The Power of Land Barn Burn by William Faulkner - 1551 Words

The importance of land ownership has been a vital part of modern society due to the many goods and resources one can acquire from it. Because of this, landowners have a distinct advantage over non-land owners when it comes to these resources. Not only are landowners able to use the land themselves, but grant others the ability to use their land for a percentage of the produce. This is known as sharecropping. As seen is William Faulkner’s short story, Barn Burn, it is land ownership and not ethnic origins gives power to certain individuals. By controlling the livelihood of individuals who live off the earth, landowners place themselves in a more advanced social class than those without land. In Charles Chesnutt’s story The Goophered†¦show more content†¦Feed by insecurities and anger, Abner makes slights to the upper class by befouling the landowner’s house, while also lashing out the Negro servant by calling him a â€Å"nigger† and completely di sregarding his instructions (Faulkner 805). Some of Abner’s anger may stem from his internal feeling of being like a slave. While leaving the house, Abner angrily tells his son, [t]hats sweat. Nigger sweat. Maybe it aint white enough yet to suit him. Maybe he wants to mix some white sweat with it† (Faulkner 805). Abner is attempting to belittle the house that his son thought so highly of by declaring it built by â€Å"niggers†. In his bitter remark, Abner reveals his is expressing his disdain for both the black race and his own profession. Abner sees sharecropping as being similar to slavery. As shown earlier in the story, the initial reason for visiting Major de Spain’s house was to â€Å"have a word with the man that aims to begin to-morrow owning me body and soul for the next eight months† (Faulkner 803). Instead of seeing himself as an employee, Abner makes a clear distinction between himself and Major de Spain by including the notion that Major de Spain would own not only the land but als o his body and soul. In The Goophered Grapevine, the idea of land ownership makes a central appearance early on in Chesnutt’s short story. Due to ongoing health problems, John and his sickly wife (Annie) are attempting to move to North Carolina in the hopes that a warmer climate willShow MoreRelatedBarn Burning by William Faulkner894 Words   |  4 PagesIn the tale Barn Burning, the author William Faulkner formally known for his short stories with a constant theme of Southern Renaissance, racism and modernism uses these themes as a constant reference throughout the story. Faulkner focuses in depth on the antagonist, Abner Snopes and his actions and how they impact other characters throughout the story. I believe Abner was continuously portrayed as a negative character throughout the short story by Abner’s aggressiveness towards everyone he comesRead More William Faulkners Barn Burning Essay1251 Words   |  6 PagesWilliam Faulkners Barn Burning William Faulkner, recognized as one of the greatest writers of all time, once made a speech as he accepted his Nobel prize for writing in which he stated that a great piece of writing should contain the truths of the heart and the conflicts that arise over these truths. These truths were love, honor, pity, pride, compassion and sacrifice. Truly it would be hard to argue that a story without these truths would be considered even a good story let alone a greatRead MoreAs I Lay Dying by William Faulkner997 Words   |  4 PagesAs I lay dying is an American novel authored by William Faulkner. The novel is among the best-ranked novels in the 20th century literature. The Faulkner’s seventh novel derives the title from the book XI of the homers the odyssey. In the introduction, Agamemnon converse with Odysseus: ‘’as I lay dying, the woman with the dog’s eyes could not close my eyes as I descend into Hades’’. The book consists of fifteen character s with more than fifty-nine chapters. It narrates the narrative of the bereavementRead MoreLogical Reasoning189930 Words   |  760 Pagesstandard form which is â€Å"If A, then B.† Often conditionals are expressed in other ways. For example, here is a conditional that contains neither an â€Å"if† nor a â€Å"then:† The larger a star the quicker it burns up and dies. Rewriting it in standard form produces: If a star is larger, then it burns up and dies quicker. ────CONCEPT CHECK──── 42 The Governor of Alaska (on left) Suppose you were to learn for certain that if a person is the governor of Alaska, then he or she is a U.S. citizen