1866 Sutpen becomes engaged to Rosa Coldfield, insults her. She returns to Jefferson.
1867 Sutpen takes up with Milly Jones.
1869 Milly’s child is born. Wash Jones kills Sutpen.
1870 Charles E. St. V. Bon appears at Sutpen’s Hundred.
1871 Clytie fetches Charles E. St. V. Bon to Sutpen’s Hundred to live.
1881 Charles E. St. V. Bon returns with negro wife.
1882 Jim Bond born.
1884 Judith and Charles E. St. V. Bon die of yellow fever.
1909
September Rosa Coldfield and Quentin find Henry Sutpen hidden in the house.
December Rosa Coldfield goes out to fetch Henry to town, Clytie sets fire to the house.
The chronology and genealogy have been corrected in several instances to agree with the dates and facts of the novel.
GENEALOGY
THOMAS SUTPEN.
Born in West Virginia mountains, 1807. One of several children of poor whites, Scotch-English stock. Established plantation of Sutpen’s Hundred in Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, 1833. Married (1) Eulalia Bon, Haiti, 1827. (2) Ellen Coldfield, Jefferson, Mississippi, 1838. Major, later Colonel,—th Mississippi Infantry, C.S.A. Died, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1869.
EULALIA BON.
Born in Haiti. Only child of Haitian sugar planter of French descent. Married Thomas Sutpen, 1827, divorced from him, 1831. Died in New Orleans, date unknown.
CHARLES BON.
Son of Thomas and Eulalia Bon Sutpen. Only child. Attended University of Mississippi, where he met Henry Sutpen and became engaged to Judith. Private, later lieutenant,—th Company, (University Grays)—th Mississippi Infantry, C.S.A. Died, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1865.
GOODHUE COLDFIELD.
Born in Tennessee. Moved to Jefferson, Miss., 1828, established small mercantile business. Died, Jefferson, 1864.
ELLEN COLDFIELD.
Daughter of Goodhue Coldfield. Born in Tennessee, 1817. Married Thomas Sutpen, Jefferson, Miss., 1838. Died, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1863.
ROSA COLDFIELD.
Daughter of Goodhue Coldfield. Born, Jefferson, 1845. Died, Jefferson, 1910.
HENRY SUTPEN.
Born, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1839, son of Thomas and Ellen Coldfield Sutpen. Attended University of Mississippi. Private,—th Company, (University Grays)—th Mississippi Infantry, C.S.A. Died, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1909.
JUDITH SUTPEN.
Daughter of Thomas and Ellen Coldfield Sutpen. Born, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1841. Became engaged to Charles Bon, 1860. Died, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1884.
CLYTEMNESTRA SUTPEN.
Daughter of Thomas Sutpen and a negro slave. Born, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1834. Died, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1909.
WASH JONES.
Date and location of birth unknown. Squatter, residing in an abandoned fishing camp belonging to Thomas Sutpen, hanger-on of Sutpen, handy man about Sutpen’s place while Sutpen was away between ’61–’65. Died, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1869.
MELICENT JONES.
Daughter of Wash Jones. Date of birth unknown. Rumored to have died in a Memphis brothel.
MILLY JONES.
Daughter of Melicent Jones. Born 1853. Died, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1869.
UNNAMED INFANT.
Daughter of Thomas Sutpen and Milly Jones. Born, died, Sutpen’s Hundred, same day, 1869.
CHARLES ETIENNE DE SAINT VALERY BON.
Only child of Charles Bon and an octoroon mistress whose name is not recorded. Born, New Orleans, 1859. Married a full-blood negress, name unknown, 1879. Died, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1884.
JIM BOND (BON).
Son of Charles Etienne de Saint Valery Bon. Born, Sutpen’s Hundred, 1882. Disappeared from Sutpen’s Hundred, 1910. Whereabouts unknown.
QUENTIN COMPSON.
Grandson of Thomas Sutpen’s first Yoknapatawpha County friend. Born, Jefferson, 1891. Attended Harvard, 1909–1910. Died, Cambridge, Mass., 1910.
SHREVLIN MCCANNON.
