Whilst reading chapter 5 in class today, one of Christmas' thoughts stuck out for me. "Thinking All I wanted was peace thinking, 'She ought not to started praying over me'," (Faulkner, 1985, p. 112). This inclines me to believe that Christmas' "peace" is actually a state of apathy. His following thought, concerning Miss Burden praying over him, confirms this all the more for me. He did not want her to do such a thing because with religion comes hope, and hope merely draws out pain with the notion of optimism. Christmas wishes to repress his past and any reminders of it; perhaps, before, he had hoped and the blow of reality had been too much for him to recover from. Inputs?
I agree but I don't understand why Mrs. Burden would pray over him either she knows something about his past or something about his futur?
ReplyDeleteMost likely the past, in my opinion, perhaps praying over him in hopes of helping him overcome whatever "ghosts" of his past still haunt him.
DeleteI also think she's praying for him to move on from his past, from whatever is haunting him.
ReplyDeleteThat actually makes sense.
DeleteI agree with you, but I also interpreted it that Joe doesn't think he's worthy of salvation and that he doesn't deserve to be forgiven. I think that belief comes with his idea that he doesn't belong anywhere, so he blames himself for the things he cannot change.
ReplyDeleteI concur with his idea that he doesn't belong anywhere, which is supported by his denial of the chance for salvation through forgiveness and, more specifically, religion.
Delete