Studying Faulkner's writing techniques requires reading many of his works.
William Faulkner's writing techniques have inspired his inclusion into literature courses and classics anthologies. From his stream-of-conscious style in novels like "As I Lay Dying" and "The Sound and the Fury" to his masterful characterization and dialog, Faulkner's writing techniques serve as excellent pieces for would-be writers and literature enthusiasts to study.
Instructions
1. Read biographies of Faulkner to get a better idea of the author's background and writing style. William Faulkner's Southern heritage, failed attempt to become a war hero and personal life all played an important role in his literature. Thus, learn about Faulkner's personal life to better understand his writing techniques.Write lists of the authors' claims about Faulkner's writing as you peruse biographies. For instance, according to the American Society of Authors and Writers, Faulkner's novels "are grounded in a profound and compassionate humanism that celebrates the tragedy, energy, and humor of ordinary human life." Copy statements like these, as well as all notes of his writing techniques, into a notebook or word document for later study.
2. Read Faulkner's writing with the notebook you created in step one at your side. When you find a part of Faulkner's writing that embodies a technique or critic's claim about him, highlight it, and note in the margins which technique or critical comment from step one it exemplifies. Use a different color highlighter for each critic or stylistic technique. With another color highlighter, mark passages that exemplify other stylistic traits that the critics or biographies you read did not discuss. Add notes about the technique in the margin. When you are finished, you should have each Faulkner novel marked as a rainbow. The most predominate colors correspond to Faulkner's most often used writing techniques.
3. Study Faulkner's writing process using the biographies from step one. According to the American Society of Authors and Writers, Faulkner did not type any of his works and often had trouble with word choice. The society notes that he often asked other people to help him choose the right word for a segment. Faulkner also told the Paris Review that "The Sound and the Fury" began with a mental picture of the first scene, and that he wrote five different drafts of the book. Reread Faulkner's works with this writing process in mind. Theorize how this writing process helped or hindered him when writing his novels. Find signs in Faulkner's novels and short stories that show how his writing process impacted the final copy. Study multiple drafts of the same work, if available.
4. Compare and contrast Faulkner's works. According to Cliff's Notes, Faulkner tried to adjust his style to his subject, so his writing style between novels and short stories is very different. In your journal, create a table with three columns and rows for each Faulkner work you read. Label one column "subject matter," one "writing style" and one "reflection." For each work you read, enter a few words to summarize Faulkner's content and writing style in each column. After each entry, reflect on how each of Faulkner's works would have been different if he had chosen a writing style used in another of his pieces. Add the comments of your reflection to the third column of your chart.
