Changes In William Faulkner's Barn Burning

Many people struggle every day. Most of them are trapped in situations which they believe cannot be escaped from. They spend numerous ways to find an exit out of their hopeless life, and some fail to do so. Sometimes escaping their old live can be a dramatic change.. They could lose the comfort of their home, their families, and more. This dramatic change can happen to those who are not prepared to endure it. In "Barn Burning" by William Faulkner, the story revolves around Colonel Sartoris Snopes, a boy of ten years old, who despises his current life. After his dad burned down a farm, they moved to another area, in which he believed their lives could return to normal. He believes that his father will quit his destructive ways, and show more …show more content…
Abner is depicted to the reader as white trash, because of the way he acts towards his family and others. Fire - his destructive way - is compared to Abner’s personality, since Sarty uses it to show who is father is. After the night of the court, Abner and his family camped near a spring. Since the night is a cold, Abner builds his family a campfire, to give them warmth.. However, the fire constructed by Abner is "a small fire, neat, niggard almost, a shrewd fire" (158). The diction used to describe the fire portrays that this fire is quite useless to the family. Since the fire is small, very stingy, and cold, it can be inferred that it is useless. Abner has a close history with fires. When he burns down barns, Sarty has described those fires as huge, vicious, and extravagant; those fire are constructed with emotions that will devour anything in its path. This is Abner’s anger towards society for putting him in his current situation. He believes that the only way to satisfy himself is to make others feel how he does, so he burns down people’s possessions. The fires that he builds for his family demonstrates how much he does not care for his family. The fire is puny, weak, and fragile. No emotions are being put into these fires he constructs for his family. This is why Sarty wants to escape his old life. He is tired of having to deal with a person that shows no love and respect …show more content…
After the situation with De Spain, Sarty finds himself on top a of a hill. He does not know "how far he had come" (169). This sense of confusion could relate to how Sarty is feeling right now. He is a child that is lost, not knowing where he is, not knowing what to do, and not knowing where to go. Even though he is cold, hungry, and tired, his only solution is that "walking would cure that" (169). Sarty repeats that walking will be able to cure his cold and hunger that he feels. This sensation of walking is Sarty realizing that he is escaped his miserable path, and must embrace the new life that awaits him. He has to continue walking forward, and not ponder about the past. To him, walking is his remedy that will allow him to survive. Imagery is heavily emphasized to show this hopefulness. When he was going down the hill toward the forest, he heard "liquid silver voices of the birds" (169). The silver voice of the birds shows a sign promises and hope. Since he hears the voice, that do not cease to end, it shows that traversing the forest will bring him promises. Then he hears the “quiring heart of the late spring night” (169). Spring the archetype for rebirth. Since Sarty is running towards the forest and not looking back, it shows that he is ready to be born again. This new birth is going to be the new lifestyle that he has been longing for. Since he did “not look back” when he was running, he has accepted