In “Barn Burning” William Faulkner writes, “‘You would have told him.’ He didn’t answer. His father struck him with the flat of his hand on the side of his head…” (Faulkner 4). Sarty wishes to reveal the truth to others, but there is always the threat of Abner’s abuse and disappointment looming over him. In reality, the physical abuse affects Sarty less than his constant fear of not living up to Abner’s expectations, which reveals plenty about Sarty’s personality. Abner expects his son to stand wholeheartedly by his actions, right or wrong.
This relates to the theme of family because of his fathers death, but also because the last word that Elie’s father said was his name. This leads me to the conclusion that in times of death, the most important thing is family. Evidence (and page number): “He began beating him with an iron bar. At first, my father simply doubled over under the blows, but then he seemed to break in two like an old tree struck by lightning. I had watched it all happening without moving.
Mr. Harris is landowner, who is left with a burned barn and no legal option. Snopes is advised to leave the country because the court can’t find enough evidence to sentence him. His son Sarty Snopes chooses to warn the owner. “Barn Burning” offers a helpful picture of how Faulkner sees the economics of the postbellum South, where the poor whites remain the underclass rivals of black sharecroppers (Pierce). I will discuss the similarities and differences in the rituals performed in “The Lottery” and “Barn Burning” and how factors such as society and class, family, and perception.
In this room Abner is sentenced to leave the county and never come back. Abner shows a really strong factor on what his true characteristic is like. He tells his son Sarty “you got to learn to stick to your own blood or you ain’t going to have any blood to stick to you” (Faulkner 4). Another case in which the courtroom would be included is when Abner steps in a fresh pile of horse manure and stains his new land lords expensive rug. His new land lord is named de Spain.
His inability to accept the fact that he is committing unnecessary acts of violence are proof that Abner views life from a different perspective. As the reader progresses through the story, it’s clear that Abner is carrying out actions only beneficial to himself. He speaks of loyalty numerous times to his son, however Abner only emphasizes this value when he needs Sarty to help him get out of a predicament. “Barn Burning” is a very interesting story containing numerous controversial events. As the story progresses, Abner shows his true colors of deception and violence.
Since the book came out in 1939, everyone has had a opinion on the ending to John Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath. It has a very controversial ending, that Steinbeck thought would name the last nail into the coffin, so to speak, on how bad the dust bowl and moving west really was. The ending starts when the Joad family is threatened with a flood, so they make their way to a old barn where they find a boy and his old father. The boy says his father is starving, and that he can’t keep anything solid down. He needs something like soup or milk.
This is seen when Oswald says about Engstrand’s home to Mrs.Alving “It’ll burn just like this one/ Everything will burn. There is nothing left to remind people of Father. I, too, am burning.”(Ibsen 63).In this quotation, it is seen how Oswald was trying to save his father’s image by trying to save the orphanage and he failed to do so. He was trying to save the only thing which was left of his father and the only thing which people will remember his father by. Also, Oswald feels that he is falling apart and “burning” inside just as the orphanage, this makes Oswald identifies with the orphanage and it reflects how Oswald feels.
He is physically destructive, because he killed Ikemefuna and Ogbuefi Ezeudu’s son. Okonkwo lets his rage rule over him until finally it subdues him just as fire is eventually turned to ash. The fire as a symbol attributes to one of the themes of the work which is that suppressing one’s feelings doesn’t allow them to change or makes it harder to change. Just like Okonkwo resisted change with the white settlers, people in today’s world are still holding on to
The novel begins with Effia Otcher being born during a village fire. Effia’s father states “... the memory of the fire that burned, then fled, would haunt him, his children, and his children’s children for as long as the line continued” (3). By saying this, Cobbe is making a connection to fire and slavery. Slavery, similar to fire, is also a force that leaves wreckage behind without any concern for those it hurts. The imagery of fire in this example is used as a metaphor for slavery and the lasting impact it has on the world.
This theme of development is also represented in the symbolism of the barn changing from a sturdy structure to a pile of ashes. Like the barn, Sarty Snopes changes from the sturdy values instilled in him by his family to a completely different and unique version of himself. Sarty begins the story as a young child with strong trust in his father and ends as a young boy who has developed a sense of independence and justice. Early in William Faulkner’s “Barn Burning”, the character of Sarty is heavily attached to his trust for his father, Abner Snopes. The opening scene shows young Sarty perched on a nail keg and surrounded by the smell of cheese.