History Literature / AbsalomAbsalom

* MalignedMixedMarriage: Sutpen renounces his marriage to a plantation owner's daughter after finding out she has black blood. It's also implied that Sutpen opposed to Charles Bon marrying Judith more on account of Bon's partial black ancestry than by the fact that he's Judith's half-brother.

* HeroOfAnotherStory: This being a Yoknapatawpha novel, several individuals who were main characters of Faulkner's other books and stories appear in minor roles. Most notably, Quentin Compson, the ill-fated {{Deuteragonist}} of ''Literature/TheSoundAndTheFury'' is the de facto narrator in much of the book.

** Theophilus [=McCaslin=] (aka Uncle Buck from ''Go Down Moses'') appears briefly as one of the Confederate soldiers eulogizing Henry Bon.

* MalignedMixedMarriage: Sutpen renounces his marriage to a plantation owner's daughter after finding out she has black blood.

** Theophilus [=McCaslin=] ("Uncle Buck" from ''Go Down Moses'') appears briefly as one of the Confederate soldiers eulogizing Henry Bon.

** Theophilus McCaslin ("Uncle Buck" from ''Go Down Moses'') appears briefly as one of the Confederate soldiers eulogizing Henry Bon.

* KnightTemplarBigBrother: Henry protects the honor of his sister Judith by [[spoiler: killing Charles, her fiance, after finding out that he is their father's illegitimate son. Strangely, he's perfectly okay with the incest. What he ultimately can't abide is that Charles is part black]].

Set, like many of Faulkner's stories, in Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, it is the story of the rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen, who comes to Mississippi to build the next great American dynasty in the decades before, during, and after UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar. Sutpen's story is told by various characters to [[Literature/TheSoundAndTheFury Quentin Compson]] shortly before he leaves for Harvard, and Quentin then retells some of it to his roommate [[spoiler: before Quentin kills himself, an act detailed in ''The Sound and the Fury'']].

The title comes from the biblical story of Absalom, a son of King David who [[spoiler: murdered his half-brother Amnon, much as Henry Sutpen murders his own illegitimate half-brother Charles Bon in Faulkner's tale.]]

!!This Novel Contains Examples Of:

* IncestIsRelative: [[spoiler: The reason Charles cannot marry Judith is because he is her half-brother, and Sutpen's illegitimate son]].
* IWillWaitForYou: Judith to Charles

Set, like many of Faulkner's stories, in Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, it is the story of the rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen, who comes to Mississippi to build the next great American dynasty in the decades before, during, and after UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar. Sutpen's story is told by various characters to [[Literature/TheSoundAndTheFury Quentin Compson]] shortly before he leaves for Harvard, and Quentin then retells some of it to his roommate [[spoiler: before Quentin kills himself, as detailed in ''The Sound and the Fury'']].

It details the rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen, a poor white man who comes to Mississippi to build his fortune. The events of the novel are partially related by [[Literature/TheSoundAndTheFury Quentin Compson]] to his roommate at Harvard, shortly before [[spoiler: Quentin kills himself]].

The plot spans several decades before, during, and after the civil war, describing the intertwined fates of several southern families.

The title comes from the biblical story of Absalom, a son of David, and refers to the ultimate fate of the Sutpens.

* BrotherSisterIncest: It's vaguely implied that Henry has a thing for his sister Judith, as well as the fact that [[spoiler: Charles is Judith's half-brother]]. Also there's Quentin.

''Absalom, Absalom!'' is a novel by Creator/WilliamFaulkner, possibly the most dense of his works, and is [[DoorStopper very long]]. It details the rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen, a poor white man who comes to Mississippi to build his fortune. The events of the novel are partially related by [[Literature/TheSoundAndTheFury Quentin Compson]] to his roommate at Harvard, shortly before [[spoiler: Quentin kills himself]].

''Absalom, Absalom!'' is a novel by WilliamFaulkner, possibly the most dense of his works, and is [[DoorStopper very long]]. It details the rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen, a poor white man who comes to Mississippi to build his fortune. The events of the novel are partially related by [[Literature/TheSoundAndTheFury Quentin Compson]] to his roommate at Harvard, shortly before [[spoiler: Quentin kills himself]].

* IncestIsRelative: [[spoiler: The reason Charles cannot marry Judith is because he is her half-brother, and Sutpen's illigitemate son]].

* HoYay: Henry is a bit too obsessed with Charles, and it's vaguely implied that he has sexual feelings for him.

''Absalom, Absalom!'' is a novel by WilliamFaulkner, possibly the most dense of his works, and is [[DoorStopper very long]]. It details the rise and fall of Thomas Sutpen, a poor white man who comes to Mississippi to build his fortune. The events of the novel are partially related by [[TheSoundAndTheFury Quentin Compson]] to his roommate at Harvard, shortly before [[spoiler: Quentin kills himself]].

* HoYay: Henry is a bit too obsessed with Charles, and it's vaguely implied that he has sexual feelings for him.

* MixedMarriage: Sutpen renounces his marriage to a plantation owner's daughter after finding out she has black blood.