Born, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, 1890. Attended Harvard, 1909–1914. Captain, Royal Army Medical Corps, Canadian Expeditionary Forces, France, 1914–1918. Now a practising surgeon, Edmonton, Alta.
EDITOR’S NOTE
The text of Absalom, Absalom! reproduced here is that of the original typescript which Faulkner prepared for publication. This typescript, at the Alderman Library of the University of Virginia, is a clear text, and complete except for the chronology and genealogy. We have attempted in this volume to reproduce that text faithfully, even to the point of preserving certain of Faulkner’s inconsistencies and eccentricities. Nevertheless, some corrections and regularizations have been deemed necessary. When possible, textual problems in the typescript have been solved by reference to Faulkner’s holograph manuscript, at the Humanities Research Center of the University of Texas, and to the corrected galleys of the first edition, information about which has been generously supplied by Professor Carvel Collins.
There is not enough space here to provide a complete textual apparatus for this novel. The table appended is merely to record, for the interested reader, a highly selective sampling of some of the more significant variations between the present text and that of the ribbon typescript setting copy. Page and line numbers in the left column are keyed to this volume. The reading to the left of the bracket is that of the typescript (except for variants in the chronology and genealogy, which are those of the first edition); the reading to the right of the bracket is that of the present text. Parentheses following any entry indicate the source of the correction: ms = holograph manuscript; gal = galleys.
1 childrens’] children’s
2 With out] Without (ms)
3 Because] “Because (ms)
4 So] “So (ms)
5 marshalls’] marshals’
6 land of] land or
7 wedding] wedding,
8 protection.’] protection.’ ”
9 childrens’] children’s
10 Oh] “Oh (ms)
11 Papa.’] Papa,’ (ms)
12 So] “So (gal)
13 falling] fell (gal)
14 anothers’] another’s
15 their] their skins (ms)
16 Square] square
17 unforseen] unforeseen
18 Or] or (ms)
19 into,] into
20 clothes] clothes,
21 Why.……]
Why …
22 wordly] worldly (ms)
23 them] them,
24 horse-and] horse- and (ms)
25 which] with which (ms)
26 not so much] not
27 dying] dyeing
28 abrogating] arrogating
29 believe] believe, (gal)
30 Ellen] Judith
31 past summer of] last summer of (ms)
32 Eve] eve (ms)
33 scene] scenes (ms)
34 wordly] worldly (ms)
35 he] He
36 either,] either. (ms)
37 himself] Himself
38 no one,] anyone, (ms)
39 alteration of]
alteration or
40 perish… …]
perish …
41 IS] IS
42 “—and] “——and
43 ‘Where] “Where (gal)
44 from?’] from?” (gal)
45 ‘I] “I (gal)
46 know.’] know.” ’ (gal)
47 him] her
48 forty-five] forty-three
49 That] that (ms)
50 dust cloud] dustcloud
51 Rosa——] Rosa——”
52 ths] the
53 principle] principal
54 prances] prances to (ms)
55 they?)] they?’)
56 ditch”)] ditch”
57 from?] from?’
58 will.…] will …
59 it.…] it .…
60 justice’] justice’s
61 streaming] steaming (ms)
62 said.—“What]
said. “—What (ms)
64 keep] kept
65 there:] there)
66 “—said] “———said
67 forsee] foresee
68 ocean] Ocean
69 whom] who
70 reckoned] reckoned,
71 —“(that]—(“that
72 mare)”—] mare”)—
73 too,] too)
74 have.……]
have.…
75 whom] who (ms)
76 Eve] eve
77 whom] who
78 all.)] all.”)
79 army] Army
80 were] was
81 abrogates] arrogates
82 ‘Dont] “Dont (gal)
83 marster.’] marster.” (gal)
84 Mrs] Miss (ms)
85 Nevermore
Nevermore.
Nevermore.]
Nevermore.
Nevermore.
