely destructive force
in the novel. Dilsey, the Compson family’s loving
and tireless servant, offers unconditional love that
functions like a glue that holds the fragmented fam-
ily together. She makes sure Benjy receives a cake on
his birthday. She defends Quentin from her Uncle
Jason’s anger. Although Dilsey is old, she runs up and
down the stairs at Mrs. Compson’s every whim. But
even Dilsey’s love has not prevented Caddy’s down-
fall or exile, nor will it save the rest of the Compsons.
In the book’s final section, when Dilsey says she
has seen the “beginnin” and that now she sees the