Imagery In William Faulkner's Barn Burning

Another structuralist reading that would show this message confusion would be one of William Faulkner’s “Barn Burning” (Faulkner 331). D. Fowler and Abadie A. assume that, in his works William Faulkner “strove to develop new “terms,” new forms for his fictions” (Fowler and Abadie 9). In “Barn Burning” Faulkner writes in looping sentences. In so doing, he forms a style in which the reader feels as though they are within the character’s stream of consciousness. A. Friedman sees Faulkner's story as a dilemma, in which the boy can choose either to lie to his dad or to tell the inconvenient truth (Friedman 101). The character’s wandering thoughts and almost arbitrary associations are transcribed onto the page, creating an experience that puts the
In life, thoughts are not, by nature, linear. Here, Faulkner employs a form of imagery that represents the nearly haphazard and confusing quality of every person’s private thought processes. In this way, we are given a glimpse into a deeper truth – the reflections of his words on the issues he is facing. Sartoris watches his father’s hearing from a store. The impressions of the shelves around, full of food, remind him of his hunger; this leads him to contemplate even more intangible concerns, such as his melancholy over the situation, and his struggle to remain loyal. It is clear that this use of imagery is purposeful; Faulkner took care to convey his imagery carefully because he believed that with short stories every word must be taken into consideration. Even a formalist reading of Blotner’s biography would exhibit the care that Faulkner took with his work. While he at the University of Virginia, he would answer questions from the student group assemblies, as well as any faculty members and interested Charlottesville townspeople. In a session, he was asked by a member of the assembly “Do you think it’s easier to write a novel than a short story?” He responded, "Yes