About this title: ABSALOM, ABSALOM! is often considered to be Faulkner's greatest book, and one of his most compelling explorations of race, gender, and the burdens of the past. The plot revolves around the character of Thomas Sutpen, son of poor whites in Faulkner's fictional Yoknapatawpha County. Densely written and notoriously "difficult," the novel explores the question of why Sutpen's son, Henry, killed Charles Bon, his friend and classmate, and the suitor of his sister, Judith. The action shifts from the early 19th century, when this event took place, to the "present" (1909-1910), when Quentin Compson, a ...
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Description: Good. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Edition: Modern Library Edition
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Modern Library
Date Published: 1993
ISBN-13:9780679600725ISBN:0679600728
Description: A wonderful copy with some minor edgewear to the cover. Dust Jacket has some edgewear present. Previous owners name inscribed inside front. -Modern Library Edition, Hard Cover, Very Good / Very Good. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: 1991
ISBN-13:9780679732181ISBN:0679732187
Description: New. Brand New! Buy with confidence-your satisfaction is guaranteed at B-Logistics! Due to the large scale of our operation, we do not have access to the specific contents/condition of our items. Please note that Expedited shipping is not available at this time. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Vintage Books
Date Published: 1990-11-01
ISBN-13:9780679732181ISBN:0679732187
Description: NEW. Softcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9780679732181. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Modern Library
Date Published: 1993-11-01
ISBN-13:9780679600725ISBN:0679600728
Description: NEW. Hardcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9780679600725. read more
Edition: First Edition
Binding: Hardcover; Eighth Printing
ISBN-13:9780679600725ISBN:0679600728
Description: Fine in Near Fine dust jacket. Hardcover. Modern Library, 1993. 1st Edition/8th Printing. Fine Book in Near Fine Dust Jacket. Price Intact. Light shelf wear to Jacket. Overall, a clean and tight copy to add to a collection or read and enjoy. Dust Jacket protected with a new archival cover. Bubble wrapped and shipped promptly in a box. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Modern Library
Date Published: 1993
ISBN-13:9780679600725ISBN:0679600728
Description: New. Brand New! Buy with confidence-your satisfaction is guaranteed at B-Logistics! Due to the large scale of our operation, we do not have access to the specific contents/condition of our items. Please note that Expedited shipping is not available at this time. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: 1991
ISBN-13:9780679732181ISBN:0679732187
Description: Acceptable. BINDING LOOSE BUT INTACT, COVER IS WORN, PAGES ARE LIGHTLY TANNED, PAGES SLIGHTLY WAVY, SLIGHT DISCOLORATION ON EDGE OF BOOK, THIS BOOK IS ROUGH. IT IS OK FOR PERSONAL USE IF YOU WANT TO SAVE SOME MONEY BUT DO NOT GIVE AS A GIFT. Good reading copy. read more
Description: Good. By William Faulkner; ISBN: 0679732187; Pub. : Vintage; Pub. Date: 1991-01-30; Media: Paperback; Weight: 8 oz.; Good condition. just like the description ships fast when you click expedited...by William Faulkner; ISBN: 0679732187; Pub. : Vintage; Pub. Date: 1991-01-30; Media: Paperback; Weight: 8 oz.; Good condition. just like the description ships fast when you click expedited... read more
Description: Good. Used-Good. May contain highlighting/underlining/notes/etc. May have used stickers on cover. Ships same or next day. Expedited shipping takes 2-3 business days; standard shipping takes 4-14 business days. read more
"Although Faulkner has produced more than a few works considered to have achieved masterpiece status, to my mind Absalom, Absalom stands out among the rest. As usual, Faulkner's deft grasp of human nature is spot on, but it is his brilliant layering of the narrative which elevates this book into truly rarefied air.
Faulkner presents for us the story of Thomas Sutpen, who, born into poverty and spurned by the wealthy, sets about through hard work and an iron will to establish himself at the head of his own dynasty. Foremost among Sutpen's desires is the siring of an heir, and it is this relentless pursuit, not of a son but of a legacy, that proves to undo all of his designs. Sutpen's indomitable character towers over those around him, but their combined, often passive resistance eventually becomes overwhelming. The story is Faulknerian tragedy at its most iconic; the unraveling of Sutpen's machinations is fraught with irony yet ultimately inevitable.
As bleakly austere as the plot itself is, however, Faulkner's revolutionary narration provides the perfect atmosphere for its gloom. Most of the story is not observed first-hand, but rather related by characters who were in turn told the events by others. The main narrator is Quentin Compson (see The Sound and the Fury), who was originally told the story by his grandfather and others who knew Thomas Sutpen, now some decades dead, personally. Quentin is now recounting the tale for his college roommate, while adding his own conjectures as well. And this is the brilliance of Faulkner's narrative structure: by changing viewpoints and retelling the same scene from several angles, the subtle nuances of the various characters, both storytellers and subjects, are allowed to develop. Faulkner's adroit criticism of humanity is revealed just as fully in his characters' reaction to his story as in the story itself. The dense, sometimes stream-of-consciousness narration can sometimes make comprehension difficult, but the masterful prose deserves the extra attention.
Simply put, this is one of the best books I have ever read. The challenging, haunting combination of story and storytelling yield an artistry seldom to be found in literature, even among the great masters. Faulkner truly understood humanity, and the tragedy it so often comes to. Here, in this memorable tale, he helps us understand as well."
"Look, I can't say I disliked it - it was beautifully well written - but so terribly difficult. So difficult to follow and to know just where one is. I kept forgetting who was talking and who they were talking about. There is so much back story - it seems to be all back story. So many characters all more or less the same. Everything is so complex and detailed. I became lost and then I gave up, I'm afraid.
I can see it is probably worth the effort - but also know it requires more effort than I can put in at the moment."
"I have been intellectually bullied into giving this book another shot. You know who you are.
________________________________________________________________________ I am done with Faulkner. I simply cannot stand his writing style. How is it that Tolstoy can make Russian aristocrats from the late 1800 more relatable and interesting than the southerners Faulkner depicts in his novels? I don't know why I find Dimitri Karamazov more interesting than Tom Sutpen, but I do.
Only 100 pages into Absalom, Absalom! and I cannot read another word."
"I didn't finish it. I can't stand his writing style. But...Faulkner is fantastic in many ways, the story is insightful and heartbreaking.I just can't get past his pretentious style...and it is pretentious, he writes in the thirties! he doesn't need to extend his sentences like some romantic poet...it's sophomoric. I think I would love him if he just told his damn stories."
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