Nevermore. (ms)
86 [Ellen born 1818]]
[Ellen b. 1817]
87 [Bon b. 1829]]
[Bon b. 1831]
88 Velery] Valery
89 1862] 1863
90 smallpox] yellow fever
91 1910] 1909
92 Greys] Grays
93 1818] 1817
94 1862] 1863
95 Greys] Grays
96 1910] 1909
97 1910] 1909
98 VELERY] VALERY
99 Velery] Valery
WILLIAM FAULKNER
(1897–1962)
William Cuthbert Faulkner was born in 1897 in New Albany, Mississippi, the first of four sons of Murry and Maud Butler Falkner (he later added the ‘u’ to the family name himself). In 1904 the family moved to the university town of Oxford, Mississippi, where Faulkner was to spend most of his life. He was named for his great-grandfather ‘The Old Colonel,’ a Civil War veteran who built a railroad, wrote a bestselling romantic novel called The White Rose of Memphis, became a Mississippi state legislator, and was eventually killed in what may or may not have been a duel with a disgruntled business partner. Faulkner identified with this robust and energetic ancestor and often said that he inherited the ‘ink stain’ from him.
Never fond of school, Faulkner left at the end of football season his senior year of high school, and began working at his grandfather’s bank. In 1918, after his plans to marry his sweetheart Estelle Oldham were squashed by their families, he tried to enlist as a pilot in the U.S. Army but was rejected because he did not meet the height and weight requirements. He went to Canada, where he pretended to be an Englishman and joined the RAF training program there. Although he did not complete his training until after the war ended and never saw combat, he returned to his hometown in uniform, boasting of war wounds. He briefly attended the University of Mississippi, where he began to publish his poetry.
After spending a short time living in New York, he again returned to Oxford, where he worked at the university post office. His first book, a collection of poetry, The Marble Faun, was published at Faulkner’s own expense in 1924. The writer Sherwood Anderson, whom he met in New Orleans in 1925, encouraged him to try writing fiction, and his first novel, Soldier’s Pay, was published in 1926. It was followed by Mosquitoes. His next novel, which he titled Flags in the Dust, was rejected by his publisher and twelve others to whom he submitted it. It was eventually published in drastically edited form as Sartoris (the original version was not issued until after his death). Meanwhile, he was writing The Sound and the Fury, which, after being rejected by one publisher, came out in 1929 and received many ecstatic reviews, although it sold poorly. Yet again, a new novel, Sanctuary, was initially rejected by his publisher, this time as ‘too shocking.’ While working on the night shift at a power plant, Faulkner wrote what he was determined would be his masterpiece, As I Lay Dying. He finished it in about seven weeks, and it was published in 1930, again to generally good reviews and mediocre sales.
In 1929 Faulkner had finally married his childhood sweetheart, Estelle, after her divorce from her first husband. They had a premature daughter, Alabama, who died ten days after birth in 1931; a second daughter, Jill, was born in 1933.
With the eventual publication of his most sensational and violent (as well as, up till then, most successful) novel, Sanctuary (1931), Faulkner was invited to write scripts for MGM and Warner Brothers, where he was responsible for much of the dialogue in the film versions of Hemingway’s To Have and Have Not and Chandler’s The Big Sleep, and many other films. He continued to write novels and published many stories in the popular magazines. Light in August (1932) was his first attempt to address the racial issues of the South, an effort continued in Absalom, Absalom! (1936), and Go Down, Moses (1942). By 1946, most of Faulkner’s novels were out of print in the United States (although they remained well-regarded in Europe), and he was seen as a minor, regional writer. But then the influential editor and critic Malcolm Cowley, who had earlier championed Hemingway and Fitzgerald and others of their generation, put together The Portable Faulkner, and once again Faulkner’s genius was recognized, this time for good. He received the 1949 Nobel Prize for Literature as well as many other awards and accolades, including the National Book Award and the Gold Medal from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and France’s Legion of Honor.
In addition to several collections of short fiction, his other novels include Pylon (1935), The Unvanquished (1938), The Wild Palms (1939), The Hamlet (1940), Intruder in the Dust (1948), A Fable (1954), The Town (1957), The Mansion (1959), and The Reivers (1962).
William Faulkner died of a heart attack on July 6, 1962, in Oxford, Mississippi, where he is buried.
