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White Identity In William Faulkner's The Narrator

520 Words3 Pages

Throughout the book, the Narrator always struggled with the fact that he was of mixed heritage, but considered black. In fact, many times he struggled with deciding what he identified as. For example, quite a few times throughout the novel he switched between being black and being white. Although he often tried to, he never truly found solace in either identity. As a result, he simply chose the identity that would give him the best advantages in his present-day society.

The Narrator’s decision to identify as white affected his life thereafter in many ways, but mainly positively. For example, being a white person meant that he was eligible for greater opportunities than those that were available for other African-Americans of the age. In addition, he did not suffer discrimination really due to his status as a white educated land-owning male. Finally, his children, having a “white” father and a white mother, would never be discriminated against due to their race. In this way, the white identity was good for ensuring his future and his children’s future. …show more content…

For example, although he was rich and had a comfortable lifestyle, he often felt like his decision just made him one with the masses instead of being recognized as his own unique individual. Next, although his life was stable, he still always wished that he could have made a bigger difference in the lives of other African-Americans and hybrids like himself. Lastly, he felt like he had just given up on his race to grant himself a better place in life. In this way, the various aspects of the Narrator’s heritage never quite fit together into a stable life for him, causing him sadness that he couldn’t make it

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