Light in August

This summer I was on vacation in Otranto and I visited the wonderful cathedral of the city.

The floor of the church is made up of a beautiful mosaic that starts from the entrance and ends at the altar. The mosaic represents the main scenes from the Old Testament of the Bible, depicting the main biblical characters, from Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, to Noah's Ark.

What does all this have to do with "Light in August"? The mosaic of Otranto came to my mind because this powerful novel can be defined as a Bible. A Bible of the arid South of the United States, a grandiose work in which every single character recalls a protagonist of the New or Old Testament. Gigantic figures in their tragedy yet simple: a Madonna, Lena Grove, hieratic and quiet like the Virgin in front of the Archangel Gabriel, with a son in her arms whose father has left Alabama for Mississippi, a greedy and mean individual who flees from responsibility, chased and never reached by Lena in her quiet and endless journey along roads where cotton fields blinded by the August sun are overlooked, a sun that gives a particular luminosity, so intense as if it knew that it is over, that the darkness is about to prevail and those are the last fires of summer. A Saint Joseph, a putative father, Byron Bunch, a man who has reached middle age working at the sawmill in Jefferson every day sent by the Lord, even on Saturday afternoons, without thinking of anything else for fear of losing it and suffering, who is transformed by the encounter with Lena, shaken in his certainties but always humble and ready to sacrifice. A John the Baptist, the Reverend Hightower, born to an elderly couple, with a single mission to accomplish, to go to Jefferson, in Mississippi, to the place where his grandfather, at the head of a handful of Confederate soldiers, was killed during a military action taken to destroy General Grant's deposits. There is a Mary Magdalene, Joanna Burden, the woman who dedicates her life to helping blacks as a cross for the expiation of the sins of whites, she who will be seized by a furious passion, after a sad life as a spinster, for Joe Christmas, one who doesn't even know what he is, only God the Father knows if white or black blood flows in his veins, abandoned as a newborn on the road on Christmas Eve night and raised in an orphanage until he was adopted by a childless couple who raised him among strict obligations and exemplary punishments to make him a perfect Christian, when instead the result will be quite different. Christmas is the most disturbing and at the same time most fascinating character in the novel, towards whom one feels pity, contempt, horror, pain. He who, like in the sacrificial rite of the celebration of the Eucharist, offers his blood and his body as a sacrifice for humanity. The sacrifice of himself to free the world from Evil. And around the prophet protagonists shouting that the kingdom of God is coming to cleanse the earth from the filth and abomination of the black race, sheriffs with the tin star who chase criminals along the dusty roads, blacks so dark as to be invisible to the world and the white inhabitants of Jefferson who act as spectators to the tragedy taking place, good Christians who walk around with Bibles in their hands and attend church every Sunday, prey to a racial hysteria that leads them to condemn without appeal the black blood wherever it flows.

A masterpiece written with a writing as sharp as a blade, dry and essential, to be read because it teaches us "how false even the deepest of books is when applied to life".

Faulkner is a master of prose, and his writing style is truly unique. He has the ability to create a narrative that seems to have a life of its own, pausing at times to pour itself a drink and then getting sidetracked telling you about the bottle. This digressive style may seem unconventional to some, but I find it to be absolutely beautiful.

It adds a sense of authenticity and depth to his stories, as if we are not just reading about the characters and their experiences, but also getting a glimpse into the mind of the author himself. The way he weaves in these seemingly random details and tangents makes the reading experience all the more engaging and memorable.

Faulkner's prose is like a meandering river, taking us on a journey through the landscapes of his imagination. We may not always know where it will lead us, but we are content to follow along, knowing that the ride will be well worth it.

I was not prepared for what I read. My first Faulkner was "As I Lay Dying" and I loved every single word of it. Now, in a broader breath, Faulkner seems different. I don't find the irony that was present on every page there, but a hard writing, like life. Faulkner spares us nothing and recreates a perfect snapshot of the American South.

