The Tangled Fire of William Faulkner

Book excerpt: The Tangled Fire of William Faulkner was first published in 1953. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions. Out of the tangled fire that is the genius of William Faulkner's fiction, this critical study draws as coherent and highly original view of the writer's achievement. By placing Faulkner in his Mississippi background and analyzing his novels and short stories in chronological sequence, O'Conner demonstrates a major thesis that sets this apart from other studies. It is his interpretation that Faulkner's fiction is not all of a piece, does not merely develop the conviction of the legend of the Old South, but is, rather, marked by diversity of theme.