In William Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha novels, a group of characters exists who possess three common characteristics--a closeness to mankind, a realization of the tragedy in life, and a positive response to this tragedy. The term beneficent is used to describe the twenty individuals who possess these traits. The characters are divided into two broad categories. The first includes the white and black primitives who innately possess beneficent qualities. The term primitive describes the individual who exhibits three additional traits--simplicity, nonintellectualism, and closeness to nature. The second group includes characters who must learn the attributes of beneficence in the course of the novel. All the beneficent characters serve as embodiments of the optimism found in Faulkner's fiction.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc504607 |
| Date | 05 1900 |
| Creators | Bryant, Deborah N. |
| Contributors | Kesterson, David B., 1938-, Smith, John T., Miller, Lee W. |
| Publisher | North Texas State University |
| Source Sets | University of North Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | iii, 143 leaves, Text |
| Rights | Public, Bryant, Deborah N., Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. |
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