The Symbolism in Light in August

毕世颖

Abstract： William Faulkners long novel Light in August mainly displays how Puritanism and racialism poison and ruin humanity. The author deepens the theme by using symbolic images skillfully. Faulkner used a series of images to reveal that Puritanism and racism poison human beings both physically and spiritually. The paper makes an analysis of the images that appear in the novel—black house， big fire， and light to explore the technique of symbolism and show Faulkners idea of creation.

Key words： symbolism； black house；big fire， light

Light in August， Faulkners seventh novel was first published October 6， 1932. It belongs to the Southern Gothic and modernist literary genres. In a loose， unstructured modernist narrative style， Faulkner explores themes of race， sex， class and religion in the American South. By focusing on characters that are misfits， outcasts， or are otherwise marginalized in their community， he portrays the clash of alienated individuals against a Puritanical， prejudiced rural society. Early reception of the novel was mixed， with some reviewers critical of Faulkners style and subject matter. However， over time， the novel has come to be considered one of the most important literary works by Faulkner and one of the best English-language novels of the 20th century. In the novel， many important images appear. And the paper tries to explore the symbolic meanings of these images to make the novel more understandable to the readers.

I. Black house

Initially， Faulkner named this book “black house”， then after some thoughts， he changed it into “Light in August”， from which Faulkners intention of creation can be seen clearly. There are many characters in the work： Lena， Joe， Joanna， Hightower， all of whom lived in the “black house”. “Black house” symbolizes the spiritual prison created by Puritanism and racism， which imprisons peoples thoughts and destroys peoples spiritual being.

1. Lenas black house

Lenas brother is a rigid and strict puritan with no vigor and passion in life. After their parents death， Lena was looked after by her brother. The room where Lena lived had only one window with a little light shining in. The environment and atmosphere was greatly repressing and suffocating. Apart from this， her brothers lack of passion and enthusiasm in life made her life more intolerable. Lena felt her brothers house was just like a “black house”， where she was imprisoned for eight years. During this period， her feminine consciousness had been in a state of atrophy. One night， she happened to have a chance to open the long-closed window. This meant a lot to Lena. It not only gave her a chance to breathe the fresh air from the outside world， but it also got her physically involved with a man Lucas， who helped to awaken her feminine consciousness. After her pregnancy， she decided to escape from the “black house” which restrained her physical and mental freedom and embarked on her journey of looking for her childs father.

2. Joe s black house

Joe was a poor man， whose tragedy started from his birth. His mother was so worried about his identity which would lead to his suffering in his later life that she died in melancholy. Joes grandfather suspected Joes father was a black， so he sent Joe to an orphanage where he was poisoned by racism and sexual degradation. In addition， his grandfather kept watching over him， and spread the rumor that Joe was actually a “nigger”. When Joe was five， he accidentally saw the female dietitians sexual privacy， so he was revenged crazily by her. Orphanage was just like a “black house” and it had a devastating effect on his life. Several years later， Joe came out from the orphanage and entered another “black house”， his adoptive fathers house. Joes adoptive father was a crazy Puritan. In his view， life meant hard work and respect for God， while pleasure and enjoyment meant evil， “For I will have you learn soon that the two abominations are sloth and idle thinking， the two virtues are work and the fear of God.” （Faulkner 104） He controlled his wife， so that she lost any vigor and desire， his wife became lifeless. In this kind of family Joe could never feel the slightest warmth and love. His adoptive father also controlled his thoughts strictly by trying to turn him into a devout Christian. Joe couldnt stand this torture， so one day， his hatred erupted. He knocked over his father with a chair and ran away from the family. In this way， he got rid of the imprisonment of the “black house”.

3. Joannas black house

Joanna lived her whole life in her ancestral house. It was also a “black house”. She was distressed with a heavy burden of family tradition. Her ancestors were from the north， and were excluded from the mainstream white society. In addition， they insisted on abolitionism， so Southern whites hated them more. Her grandfather and brother were killed in the Abolition movement. Whats more， the family believed in Puritanism. In such a family background. Joannas mind was instilled with Puritanism and racism at an early age. After the death of her family， she lived alone in her familys “black house” for over 40 years. She did not have any contact with the outside world， the local whites， but only the blacks. When she was 40 years old， she still remained single without any man appearing in her life. Her sexual awareness was greatly repressed. So when she met Joe， her sexual awareness was awakened just like a volcano erupting violently. Family traditions and values created a “black house” for her， which she could never had the ability to break away from for her whole life.