The characters are perfectly characterized: Lena, the pregnant girl who walks to find her man; Christmas, both executioner and victim himself, the fruit of how the environment one lives (or doesn't live) in can influence; Byron Bunch, the hopeless lover; the Reverend Hightower, a pastor renounced by the Church, who lives on memories.

The atmosphere is melancholy, like that summer afternoon light, broken, yellow, that is about to give way to the first darkness of night. And here too, the journey is cathartic. In the case of Lena, hope that never dies. Christmas, instead, finds death, the only way to redeem himself from his life of misdeeds. A thick, compact book, with a dense and angular writing but that makes you love it.

August Heat is a novel that reaches from the local to the universal, from its own time to all times. Basically, Faulkner has his own time, his own geography, and his own issues. The novel deals with the individual-human issue without ever breaking away from that, and ultimately looks at life-humanity at the highest level. How he achieved this is not the order: with different narrative techniques, with the combination and sometimes the opposition of different narrative techniques. And of course with language. The language is simple and unadorned when telling the story of time, and is in accordance with the character of each when telling about its heroes, and especially in the last parts of the novel - when it reaches the highest level - it is complex and sometimes incomprehensible.

August Heat gives the feeling that we are almost always in a puzzle while reading, and at the same time, it makes us think that it is very close to the structure of life. The events are on one side, the different perceptions-points of view of people are on one side, and the total that the different points of view reveal, that great chaos is on one side. What all the techniques related to language, fiction, and form serve is in the total of these different points of view: incomprehensibility, inability to reconcile, insolubility. If the problem were resolved, for example, or if it were not a problem that repeated and reproduced itself on one side, then we would have surpassed Faulkner only with his technique. But we said, we were deceived in August Heat. If only we could have said. If only we could have said that it was at least gloomy for Faulkner.

Thought that after reading The Sound and the Fury, I had already known William Faulkner. However, Light in August reveals to me a new Writer. Also this captivating, hypnotic, dazzling,... Magnificent! Genius! Unparalleled!

It is a complex and, at the same time, simple novel that must be read with great concentration. Nevertheless, the prose, the characters, the story are so beautiful and perfect that it is difficult to interrupt and close it, definitely, at the end.

Set in the southern United States during Prohibition, where racism and religious intolerance prevail, Faulkner creates a gallery of characters and stories of tragic, moving and unforgettable lives. I highlight two, symbols of Good and Evil that coexist within each of us.

\n  THE LIGHT\n

Lena Grove is "the light in August" that illuminates the whole novel with hope. Gentle, serene, innocent and optimistic, she always believes in the beauty of life and the Good that exists in the hearts of men.

Her lover left on the day she told him she was pregnant, saying he would call her later. She waited for him and when the birth of her son was approaching, she took to the road believing, against all logic, that he didn't come because he couldn't. She walks for weeks, asking if they know Lucas Burches. She meets Byron Bunch who falls in love with her "contrary to all the traditions of his austere and zealous provincial education that demands the physical inviolability in this matter."

In the voices of Lena and Byron, we hear the Sound of Love like an enchanting melody of tenderness, kindness and future. Of life.

\n  THE DARKNESS\n

Joe Christmas is the black cloud that shadows the Light in August. Since childhood, he has lived tormented by the suspicion of having black blood, a stigma that turns his life into a constant agony. He lives prisoner of hatred for his white and black blood, and for the women he associates with perversion and death. When he becomes the lover of Joanna Burden, a middle-aged abolitionist with an unstable temperament, he is dragged into a spiral of madness from which he cannot escape. "there was something that held him, as any fatalist can always be held: through curiosity, pessimism or pure inertia. Meanwhile, the relationship continued, submerging him more and more under the imperious and overwhelming fury of those nights. Perhaps he realized that he couldn't escape. In any case, he stayed, watching the two creatures fighting inside that single body, like two silhouettes illuminated by moonlight fighting, drowning, alternating in convulsions on the surface of a black and viscous lake, under the last moon."

