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The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner

Decent Essays

At the core of Dilsey Gibson’s character is her capacity for faith, and the unwavering stability that lends to her life. She is in the employ of a family for whom she has worked for countless generations, and whom she now sees growing progressively more unstable with each passing day. As she leaves the center of her spiritual faith, the Church, she undergoes a revelation in which she is able to finally understand the ultimate fate of the Compsons, and thus of herself and her own family. Though Dilsey’s position in society is regarded as a lowly one, she is presented as being in possession of more perspective and sanity than the majority of other characters in the novel. The fourth section of The Sound and the Fury is told from an omniscient perspective, but it is Dilsey’s persona that seems to provide its overarching narrative. She maintains a mask in front of her employers, and so is depicted throughout the novel as a pillar of strength and steely resolve. It is not until the Easter Day sermon she allows her mask to slip, and in the process exposes more of her true character than had previously been conveyed to the reader. She sits “bolt upright, crying rigidly and quietly” as she listens to the charismatic preacher (185) . Her daughter is embarrassed by her emotional state as they prepare to leave, but Dilsey tells her off, saying “I’ve seed de first and de last. Never you mind me.” (185) In the Book of Revelation, 22:13, God says, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the

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