uh oh..

While reading the second quarter of The Sound and the Fury, one phrase really struck me. “Father I have committed incest” appears regularly as something clearly haunting Quentin’s mind. This upsetting statement is vaguely backed by other strange thoughts. Quentin reflects a lot upon conversations regarding sex and virginity. At points he talks to his father confirming he is a virgin. The timeline is distorted but some of his present day thoughts even seem to imply that. So why say he has committed incest? What has really happened? He evidently has many conversations with Caddy about her love life; however, those are also very cloudy in detail. If his confession is true, the act would certainly have to be with Caddy. What really bothers me are the following questions.

In the reading do we witness the event unknowingly if it even happens?

Is Caddy’s child actually Quentin’s as well and that is why the girl has that name?

Does Caddy marry to cover up her incest love child?

Ew! I hope not.

1/2 Blog

I wish I could say I have read numerous short stories. Unfortunately, I spent many frees last week catching up on schoolwork. I am excited to embark upon this reading quest, and I am sure Mr. Thommen will be eager to help; so more to come on that assignment. As for the weekly, and in this case, half-blog, I would like to talk about the creepy story. I do not think more introduction is necessary. I was surprised by the story. I found it to be not only unsettling but also too open-ended. Usually when determining the upsetting nature of a story, the set-up is more direct and typical. I think this story was unusual. I know it was based on real events, making it all the more chilling, but that also lessens the literary freedom. The author certainly wrote loosely based, but stuck to the original interaction. What I am trying to say is, I was anticipating more creepiness than I found, which is probably for the best.

My other main thought regarding this piece was the open-ended nature. I really enjoyed all the hidden meanings. I was very intrigued especially by the number. I played with it during class after we discussed it, and I didn’t come up with anything particularly exciting. I like thinking outside the box and this story promoted that with the elusive references. Overall I liked it because it maintained my attention. It had an interesting plot, plenty to think about, and was written well enough.