Christmas is a powerful character for whom I felt, simultaneously, compassion and anger, and the love story between him and Joanna one of the most terrible and fascinating I have ever read.

In the voices of Joe and Joanna, we hear the Fury of Passion like cries of pain, condemnation and perdition. Of death.

Light in August is a descent into hell, but in it we also glimpse a ray of light that shows us the way to paradise.

Finally, I realized how much my heart had been longing for a fictional novel and how good it was.

While reading this book, I came to the definite conclusion that the best Iranian translator is Saleh Hosseini.

I have always had a passion for reading, and fictional novels have a special charm for me. They allow me to escape from reality and enter a world of imagination. Recently, I came across a book that truly captured my heart.

The translator, Saleh Hosseini, did an excellent job. His translation was so smooth and accurate that it made the reading experience even more enjoyable. I could feel the emotions of the characters and was completely immersed in the story.

I am very grateful to Saleh Hosseini for his wonderful translation. Thanks to him, I was able to discover this amazing novel and have a great reading experience. I highly recommend this book to all those who love reading fictional novels.

William Faulkner's "Light in August" is a remarkable work that begins with a simple yet profound scene.

Lena, sitting beside the road, watches the wagon mount the hill toward her. She thinks, "I have come from Alabama, a fur piece."

This opening phrase sets the tone for the entire novel. It presents Lena as a passive figure, engaged only in mental activity. The image of her sitting and watching imparts a sense of loneliness and languor, which is echoed in the title of the book.

The southern drawl in "fur" and the reference to Alabama mark this as a story of the deep South, just like Faulkner himself. The phrase builds slowly, mirroring the structure of the book.

Although there is action and violence in the story, it is described at a deliberate pace.

"Light in August" was my first introduction to Faulkner in AP English, and it was a life-changing experience. His grandiose phrasing, vivid characters, and dark Southern gothic atmosphere captivated me.

Years later, I returned to Faulkner and read nearly all of his works, including the biography by Joseph Blotner. "Light in August" still holds a special place in my heart as one of the greatest works of 20th-century American literature.

It is a beautifully crafted novel that depicts the intertwined destinies of Lena Grove, Byron Burch, and Joe Christmas. Faulkner's portrayal of the preacher Gail Hightower is also unforgettable, vividly capturing the essence of southern fundamentalism.

If you want to discover Faulkner, "Light in August" is an absolute must-read.

The most blatant reason for choosing to read this book lies in the magnificent manner by which it conjures up the atmosphere of the South in the 1920s. The animosity and mistrust between the races were omnipresent. Such desolation! Asserting that the book is about racial discrimination is akin to stating that a "painting is nice"......and leaving it at that. It is the emotional reaction that Faulkner's words elicit in the reader that is truly extraordinary.

Faulkner's sentences often convey more than the literal words; they are like prose poetry. Many of the sentences possess a deeper significance. For me, this is an advantage; I relish grappling with the meaning. Simultaneously, while one is fumbling to understand the implied message, one is also contending with a plot that can be perplexing. A new chapter will commence with - he did this and she did that! "Who, who, who?" one frustratingly inquires. Calm down and wait and listen; you will discover. What is he stating? What does he imply? I surely asked myself this numerous times. At times, I was irritated! Do not anticipate an effortless read.

Faulkner's writing abounds in metaphors. Some of them appealed to me, while others did not.

The book has a somber tone. It is harsh. I cannot claim that there is a shred of humor in this book, perhaps except for the ending. I smiled, but do not misunderstand me, one is not joyous while reading this book.

The narration by Will Paton was excellent. The slow drawl and southern dialect further enhanced Faulkner's written words.

When I read this book, I instantly recognized the style. It is difficult to misidentify a Faulkner work for that of another author. Solely for this reason, one should read a Faulkner. Should I simply assert that everyone should endure at least one Faulkner to experience the challenge of his writing?

I appreciate the way Faulkner writes - his style of writing. I was captivated by the plot, and my emotional response was complete.