William Faulkner’s Go Down, Moses: The Destructive Power of Possession

This novel explores Faulkner’s response to possession—of people and of the land—through the lens of one family and its black and white descendants. The seven short stories that comprise the novel are set between 1859 and 1941, each contributing to Faulkner’s unraveling of the myths of the American wilderness as a New Eden, of the Southern states’ “Lost Cause,” and of the possibility of redemption after slavery.

Required Reading:

William Faulkner, Go Down Moses, ISBN 978-0679732174

Michele Lettiere holds a MA from the Bread Loaf School of English. She taught English and Theater for 40 years at the secondary level and is a passionate reader of Faulkner’s work.