“Caddy and the infinite loop: The dynamics of alcoholism in the Sound and the Fury”
Gary Storhooff, The Faulkner Journal, Spring 1997, Vol. 12, Iss. 2.
The Cycle that Never Ends
After reading Storhoff’s article on the Compson family, I now have a newfound understanding on how family dynamics influence one’s actions and motives. While reading “The Sound and the Fury,” I had trouble connecting how events impact and influence one another. Storhoff addresses this issue through explaining how Mr. Compson’s addiction to alcohol influences every family member. He calls this cycle the “infinite loop,” which is centered around this addiction. The infinite loop is a metaphor that describes how each child’s behavior is a product of his or her father’s addiction. John Earl Bassett describes the Compson family as “physically and mentally sick” (410). This sickness appears to be the mechanisms that the children develop to escape: they engage in mischeiveous behavior, fight, join together, and eventually break apart. This family system, particularly for the children, is based around the escape of Mr. Compson’s alcoholism. Storhoff’s argument makes sense. We see Caddy as a victim: she takes on the role as a mother at an early age, has a disconnected relationship with Jason and Mother, and eventually rebels by engaging in sexual acts, getting pregnant, running away, and abandoning her only daughter.
However, Caddy is not seen as a “bad” person. Rather, Caddy attempts to escape her exhausting life of living in disconnected family and having the responsibility to care for Benjy. Thus, she “copes” by distracting herself with boys and eventually running away from her family life all together. Storhoff notes that “individual behavior has its origin in the patterned and systematic interactions of all family members” (3). This idea demonstrates that Caddy’s behavior is a result of the “loop” that circles back to her father’s alcoholism and resulting dysfunctional family.
Lastly, Storhoff introduced a new idea about Mr. Compson and how he affected his family. Storhoff argues that Mr. Compson’s control over the family is apparent through his inability to allow those around him to have emotions. Storhoff continues by explaining the rule of silence in the Compson Household. I realized that this idea is visible through Caddy’s character. Before she begins her intense rebellion, it seems as if she lived her life without feeling anything--- except guilt for Benjy--- and never responded to her family and forced role as a mother. Storhoff explains that “hushing becomes his [Mr. Compson’s] major weapon of control of the other family members (4): “father was there, in his shirt sleeves. The way he looked said Hush” (Faulkner 61). This hush mechanism, a result of the infinite loop, seems to be a way for all relationship problems and family hardships to be dismissed. It is interesting to note that no family member can stand up to the alcoholic Mr. Compson. His apparent control over the household is effective because no one speaks up and thus the characters suffer internally.
Overall, Storhoff addresses how Mr. Compson’s problem is the core of the Compson family dynamic. Every outburst of Caddy, yell from Jason, and paranoid moment from Mother all link back to the alcoholism. Likewise, because no family members are able to effectively communicate and stand up to Mr. Compson, the family remains disconnected and bruised.
(543 words)
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Saturday, October 4, 2008
My Dad and I debate: Is the glass half full or half empty??
John Updike "The Full Glass"
The New Yorker
May 26 2008
I stumbled across "The Full Glass" by John Updike and immediately knew I would be interested. Last week, I had a philosophical debate with my dad about whether a class being half full or half empty indicates one's outlook on life in terms of being pessimistic or optimistic. He says it is an indicator. I say it is not. If I drink a glass of milk, then half is left. The glass would be, in my mind, half empty. However, I would not say I am pessimistic; my dad would call me a pessimist because I say the glass is half empty. This debate between my dad and me could go on forever, so I decided to read John Updike's short story to try to find some answers.
John Updike immediately starts "The Full Glass" by describing an older man who has reached an age of retirement and is now wanting to reflect on his life. His job for 30 years has "conditioned him against digging to deep" (1) into his life because he was so busy dealing with clients, "electric sanders," and refurnishing floors. The narrator, an unnamed man, then details his nighttime routine of brushing teeth, taking pills, and "leaving a water glass already full" (2). Immediately, after my debates with my dad, I sighed and assumed, as my dad almost convinced me, that he was an optimist with his full glass: this story would be predictable and boring. I could not have been more wrong.
