Essay Questions

What shapes Bayard’s moral development as illustrated by Faulkner?

The author primarily focuses on Bayard's moral development throughout his life. As a child, Bayard is a carefree boy who does annoying things, including shooting at the Union soldiers. Society expects Bayard to respect his elders, a moral virtue that he lacks. However, the death of Bayard's grandmother is the turning point in his moral character development. As soon as his grandmother passes away, Bayard takes up all the responsibilities she leaves behind. On top of this, Bayard takes up the responsibility of looking for justice for his late grandmother. Later, Bayard realizes that Redmond is the one responsible for the death of his grandmother. Astonishingly, Bayard does not revenge as the community expected him to do. Instead, Bayard left the issue to the authorities to deal with Redmond.

What distinguishes Drusilla from other women in her community?

Drusilla is a different character because she wants to prove that women are not limited to household duties alone as expected by society. Drusilla wants to do things men do. For instance, she keeps short hair, wears men's clothes, and wants to fight alongside men. Drusilla's dreams are later realized when she is recruited to fight alongside Colonel Sartoris. The Irony of Drusilla is that she spent most of her nights sleeping alongside Colonel, and she wants everyone to believe that there is no romantic relationship between them. However, the reader knows that there is absolutely nothing going on between Colonel and Drusilla.

How does the author depict the imagery of touch to readers?

The circumstances surrounding Bayard's grandmother's death are psychologically triggering. Bayard realizes that his grandmother has been short in her room. Granny's body is badly mutilated, implying that the killers took their time to torture her. Therefore, the revelation of Granny's death is not only emotionally touching to Bayard but also to readers.