II. Big fire

In Light in August， fire is also a significant imagery. At the beginning of the novel， Lena saw the big fire when she just arrived at Jefferson town. Fire and columns of smoke appeared repeatedly in the novel. It had double meanings. First of all， fire symbolized destruction and death. Joe not only killed Joanna， he also set fire to the house where Joanna lived for forty years. In fact， even if Joe hadnt killed Joanna， Joanna would have died with him. Joes killing of Joanna and burning her “black house” not only meant that he broke out of his traditional life， it also meant the destruction of the isolated northerners as represented by Joanna. Also， Joes killing of Joanna helped to maintain his own dignity again， however， it also meant that he could move toward the end of his life. After one week of escape， Joe appeared in the town with his shaved face， his new haircut and a new shirt and tie， which meant his yearning for a new life， although this new beginning also meant the end of his life.

Meanwhile， the big fire was also a symbol of hope and rebirth. By the fire， Joanna acquired a new life. Her relationship with Joe undermined her soul when Joe refused to pray with her. She knew her life had no hope. Only death could free her， therefore， she had prepared a bullet for herself.

Hightower also started a new life through the big fire. He used to be self-isolated， unable to establish any contact with other people in reality. After the baptism of fire， he changed dramatically. He recognized that people were inseparable in the social community. At the critical moment when Joe would be killed， he was kind enough to help him even at the price of sacrificing his dignity and reputation. This was the beginning of his new life.

III. Light

Lena in light in August is the image of light. Lena searched for her husband in Jefferson town， whose natural glory was a sharp contrast with the darkness and alienation of human nature in Jefferson town where the southern culture was best represented. Lena also embodied the authors idea： “It is his privilege to help man endure by lifting his heart， by reminding him of the courage and honor and hope and pride and compassion and pity and sacrifice which have been the glory of his past.” （李102）

According to Faulkner， the story of Light in August started from Lena Grove， a poor girl， who was pregnant and determined to find her husband. In Lena， not only was the authors deep love for his hometown clearly seen， but the readers could feel his strong nostalgia for the past good old days. Lena was a symbol of pure world where an uncontaminated land was kept. Although Lena was pregnant and deserted by the childs father， she searched for the childs father calmly and never felt shame and guilt. Faulkner said，“Lena is a some what earth mother， she has all those womanly qualities which， as Faulkner likes to point out， baffle， fascinate， outrage， and finally defeat men.” （Chase 212） Her pregnant body was just like the earth mother who was full of life and vigor. Her ease way of walking symbolized the earths eternal movement. During those days for Lena to stay in Jefferson town， she brought light of human nature to this dark and alienated place. The glory of human nature shone all over Jefferson town， forming a sharp contrast with the dark human nature there. Through this contrast， Faulkner extended his humanitarian reflection and criticism to the southern society.

IV. Conclusion

Light in August mainly displays how Puritanism and racialism poison and ruin humanity. The author deepens the theme by using symbolic images skillfully. A series of images reveal racism poisons human beings both physically and spiritually. Through this novel， William Faulkner told people hope and life are eternal. Through the analysis of images， this paper hopes to make readers have a better understanding of the theme of the novel and aims to make a more comprehensive evaluation and insight into the novel Light in August. The tragedy of the characters in the novel can be attributed to the social situation， mainly racism and Puritanism. Only by eliminating the root of the evil， can a more harmonious and better society be built.

[Reference]

[1]Chase， Richard. New York： The American Novel and Its Tradition Press， 1957.

[2]Faulkner， William. Light in August. BeiJing： Central Compilation&Translation; Press， 2013.

[3]李文俊. 福克納评论集. 北京： 中国社会科学出版社， 1980.

（作者单位：沈阳理工大学外国语学院，辽宁 沈阳 110168）