40 pages • 1 hour read
William FaulknerA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
The grave becomes an important symbol for the search for truth, and the relationship between truth and justice. On two occasions, Charles and others visit the grave of Vinson Gowrie. The funeral for Vinson was arranged shortly after his death and was held when Lucas Beauchamp was already locked up in the town jail. Vinson was buried quickly, but Lucas insists that this grave holds important information. Though Lucas only wants to know the caliber of bullet that killed Vinson, the actual contents of the grave are far more damning. Jake Montgomery, rather than Vinson Gowrie, is buried there. This first visit highlights the failings of the legal system, because in digging up a grave without a warrant they are committing a crime to prevent an even greater crime from taking place. Ironically, those operating on the side of justice are forced to break the letter of the law to preserve the spirit of the law. That the grave contains the wrong man exacerbates this sense of injustice, as not even the identity of a dead man can be depended upon.
After the rush to dig up the grave the first time, Charles and the other characters return to the town with the information they have discovered.
By William Faulkner
Absalom, Absalom
William Faulkner
A Fable
William Faulkner
A Rose for Emily
William Faulkner
As I Lay Dying
William Faulkner
Barn Burning
William Faulkner
Dry September
William Faulkner
Go Down, Moses
William Faulkner
Light in August
William Faulkner
Sanctuary
William Faulkner
Spotted Horses
William Faulkner
That Evening Sun
William Faulkner
The Bear
William Faulkner
The Hamlet
William Faulkner
The Reivers
William Faulkner
The Sound and the Fury
William Faulkner
The Unvanquished
William Faulkner