A Study of Joe Christmas in Faulkners Light in August Essay -- Light

A Study of Joe Christmas in Light in August Joe Christmass eating overthrow and antipathy to womens sexuality (or to the feminine) in Light in August also can be traced back to the primal outlook in the dietitians room. However, the primal jibe is not the final piece of the puzzle in the novel. The primal scene is already given as a working condition for a gain ground analysis of Joes psychology. Readers are first invited to interrelate the scene and Joes behavior in the rest of the novel.1 Yet drawing one-to-one relations between the primal scene and Joes symptomatic behavior merely repeats Freuds theory for its own sake. The mechanic connection of the dots does not solve the most crucial problem of the novel, Joes racial identity. The primal scene, similar a dream, asks for a further inspection of its undersurface - something distorted or untold. It also urges to expand the Freudian perception of the unconscious. The unconscious is not just a personal trashcan of ones own r epressed sexual energy. As Joe Christmass case proves, the unconscious is always already cultural and social. The unconscious is multiple and full of others. Focusing on the primal scene, this essay shall explore Joe Christmass psychology and the problematics of his racial identity. The above excerpt is provided to allow the student a better understanding of the focus of the root word. The complete paper begins below We witness Freuds reductive glee we literally see multiplicity leave the wolves to take the shape of goats that have absolutely nothing to do with the story. septet wolves that are only kid-goats. Six wolves the seventh goat (the Wolf-Man himself) is hiding in the clock. Five wolves h... ...ginally published as Mille Plateaux, volume 2 of Capitalisme et Schizophrnie by Minuit in 1980 in France. Faulkner, William. Light in August. New York Vintage, 1990. Originally published in 1932. Karl, Frederick R. William Faulkner American Writer. New York Ballantine Books, 1989. Notes 1 Joes symptoms of anorexia nervosa, his dislike to objects, which remind of womens genitalia, and his disgust at anything or anyone with feminine faculties are closely interconnected to the primal scene. 2 It is interesting that psychic determinism in Joes case opposes to Gavin Stevenss theory of black blood and white blood. While the designer attributes Joes symptoms to nurture, Stevenss essentializing blood theory attributes to nature. The conflict between nature and nurture has become an important American theme.