What he learns in hindsight is similar to the wisdom the old fisherman has in The Old Man and the Sea by Hemingway.

John T. Matthews writes in his book, The Sound and the Fury: Faulkner and the Lost Cause: “it may seem artificial or even redundant to” discuss “Faulkner’s technique” (106). There is no shortage of criticisms regarding William Faulkner’s literary style. He brings to literature an opportunity to engage his readers differently than anyone before or after him. Faulkner’s style is to have the reader associate with the character by listening to the character’s (often the narrator’s) speech. He cleverly lets the reader discover the characters’ weaknesses, strengths, personality traits, motivations, desires, instabilities, et cetera, through his unique narrative style which foregrounds stream of consciousness.

Stream of consciousness can take on many forms, one of which is the lack of punctuation in a narrative. Frye includes in his definition of stream of consciousness techniques as “unorthodox punctuation…unusual capitalization…frequent italics…or sometimes a lack of punctuation or of distinguishing typefaces altogether” (444). One example of this type of narration exists in “The Bear.” Part 4 of “The Bear” is of Ike recounting the history of the McCaslin land and home. This section lacks punctuation and narrative clarity making it more difficult to read than some of the other Faulkner pieces.

However, particularly effective in “The Bear” is Ike’s narration of the hunting trips. His growth and discovery from a young boy to an old man is insightful. What he learns in hindsight is similar to the wisdom the old fisherman has in The Old Man and the Sea by Hemingway. Ike is able to become part of nature, not just an outside observer. Ike’s sole purpose for being in the woods is not for the kill. It was refreshing to have a single narrator in this story. For the first time, we really got to know a single character.

Etc.

Works Cited

Faulkner, William. “The Bear.” Three Famous Short Novels: Spotted Horses, Old Man, The Bear. New York: Vintage, 1958. Print.

Frye, Northrop. Anatomy of Criticism. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1957. Print.

Matthews, John T. The Sound and the Fury: Faulkner and the Lost Cause. Boston: Twayne, 1991. Print.

�A title. This one is plain, but informative.

�The introductory paragraph gives a bit of background information by opening with a quotation to which the writer wants to respond.

�The introductory paragraph ends with a strong thesis statement.

�This is only a partial essay, but it gives a basic pattern to follow. Remember also to include a concluding paragraph; this should be similar to the introductory paragraph, but should take into account any shifts that the thesis has undergone during the essay.

�The Work Cited list should start on a new page.

�Note that the entries are all in alphabetical order by the first work of the entry, and each has a hanging indent.