It's good to finally get the facts about Faulkner's life, at least as reported by Jay Parini. The stories I always heard about his drinking are, for the most part, true, I suppose. Some of the other stories, about the conflict between Faulkner and Hemingway, don't seem to stand up as well.
I was disappointed in Faulkner's early life. He is almost exactly the age of my grandfather, so it is unavoidable for me to draw parallels. "Big Pop", as we called him, was born in rural, lower, Alabama. He was raised in a foster home, left when he was thirteen, worked his way around the south in lumber mills, before finally settling down and raising my father and uncle. Faulkner, on the other hand, was born into privilege, never finished school, never succeeded at any job, drank, visited prostitutes, and generally sponged off his parents and friends for decades. It's tough for me top admire his personal life when I can make those comparisons.
Of course I admire his writing, and there is no denying that he worked extremely hard - once he got into the swing of things. One thing that does strike me as very familiar about his life is his extreme shyness. I can certainly identify with that. Maybe it's a Southern thing, a fear of being inadequate, of being embarassed by those better than us and more educated.
The biography is excellent, and I highly recommend it.
Thanks for this, Sam, I enjoyed finding it via LibraryThing and reading what you say about your grandfather and Faulkner. Faulkner was just 15 years older than my Dad, who spent his 15th birthday in the workhouse in Coventry. I too, though, don't care too much about that as I rate Faulkner way above any other for the enjoyment I've had over many years from his writing. I'm giving a paper on him in a "1930s USA" class/reading group here in England in January. Now for a further look around your site.
ReplyDeleteThanks again, Jim