Jason+Compson

Jason Compson is a primary character in Faulkner's novel //The Sound and The Fury.// He is the middle child amongst the Compson family siblings (Quentin, Caddy, and Benjy). Jason's chapter in //TSAF// takes place on April 6, 1928 and is the only chapter that is primarily told in the present. This is indicative of who Jason is as a character. Unlike Benjy's and Quentin's chapter's where they both had a tight grasp of past events, Jason's disassociation from the past is what provides the novel with a sense of comic relief from the otherwise dense chapters. Ralph E. Hitt writes, " Faulkner would clearly concur that he used humor in the Jason section for developing the story for characterization" (124). It also represents Jason's need to separate himself from "old South" and "new South."

Jason, who is now the sole patriarch of the Compson family has taken responsibility for the welfare of the family, whether he wanted to or not. He's responsible for his mother, Mrs. Compson and niece, Miss Quentin, his brother Benjy, the slaves (Dilsey, Loosh, Luster), and the family finances. All of this responsibility comes with a price: resentment. Jason feels tremendous resentment by being the only working Compson family member, on top of taking care of his niece with whom he has a genuine hatred toward. His resentment is then displayed in the form of control and the need to keep up with appearances for his mother's sake who still holds on to traditional Southern values:

//"But something must be done," she says. "To have people think I permit her to stay out of school and run about the streets, or that I can't prevent her doing it...Jason, Jason," she says. "How could you. How could you leave me with these burdens."//

//"Now now," I says. "You'll make yourself sick. Why don't you either lock her up all day too, or turn her over to me and quit worrying over her?" (Faulkner, 182).//

Mrs. Compson who plays the ever so helpless, distressed mother, constantly asks Jason for help, and he does so willingly. Despite Jason's blatant misogynistic beliefs, he is extremely loyal to his mother. Perhaps because she is still the matriarch of the family and Jason feels an obligation to respect her.

The irony in the interaction between mother and son is that Mrs. Compson believes that she is left with the "burden" of taking care of her granddaughter, but in fact, Jason is the only who must carry the burden of the family. Jason becomes frustrated with having to be the only one to carry this burden because he believes he gets nothing in return. His relationship for being the patriarch is tied in with the idea of "What's in it for me?" or "What am I getting out of this?" As Hitt implies in his article, "Jason is masochistic in his pessimism. He expects the worst of people, and especially (since he alone is sane and rational) expects the worst people can do to be directed toward him" (128). For example, in a discussion with Luster about changing a tire, Jason exclaims, "I feed a whole dam kitchen full of niggers to follow around after him, but if I want an automobile tire changed, I have to do it myself." (Faulkner, 186). Here, Jason's frustration is the lack of respect he receives from the "help." This can be seen as an overarching problem that Jason is faced with; in which a man of substance, like he believes himself to be, is disrespected by even the lowest of the low in Southern hierarchy. He's even disrespected by his own niece even though that's due to his own volition.

The disrespect that he receives from his niece further adds to his frustration and resentment. His frustration in that he has zero control over a female and added resentment of his dislike for women in general. His relationship towards his niece, Miss Quentin (who is Caddy's daughter) is built around misogyny, violence, and control. In almost every interaction that involves Miss Q, he reacts with such hostility:

//"Everybody in this town knows what you are. But I won't have it anymore, you hear? I don't care what you do, myself," I says. "But i've got a position in this town, and I'm not going to have any member of my family going on like a nigger wench. You hear me?" (Faulkner, 189).//

This is just one example of many, but for Jason it's important that his reputation remain in tact. Considering the reputation that was left behind by Caddy and Quentin, Jason makes it his personal duty to separate himself from the "old" and assert himself in the "new." Jason is focused on his work and how he can make money. "Whatever Jason's moral standard is based on, it is definitely not the principles of Christianity and organized religion. His preoccupation since childhood had been material [...]" (Hitt, 129). Being tied to Christian values would be a very "old Southern" tradition which is something Jason doesn't care for. What he's interested in is working hard and making a name for himself (in what he thinks is the right thing, even if that means stealing money). He prides himself on being an "honest" man. Jason recognizes that he's not the //most// successful man but he can appreciate his own personal success:

//I may not be sitting with my feet on a mahogany desk but I am being payed for what I do inside this building and if I can't manage to live a civilised life outside of it i'll go where I can. I can stand on my own two feet; I don't need any man's mahogany desk to prop me up. (Faulkner, 211).//

Jason's character comes across as bitter, disgruntled, hostile, and even if those are true, it's not to say he doesn't have a reason. Losing the only person in his life that truly loved him (his grandmother, Damuddy), he was neglected and was forced to live in the shadow of his siblings. By remaining in the "shadow" Jason became self-reliant and self-made. The "relief" that Jason's chapter provides is one of sarcasm and dark humor, but only because it exemplifies the way in which he tries so hard to escape his past only to continue being burdened by it.

[Carla Scollo]

Works Cited

Hitt, Ralph E. “Compson, Anti-Compson: Humor in the Characterization of Jason Compson IV.” //Interpretations //, vol. 16, no. 1, 1985, pp. 124–134.