The full glass that the narrator refers to symbolizes memories from his childhood and earlier years. He recalls "that full-glass feeling" (3) when he was in a relationship with a woman who had a husband. She was a "glass full" memory because he made her happy; yet, she proved to be poisonous when they got pulled over after a reckless night out on the town and when she cheated on her husband multiple times. THe narrator was not an optimist during these times because he lived in the moment with this woman and did not assume things would happen in their future. The times he shared with her, both happy and sad, illustrate a time in the narrator's life when he was content, no matter the circumstance nor consequence. In addition, the narrator remembers another "full moment" (5) he recalls his crush that he had from Kindergarten to high school. He knew he would probably never date her though: she was a cheerleader, a "star hockey player" a singer, and had a plethora of boyfriends (5). However, she made him happy, and he eventually got one dance with her (6). An optimist would believe that he could date the girl, just give it time and she will come around. A pessimist would doubt any chance at all. But the narrator just enjoys the dance and this moment with his long-time crush. The examples of full moments continue with references to his wife, first love, and holidays.
John Updike ends his short story by having the narrator "life his glass" and make a toast to the world he is in: the "visible world" (7. The narrator is toasting with his full glass to show that he is not a pessimist nor optimist; rather, he is an elderly man who is reflecting on the happy and sad times and memories of his life. While I assumed he was an optimist at first, I now understand that the glass being empty or full has nothing to do with one's stance on life: it has to do with one's memories, setbacks, and understandings. The full glass at his night stand was a channel, rather than an indicator, into his earlier years.
(740 Words)
The New Yorker
May 26 2008
I stumbled across "The Full Glass" by John Updike and immediately knew I would be interested. Last week, I had a philosophical debate with my dad about whether a class being half full or half empty indicates one's outlook on life in terms of being pessimistic or optimistic. He says it is an indicator. I say it is not. If I drink a glass of milk, then half is left. The glass would be, in my mind, half empty. However, I would not say I am pessimistic; my dad would call me a pessimist because I say the glass is half empty. This debate between my dad and me could go on forever, so I decided to read John Updike's short story to try to find some answers.
John Updike immediately starts "The Full Glass" by describing an older man who has reached an age of retirement and is now wanting to reflect on his life. His job for 30 years has "conditioned him against digging to deep" (1) into his life because he was so busy dealing with clients, "electric sanders," and refurnishing floors. The narrator, an unnamed man, then details his nighttime routine of brushing teeth, taking pills, and "leaving a water glass already full" (2). Immediately, after my debates with my dad, I sighed and assumed, as my dad almost convinced me, that he was an optimist with his full glass: this story would be predictable and boring. I could not have been more wrong.
The full glass that the narrator refers to symbolizes memories from his childhood and earlier years. He recalls "that full-glass feeling" (3) when he was in a relationship with a woman who had a husband. She was a "glass full" memory because he made her happy; yet, she proved to be poisonous when they got pulled over after a reckless night out on the town and when she cheated on her husband multiple times. THe narrator was not an optimist during these times because he lived in the moment with this woman and did not assume things would happen in their future. The times he shared with her, both happy and sad, illustrate a time in the narrator's life when he was content, no matter the circumstance nor consequence. In addition, the narrator remembers another "full moment" (5) he recalls his crush that he had from Kindergarten to high school. He knew he would probably never date her though: she was a cheerleader, a "star hockey player" a singer, and had a plethora of boyfriends (5). However, she made him happy, and he eventually got one dance with her (6). An optimist would believe that he could date the girl, just give it time and she will come around. A pessimist would doubt any chance at all. But the narrator just enjoys the dance and this moment with his long-time crush. The examples of full moments continue with references to his wife, first love, and holidays.
John Updike ends his short story by having the narrator "life his glass" and make a toast to the world he is in: the "visible world" (7. The narrator is toasting with his full glass to show that he is not a pessimist nor optimist; rather, he is an elderly man who is reflecting on the happy and sad times and memories of his life. While I assumed he was an optimist at first, I now understand that the glass being empty or full has nothing to do with one's stance on life: it has to do with one's memories, setbacks, and understandings. The full glass at his night stand was a channel, rather than an indicator, into his earlier years.
(740 Words)
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