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The Sound and the Fury Race Quotes

How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #1

"White folks gives n***** money because know first white man comes along with a band going to get it all back, so n***** can go to work for some more." (1.146)

Luster’s obsession with the circus is an ironic – if apt – example of this. The fact that anonymous black characters voice this sentiment might suggest that it’s actually a general observation of Faulkner’s.

Quote #2

"Oh." Caddy said. "That's n*****s. White folks dont have funerals."

[…]"I like to know why not." Frony said. "White folks dies too. Your grandmammy dead as any n***** can get, I reckon." (1.406, 411)

Frony’s comments set death as the final point of equality for all people (it’s also a strange foreshadowing of Quentin’s obsession with his shadow dying before he does).

Quote #3

I admire Maury. He is invaluable to my own sense of racial superiority. I wouldn't swap Maury for a matched team. (1.561)

OK, Mr. Compson’s obviously being a bit ironic here. Maury is precisely the character who disproves any theories of racial superiority…he’s a complete loser. Mr. Compson suggests this by refusing to swap Maury for a "matched team" – a pair of horses. Your brother-in-law for a horse? Now that’s a fair trade. At least, he sort of thinks so.