The following passage has a few sentences with dense meaning that are couched in a monotonous telling of daily life: these few sentences alter one’s perception of the novel as a whole, and they are a focal point for the passage and the novel.
“You’re not the one who has to bear it,” Mrs Compson said. “It’s not your responsibility. You can go away. You don’t have to bear the brunt of it day in and day out. You owe nothing to them, to Mr Compson’s memory. I know you have never had any tenderness for Jason. You’ve never tried to conceal it (Faulkner 272).
Dilsey was responsible for raising the Compson kids, and she is responsible for the care of the household. Responsibility has to take on a different meaning here for it to fit the passage, so the meaning would have to relate to expected familial obligations. Mrs. Compson is saying, in a roundabout way, that …show more content…
If Dilsey never showed any tenderness towards Jason, unlike the other Compson kids, then she caused Jason’s formative years to lack a nurturing figure. Jason relied on Damuddy for that emotional bond because his own mother lacked the nurturing instinct. The death of his central source of love at an early age was damaging enough, but Caddy had to kick him while he was down by calling him a “Cry baby” for caring about Damuddy (Faulker 26). This event would prove to be a catalyst for Jason’s antisocial, deviant inclinations, especially towards Caddy’s offspring, Quentin. Lacking that early development of an empathic bond with someone he loved also hindered his moral development, thus causing himself to be the only person he is capable of loving. He then externalizes the blame of anything wrong with his life, which causes him to blame his family for any perceived slight in life. Simply put, he’s not a sociopath: he’s a socially-handicapped person who is just a product of his environment—it’s the nature versus nurture issue. He wasn’t born this
“You’re not the one who has to bear it,” Mrs Compson said. “It’s not your responsibility. You can go away. You don’t have to bear the brunt of it day in and day out. You owe nothing to them, to Mr Compson’s memory. I know you have never had any tenderness for Jason. You’ve never tried to conceal it (Faulkner 272).
Dilsey was responsible for raising the Compson kids, and she is responsible for the care of the household. Responsibility has to take on a different meaning here for it to fit the passage, so the meaning would have to relate to expected familial obligations. Mrs. Compson is saying, in a roundabout way, that …show more content…
If Dilsey never showed any tenderness towards Jason, unlike the other Compson kids, then she caused Jason’s formative years to lack a nurturing figure. Jason relied on Damuddy for that emotional bond because his own mother lacked the nurturing instinct. The death of his central source of love at an early age was damaging enough, but Caddy had to kick him while he was down by calling him a “Cry baby” for caring about Damuddy (Faulker 26). This event would prove to be a catalyst for Jason’s antisocial, deviant inclinations, especially towards Caddy’s offspring, Quentin. Lacking that early development of an empathic bond with someone he loved also hindered his moral development, thus causing himself to be the only person he is capable of loving. He then externalizes the blame of anything wrong with his life, which causes him to blame his family for any perceived slight in life. Simply put, he’s not a sociopath: he’s a socially-handicapped person who is just a product of his environment—it’s the nature versus nurture issue. He wasn’t born this