“He is the greatest artist the South has produced.… Indeed, through his many novels and short stories, Faulkner fights out the moral problem which was repressed after the nineteenth century [yet] for all his concern with the South, Faulkner was actually seeking out the nature of man. Thus we must turn to him for that continuity of moral purpose which made for the greatness of our classics.”
—RALPH ELLISON
“Faulkner, more than most men, was aware of human strength as well of human weakness. He knew that the understanding and the resolution of fear are a large part of the writer’s reason for being.”
—JOHN STEINBECK
“For range of effect, philosophical weight, originality of style, variety of characterization, humor, and tragic intensity, [Faulkner’s works] are without equal in our time and country.”
—ROBERT PENN WARREN
“No man ever put more of his heart and soul into the written word than did William Faulkner. If you want to know all you can about that heart and soul, the fiction where he put it is still right there.”
—EUDORA WELTY
ALSO BY WILLIAM FAULKNER
ABSALOM, ABSALOM!
One of Faulkner’s finest achievements, Absalom, Absalom! is the story of Thomas Sutpen and the ruthless, single-minded pursuit of his grand design—to forge a dynasty in Jefferson, Mississippi, in 1830—which is ultimately destroyed (along with Sutpen himself) by his two sons.
AS I LAY DYING
As I Lay Dying is the harrowing account of the Bundren family’s odyssey across the Mississippi countryside to bury Addie, their wife and mother. Told by each of the family members—including Addie herself—the novel ranges from dark comedy to deepest pathos.
A FABLE
Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, this allegorical novel about World War I is set in the trenches of France and deals with a mutiny in a French regiment.
FLAGS IN THE DUST
The complete text, published for the first time in 1973, of Faulkner’s third novel, written when he was twenty-nine, which appeared, with his reluctant consent, in a much cut version in 1929 as Sartoris.
LIGHT IN AUGUST
A novel about hopeful perseverance in the face of mortality, Light in August tells the tales of guileless, dauntless Lena Grove, in search of the father of her unborn child; Reverend Gail Hight
ower, who is plagued by visions of Confederate horsemen; and Joe Christmas, an enigmatic drifter consumed by his mixed ancestry.
THE REIVERS
One of Faulkner’s comic masterpieces and winner of a Pulitzer Prize, The Reivers is a picaresque tale that tells of three unlikely car thieves from rural Mississippi and their wild misadventures in the fast life of Memphis—from horse smuggling to bawdy houses.
REQUIEM FOR A NUN
The sequel to Faulkner’s most sensational novel Sanctuary, was written twenty years later but takes up the story of Temple Drake eight years after the events related in Sanctuary. Temple is now married to Gowan Stevens. The book begins when the death sentence is pronounced on the nurse Nancy for the murder of Temple and Gowan’s child. In an attempt to save her, Temple goes to see the judge to confess her own guilt. Told partly in prose, partly in play form, Requiem for a Nun is a haunting exploration of the impact of the past on the present.
THE SOUND AND THE FURY
One of the greatest novels of the twentieth century, The Sound and the Fury is the tragedy of the Compson family, featuring some of the most memorable characters in American literature: beautiful, rebellious Caddy; the man-child Benjy; haunted, neurotic Quentin; Jason, the brutal cynic; and Dilsey, their black servant.
THE UNVANQUISHED
The Unvanquished is a novel of the Sartoris family, who embody the ideal of Southern honor and its transformation through war, defeat, and Reconstruction: Colonel John Sartoris, who is murdered by a business rival after the war; his son Bayard, who finds an alternative to bloodshed; and Granny Millard, the matriarch, who must put aside her code of gentility in order to survive.
Snopes Trilogy
THE HAMLET
The Hamlet, the first novel of Faulkner’s Snopes trilogy, is both an ironic take on classical tragedy and a mordant commentary on the grand pretensions of the antebellum South and the depths of its decay in the aftermath of war and reconstruction. It tells of the advent and the rise of the Snopes family in Frenchman’s Bend, a small town built on the ruins of a once-stately plantation. Flem Snopes—wily, energetic, a man of shady origins—quickly comes to dominate the town and its people with his cunning and guile.
Absalom, Absalom! Page 38
